Daniel Negreanu Wins the 25K Fantasy Draft He Created
Team DNegs topped a record-tying 24-team field for $250,000, with Josh Arieh and Negreanu himself leading the winning lineup
Daniel Negreanu won the 25K Fantasy Draft he created for the first time in 2026, taking the top spot and the $250,000 first-place prize. Team DNegs finished with 1,337 points, enough to beat David Baker’s Team Banana and end Negreanu’s 15-year wait for a win in his own league.
PokerStrategy explained that the draft runs every year at the start of the World Series of Poker. High-stakes players pay $25,000 to enter, then build a roster under a $200 budget, and many of them draft themselves.
Negreanu bought himself for $116 and scored 294 points. Josh Arieh was the main engine for Team DNegs with 356 points, while Ben Lamb gave the roster zero points after skipping the WSOP.
PokerNews said the 2026 league drew a record-tying 24 teams and created a $600,000 prize pool for the top five finishers. Team Banana finished second with 1,069 points and won $125,000. Team Wantman was third with 1,066 points for $100,000, Team Glue Factory was fourth with 1,013 points for $75,000, and Team Lang Gang rounded out the paid spots with 1,000 points and $50,000.
Naoya Kihara scored 510 points, becoming the first player to clear the 500-point mark in league history. Baker bought him for $1, and Kihara also racked up 18 cashes over the summer.
PokerNews also said 192 players were drafted and only six failed to score at all. It added that 33 of the series’ 100 gold bracelet events were won by players drafted in the 25K Fantasy or listed as ODB Bonus Players.
DeucesCracked said Negreanu’s eighth WSOP bracelet came from a Pot-Limit Omaha High Roller in Las Vegas, which helped push his 294-point total. The WSOP Main Event final table is scheduled for August 3-5.
