Nishant Sharma Wins Record-Breaking APT Championship Main Event

The final day of the APT Championship Main Event wrapped up in fitting fashion, closing out what has become the largest tournament in APT history. A total of 671 entries built a prize pool of TWD 194,080,973, creating the biggest USD 10,000 freezeout held in Asia for more than a decade.

India’s Nishant Sharma started the final day as the clear chip leader and never looked back. He controlled the table from the opening hand to the last, staying composed throughout a lineup packed with experience, past champions, and high-stakes regulars. When it was all over, Sharma stood alone with the 24K Gold Lion Trophy and the top prize of TWD 37,030,773 (~USD 1,186,880)  — the largest Main Event payout ever awarded on the Asian Poker Tour.

The victory is also a landmark moment for Indian poker. Sharma now joins a small group of Indian players with seven-figure USD scores and climbs to fifth on India’s All-Time Money List. What made the run even more impressive was the path he took to get here: he qualified for the event through a USD 1,700 satellite and turned it into a career-defining result.

How the Final Table Unfolded

Action picked up quickly. Short stack Martin Finger doubled through Dominik Nitsche in the first few minutes, but his tournament came to an early end when his ace-king ran into the aces of Matas Cimbolas . Finger picked up equity on the turn but couldn’t catch up on the river and exited in ninth.

A few hands later, Alexandru Papazian was all but out when his ace-jack ran into Cimbolas’ pocket queens, but a backdoor flush kept him alive and set the tone for a swing-heavy start.

There were no eliminations for the next two full levels, but the table didn’t lack for moments. John Costiniano produced one of the day’s highlights with a huge river bluff against Hao Chuang , shoving over a river bet on a paired board and then instantly showing the bluff when Chuang folded. It kept Costiniano in the mix and drew one of the loudest reactions from the rail.

The next departure came when Cimbolas’ pocket queens couldn’t hold against Hao Shan Huang ’s ace-queen. Huang paired his ace on the flop and Cimbolas left in eighth.

Chuang followed soon after. Three-way all-in action saw Neng Zhao make a full house, which left Chuang with nowhere to go and out in seventh.

Sharma continued applying steady pressure across the table. One of the biggest swings came when he got pocket deuces in against Huang’s ace-king. Huang flopped top pair and turned trips, but a deuce on the river sent him out in sixth – a painful ending after a strong run built from a USD 350 Step 1 satellite.

Zhao had been moving up and down the leaderboard throughout the day but couldn’t hold momentum late. He shoved king-ten into Sharma’s queen-eight and a queen on the flop ended his run in fifth.

Four-handed play didn’t last long. Dominik Nitsche committed his stack with pocket fives, only to run into Papazian’s kings. No help arrived and Nitsche exited in fourth.

Sharma then pulled further ahead and kept both remaining players under constant pressure. Papazian lost several medium-sized pots to the chip leader before calling off with king-ten against Costiniano’s queen-deuce. A queen on the turn sealed it, leaving Papazian out in third.

Heads-Up: Sharma Closes It Out

Sharma held a five-to-one lead as heads-up play began, and the match was nearly over within two hands. Costiniano doubled once, but the momentum never shifted meaningfully.

The final hand brought one more twist. Costiniano flopped trips with jack-three, while Sharma held kings and picked up a flush draw on the turn. Everything went in, and a heart on the river gave Sharma the winning hand, ending Costiniano’s strong run in second place.

As the rail erupted, Sharma took a moment to soak in what the win meant — a satellite seat turned into a historic APT title, the biggest score of his career, and one of the defining performances of the season.

Winner’s Reaction

After the win, Sharma admitted it still hadn’t fully sunk in:

“It will take a couple of days to really understand what I’ve achieved. I almost didn’t come because my visa was delayed, so I’m just grateful everything worked out.”

He also credited his recent success to renewed focus.

“I’ve been running well in MTTs the last few years, mainly after my marriage. My wife pushes me to work hard on my game, so now I give more than 100 percent.”

Sharma entered the Main Event through a satellite, making the win even sweeter.

“It looks good when you win the whole thing from a $1.7K satellite — max value.”

He also praised the APT’s bold move to run a USD 10K freezeout in Asia.

“I didn’t expect any series here to put up such a big guarantee. For APT to do that was a very ballsy move. This is probably one of the softest 10Ks anyone will play. For those who didn’t come this year, don’t miss it next time.”

#1011 APT Championship Main Event Freezeout (311,000 TWD)

Total Prize USD

$6,220,550

Total Prize

NT$194,080,973

Guaranteed

NT$156,000,000

Entries

671

ITM

95

#	Payout	Player
1	NT$37,030,773 $1,198,405	NS Nishant Sharma India
2	NT$22,862,700 $739,895	JN John Niko Costiniano Philippines
3	NT$16,341,600 $528,855	AP Alexandru Papazian Romania
4	NT$12,518,200 $405,120	DN Dominik Nitsche Germany
5	NT$9,917,500 $320,955	NZ Neng Zhao Australia
6	NT$7,724,400 $249,980	HS Hao Shan Huang Taiwan
7	NT$5,628,300 $182,145	HC Hao Chuang Taiwan
8	NT$3,846,700 $124,490	MC Matas Cimbolas Lithuania
9	NT$3,047,100 $98,610	MF Martin Finger Germany

Check the 95 Payouts & Results ...