Mao Triumphs at King’s Resort
Renji Mao has joined the elite group of two-time World Series of Poker bracelet winners after taking down Event #8: €5,000 Pot-Limit Omaha at the 2025 WSOP Europe in Rozvadov. The Chinese player, who previously captured the $800 No-Limit Hold’em Deep Stack in Las Vegas in 2023, secured his second bracelet along with €213,600 in prize money.
Mao overcame a tough field of 200 entries and mounted a dramatic comeback heads-up against Italy’s Dario Alioto, who had dominated much of the tournament before finishing runner-up for €138,800.
Final Table Results
| Rank | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Renji Mao | China | €213,600 |
| 2 | Dario Alioto | Italy | €138,800 |
| 3 | Grzegorz Derkowski | Germany | €92,800 |
| 4 | Fahredin Mustafov | Bulgaria | €64,000 |
| 5 | Zdenek Zizka | Czech Republic | €45,600 |
| 6 | Salih Atac | Switzerland | €33,500 |
| 7 | Vadim Zakharyan | Israel | €25,500 |
| 8 | Kumaran Sarvendran | Norway | €20,050 |
| 9 | Dennis Weiss | Germany | €16,400 |
Tournament Highlights
Day 2 began with 31 players in contention, including Fahredin Mustafov, who arrived late but still held a massive stack. Early exits included Nikolaos Lampropoulos (31st, €10,650) and Patrik Jaros (13th, €12,200), while seven-time bracelet winner Shaun Deeb fell in 11th place for €13,900.
At the final table, defending champion Dennis Weiss was eliminated first in 9th, while Alioto surged back into the lead after hitting a flush. Mao eliminated Salih Atac in 6th with a rivered straight in a massive aces-versus-aces clash, setting off a series of knockouts. Alioto dispatched both Zdenek Zizka (5th) and Mustafov (4th) before entering three-handed play as the favorite. After Grzegorz Derkowski’s exit in 3rd, Alioto began heads-up with a 3:1 advantage.
Heads-Up Comeback
Despite facing a steep deficit, Mao showed composure and resilience. Two quick double-ups flipped the match, and in the final all-in confrontation, Mao held strong to clinch the victory.
“I don’t know how Hellmuth does it,” Mao joked as he celebrated with two fingers raised for his second bracelet. Reflecting on his journey, he added:
“The bracelet means a lot because the WSOP is always different. The first one was a big-field event that required a lot of luck, but I probably wouldn’t be playing that many tournaments now without it. This one was a higher buy-in with more pros and more fighting, so I’m super happy to take down this field. It proves that I can not only beat Hold’em, but other formats as well.”
Looking Ahead
While Mao insists he is not “a bracelet hunter,” the win reaffirmed his confidence. “Heads-up was relatively simple because I just had to focus on doubling down on my aggression and try to fight back. I would have been happy with second place if I lost, so I wasn’t nervous at all,” he said.
The champion now turns his attention to the €10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha Mystery Bounty, already underway, and the highly anticipated WSOP Europe Main Event in the coming days.
