Brazilian Players Add Another Chapter to Their Remarkable Venom History at ACR Poker

Two Brazilians return to the PLO Venom final table

In the PLO Venom, José Orlando do Nascimento, playing as “Blessed33,” finished fourth for approximately $82,743, including collected bounties. Six-time WSOP bracelet winner Yuri Martins Dzivielevski, known as “vousconfus” at ACR Poker, took fifth for approximately $72,634.

Martins entered the seven-handed final table second in chips, while Orlando started fourth. Both remained in contention before exiting in consecutive finishing positions. The title eventually went to “tigerseyes,” who earned approximately $239,819 in prize money and bounties after a heads-up deal with “Pepareg1.” The PLO tournament drew 602 entries and generated a $1,505,000 prize pool.

What makes the Brazilian duo’s achievement especially notable is how familiar the scene was. Orlando and Martins also shared a PLO Venom final table in April 2026, when the tournament was played in the Mystery Bounty format. On that occasion, Orlando finished third for $205,380, while Martins placed sixth for $96,282, with bounty winnings included in both totals.

Reaching the last table of a major PLO tournament once is an achievement. Doing it together twice in the same year gives their latest results a much stronger historical connection, even without a Brazilian victory.

Victor Pedote leads Brazil’s NLH final-table challenge

Brazil’s representative at the nine-handed NLH final table was Victor Pedote, playing under the screen name “meteli goli.” He started the final table seventh in chips, with 44,020,731, and ultimately finished in the same position.

Pedote received $65,318.64 in regular prize money and roughly $38,769 in collected bounties, for a total of approximately $104,088. His run ended against “Lappy,” whose ace-jack prevailed over Pedote’s ace-four in a hand that sent the Brazilian out in seventh.

Pedote was far from the only Brazilian to make a deep run. Matheus Camillo (“LaMurruguita”) earned approximately $42,571, while “SouNinjaa” finished 14th for $34,120, “c4trups!!” took 15th for $29,486 and “BetoBarrelo” placed 16th for $31,088. Those results added further depth to Brazil’s performance beyond the final table.

The NLH title went to “PushLightYear,” who defeated “ArkaduktusFrRM” heads-up and earned approximately $536,577 across the regular prize and bounties. The tournament attracted 2,143 entries, creating a $5,357,500 prize pool. Another striking result came from “Pepareg1,” who finished third in NLH after taking second in PLO, collecting a combined $446,144 across the two events.

The NLH final table was broadcast on ACR Poker’s Twitch channel, with commentary from Chris Moneymaker and Rob Kuhn. The PLO final table was not livestreamed, but its action can be revisited through ACR Poker’s FT Replayer, with hole cards revealed.

Big fields, growing bounties and a Brazilian presence on Day 2

The October Dual Venoms began on October 4 and offered five Day 1 flights, continuing on October 8, 11, 15 and 18. Both events returned for Day 2 on October 19, followed by an additional NLH Day 3 on October 20 and the two final tables on October 21.

Unlike some earlier Venoms that featured Mystery Bounties, both October events used the Progressive Knockout format. Players earned money for eliminating opponents from Day 1 onward, collecting half of each defeated player’s current bounty while the other half increased the bounty on their own head. That meant a player’s finishing-position payout told only part of the story; the accumulated knockouts could change the total substantially.

Across the two tournaments, 45 Brazilian Day 2 qualifications were recorded: 39 in NLH and six in PLO. Martins appeared on both qualifying lists, reflecting the willingness of some players to compete in both formats. The figures measure players who advanced to Day 2, not the number who ultimately finished in the regular payout places.

There were also lower-cost routes into both tournaments. Venom Fever ran from September 29 through October 18, guaranteeing 587 seats across Direct and Mega Satellites, with additional feeder routes and Survivor Flips Step Satellites starting at $0.80. The Venom Vault offered another way to unlock tournament prizes, including Venom tickets.

One Brazilian example was streamer Marcelo Cartana (“CartanaPoker”), who qualified for the $2,650 NLH Venom after starting with an $0.80 Survivor Flip. He advanced to Day 2 and eventually finished 158th for approximately $8,367, including bounties. His run was a reminder that the Venom’s large buy-in does not tell the whole story of how players reach the field.

