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Interview with Ian Simpson Winner of 2025 888poker LIVE Madrid Main Event

I’m joined for this interview by Ian Simpson, fresh off his incredible win at the 888poker LIVE Madrid Main Event, where he took home €62,000. Not only is this a huge personal achievement, but it also marks the first time an 888poker Ambassador has won one of the company’s own live events. Ian battled through a tough field of 403 entries in the €888 buy-in event, endured a grueling 12-hour final day, and emerged from a two-hour heads-up duel to claim the title. Let’s dive into his experience and hear firsthand how it all unfolded.

Ian Simpson Interview Summarized Transcript

From the coverage I saw and watching a bit of the stream on the 888poker Twitch channel, it wasn’t smooth sailing. You entered this event more than once, yes?

Yeah, I fired two bullets, got eliminated on Day 1A but things turned around on Day 1B. On Day 1B things were pretty quiet until suddenly there was a three-way collision between my Kings against pocket tens and pocket eights. My hand held, and I bagged a healthy stack.

I imagine if you got knocked out on Day 1B you might’ve fired bullet #3 on Day 1C, right? So, what did you end up doing before Day 2 commenced?

It actually worked out great; I made loads of content all day long with the 888poker crew. It’s hard work, but I enjoy working with the team behind the scenes. Had I gotten knocked out on Day 1B, my Day 1C registration would’ve been very late, as I had those commitments, so actually things worked out really well in that regard.

Day 2, I remember having a precarious stack approaching the bubble. I thought at some point I’d be able to abuse the bubble, but that didn’t happen. Thankfully the bubble didn’t last too long, and then things calmed down a bit. I suffered a pretty big cooler though, at which point I started thinking ahead “OK, well, at least we made the money, maybe I’ll jump in the high roller. But we doubled, and we battled… and we doubled again and we battled… and suddenly it was Day 3.

In Spain they like to start everything late. Day 2 didn’t commence until 5pm, and it only ended at 3am. And that was after a very lengthy Day 1B to boot. So it’s been a long ride, but I’m a night owl and I’m OK with the late starts and light ends!

Day 3 was a marathon, too! It was another 12 hours of poker, from 23 players down to the win. You started the day off in ninth place. How did you keep yourself sharp and stay locked in on your A-Game throughout the day of play, specifically as the final table approached?

You’ve got to eat right! Some people don’t have breakfast and then go out and play; I don’t understand how they do that. Even if I’m not feeling hungry, I know that my body and brain needs fuel so I always pack snacks. Keeping hydrated is important, too. Also, having a rail is very helpful to keep your spirits up, and I had one heck of a rail!

You started the final table in third place. How did that impact your approach? Did you feel comfortable with your position, or was there any moments where things got especially tense or tricky?

I needed to feel out how my opponents were approaching the final table and assess how good I thought each of them were. I tried to make use of whatever information I could and was available — like when cards get exposed at showdown — to get a sense of how they were playing. Maybe they’re 3-betting light, for example, or maybe they’re just getting a rush of hands.

Also, there are times when it’s wise to take one’s foot off the gas; after all, ICM is obviously very important. Once I found myself as chip leader, that’s when I had the opportunity to apply pressure. I’ve gotten a lot better at that; I was great at being patient. I’m a little more selective now.

READ MORE: What is ICM in Poker?

That’s such an excellent “professional poker player” answer. I imagine you would’ve given such an answer regardless of whatever ended up happening at the final table. The fact of the matter is, however, that you won. Was it a matter of executing better on the strategy you laid out? Was it just a matter of running well? Was it a combination of both?

It was a bit of both. I ran good and had a better card distribution when I was heads up. I never lost an all-in when my tournament life was at stake. But you have to get into confrontations if you want to make money, and to actually win a tournament you have to survive a lot of them. It’s wonderful to be on this side of variance. So whilst I’ve worked on my game, have studied ICM, have read a lot of poker books, etc. obviously running well plays a large role, too.

You came into heads-up play with Alvaro Munciano nearly even in chips, and it took about two hours to close it out. What was the dynamic like between you two, and what ultimately helped you seal the win?

