Day 1B of the World Series of Poker Main Event unfolded Friday at the Paris Las Vegas Ballroom with a noticeably quieter atmosphere than the opening day, though defending champion Michael Mizrachi provided a burst of energy with his own dramatic entrance. Accompanied by women holding signs spelling out his nickname “Grinder,” Mizrachi received his ninth WSOP bracelet during the first break, awarded for his Pot-limit Omaha Championship win on Monday.

Attendance for the $10,000 buy-in No-limit Hold’em World Championship remains slightly behind last year’s pace, but organizers expect a surge on Saturday with Day 1C, which falls on the Fourth of July holiday. Registration remains open until Day 2D on Tuesday.

Mizrachi, a Poker Hall of Fame member, had more than doubled his 60,000-chip starting stack by the dinner break, positioning himself for a potential deep run as he aims to become the first back-to-back Main Event champion since Johnny Chan in 1987 and 1988. Among the other notable players in the field were 2004 Main Event champion Greg Raymer, who was well above his starting stack at the dinner break, and Antonio Esfandiari, who entertained the ESPN audience at a feature table while seeking his first WSOP cash since 2019.

Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, a four-time bracelet winner, suffered an early setback when his pocket kings ran into Damien Gayer’s pocket aces. Former soccer star Gerard Pique also played, avoiding big pots, though he has yet to cash in a WSOP event despite over $700,000 in career live tournament earnings.

The day’s first elimination came early when Israel’s Shraga Vrubel knocked out Stephen Lee. Lee flopped a set of sevens and called Vrubel’s all-in with pocket aces, but Vrubel made a flush on the turn and river to win the hand and later built one of the biggest stacks in the room by the dinner break.