Brazilian players also produced notable results in the surrounding Venom Specials. Yago Simplício took second in a $630 Venom Special High Roller for $36,403, while Fernando Nogami finished third for $26,574. Pedro Padilha also earned $20,178 as runner-up in a $1,050 Venom Special.

Brazil helped define the Venom’s big-money era

The Venom name was already in use by November 2018, when Americas Cardroom renamed its $1 million guaranteed Million Dollar Encore the Sunday Venom. In July 2019, the site staged its first $5 million guaranteed multi-day Venom, won by Brazilian Rafael Moraes, playing as “TheBigKid,” for $1,050,559.50. The victory was recorded by Guinness World Records as the largest cryptocurrency winning jackpot in an online poker tournament, with the amount valued at 104.23 BTC at the time.

Brazil won again in December 2019. João Simão, associated with the screen name “galodoido13,” won the $6 million guaranteed Venom for $1,039,982. That meant Brazilian players had captured the first two major multi-day Venom championships, each collecting more than $1 million.

Perhaps the most distinctly Brazilian Venom final came in February 2021, when Ramon Kropmanns (“PORKNOMAR”) faced fellow Brazilian Yuri Martins (then playing as “SmashedAvocado”) heads-up. Kropmanns emerged as champion for $1,113,330, while Martins collected $849,150 for second place. A third Brazilian, Diego Bittar (“GORDONITO”), finished sixth for approximately $121,712.

The 2021 result now has a direct connection to October 2026: Martins is still reaching Venom final tables, this time in PLO, more than five years after that all-Brazilian heads-up showdown.

More champions and million-dollar finishes

Brazil’s impact continued as the Venom grew and introduced additional formats. In August 2023, Felipe Ketzer finished runner-up in a $10 million guaranteed NLH Venom, taking home $1,149,260. Ketzer was also among the six Brazilian players who reached Day 2 of the October 2026 PLO Venom.

In August 2024, Ivanildo “chickenpastry” Limeira won the $8 million guaranteed NLH Mystery Bounty Venom for $617,333, including bounties. His compatriots Fabiano Kovalski and Dante Goya finished third and fourth, respectively, giving Brazil three of the top four positions in that final.

Another Brazilian champion followed in February 2025, when Carlos “S1NISTR0” Rocha won the $8 million guaranteed NLH Mystery Bounty Venom for $748,547, including $135,000 in bounty winnings.

Then came one of the country’s biggest Venom successes. On April 30, 2025, Gabriel “kingqueensuited” Tavares outlasted 3,735 entries in the $10 million guaranteed NLH Venom to win $1,505,240. Brazilian poker coverage identified him at the time as the sixth Brazilian player to win a Venom title.

Limeira has since become another symbol of the tournament’s enduring appeal for Brazilian players. He reached the NLH Mystery Bounty Venom final table again in February 2026, finishing sixth for $148,753. In September, he went even further, making a heads-up deal and finishing runner-up in the $12 million guaranteed Mystery Bounty Venom for $779,154, including bounties. Those results gave him three Venom final tables across 2024 and 2026.

Tavares, meanwhile, was among Brazil’s October NLH Day 2 qualifiers. He also entered these Venoms in strong form after winning ACR Poker’s Sunday Banana on consecutive Sundays, October 4 and 11, for a combined $204,657.43. The Sunday Banana victories were separate tournaments, but they provided another example of the recent results Brazilian players have been putting together at ACR Poker.

Another chapter, with more still to come

For Tavares, the pride surrounding Brazilian poker is not limited to personal results. In a recent ACR Poker interview, he described how the community responds to major wins: “When you win a tournament, they embrace you and celebrate with you.”

That sense of shared achievement helps explain why the Venom’s Brazilian story extends beyond any one champion. In October 2026, the spotlight fell on Pedote, Orlando and Martins, whose three final-table finishes produced nearly $260,000 combined. Behind them were 45 Brazilian Day 2 qualifications, several more deep NLH finishes and even an $0.80 satellite entry that turned into a four-figure payout.

Brazil did not claim either of the latest Dual Venom titles. But from Moraes and Simão in 2019 to the all-Brazilian heads-up in 2021, Tavares’s seven-figure victory, Limeira’s repeated final tables and the latest October results, the country’s place in ACR Poker’s Venom history is firmly established.

For tournament information, previous coverage and upcoming editions, visit ACR Poker’s Venom page.