Again, I did have a better card distribution heads-up. This interview could’ve been very different if he had had pocket aces one time I was bluffing. Honestly, it was just a battle. He was rather aggressive, and I had been studying how to counter “that particular brand of reg”. But bottom line, if the card distribution was reversed, this conversation might be very different.

You mentioned in your social media updates throughout the tournament how the emotions kept building as the tournament progressed, from just wanting to run deep to realizing you had a real shot at the title. Sticking with the strategy and staying cool under pressure is what professionals do, of course, but I’m wondering if nonetheless there might have been a specific moment when it really hit you that, ‘Wow, I could actually win this and that would be amazing’?

I feel that way immediately on Day 1A. Every time I enter a tournament, whether it’s the $8 Voyage on 888poker online or the $10K WSOP Main Event, I’m always like “it would be cool to win this!” Many people say you shouldn’t get your hopes up so much because it’s so hard to win tournaments. The overwhelming majority of the time you bust and don’t even make the money.

I’ve been around long enough to know that in poker you’re just going to get your ass kicked a LOT! But understanding that deeply is exactly why I can remain optimistic right from the get-go of any tournament I play that it would be so great to win! I can afford to be a bit of a daydreamer.

Ian Simpson 888poker

I checked your HendonMob results and this is your biggest live poker tournament win in over a decade. How much does this victory mean to you, especially as an 888poker ambassador – and the first team pro to win one of their live events?

It’s so special. I’ve had some good results and have “knocked on the door” over the last decade making final tables, but all the money is on the podium, in the top three. So winning any event, whether it’s a main event or side event, is always wonderful. Getting to win an 888poker main event is even better. And the rail being there until 4am to cheer me on was just magic!

Your fellow 888poker team pros—Vivian Saliba, Lucia Navarro, Josh Manley, and Nick Eastwood—were all there cheering you on. You can hear them all chanting “Simpson, Simpson, Simpson”. What was it like having that kind of support from your teammates? Can you recall and describe that moment of victory? Have you ever experienced a rail like that before?

It was amazing. In between hands they were getting rowdy and cheering my name. I was able to catch some of the things they were talking about and it was just nice things about me being said; they’re just so supportive and I’ve just found myself with such a wonderful team.

When I’ve had wins in the past, it was so long ago so I didn’t know as many people in poker. This was the first time I’ve had a big crowd like that, so it was really special. Some of them even had flights and they didn’t go to bed… they just stayed to root me on and went straight from there to the airport without any sleep!

So, €62K is a nice little windfall—any plans to splurge on something fun, or is it all getting reinvested in poker?

I need to talk to my wife about that; we’re a unit! We’ve got my daughter to think about, we’ve got my poker career to think about. There are things in the house we want to do. I’ve never been that kind of guy to drop tons of money on a Rolex. I’m a lot more sensible and was like that even when I was younger. So many people would’ve bought a Ferrari or started buying in to the high rollers, but when I had a big score a decade ago we bought a house. Poker can often be cruel… I know that these times are rare.

What’s next for you? Does this win change your plans for 2025, or are you just taking things one event at a time?

888poker has put out a really rich schedule of live events, especially the UKPL with stops in places like Edinburgh and Newcastle, but also the 888poker LIVE series. It’s not massive buy-ins but mostly $500s and $1Ks. But I will admit that I have a hunger for some bigger buy-in events around the world, like the EPTs. Sometimes they’re a bit trickier to get to or the dates don’t align with my personal/family calendar, but some of the very best high buy-in events are now on my radar.

I’ll be selectively buying in to some bigger events, probably shot-take a bit more, but obviously having this win behind me makes things more comfortable from a bankroll perspective. I’ll keep a lot more of my own action rather than selling too much, etc.

Conclusion

Ian, congratulations once again on this fantastic victory! It’s been great hearing all about your journey through the tournament. This is definitely a moment to savor. Best of luck at and hopefully, we’ll see you back in the winner’s circle soon!

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