"The Grand Prix de Paris is Legendary" - Interview With Mike Sexton
We catch up with PartyPoker ambassador and World Poker Tour commentator Mike Sexton in France as he prepares for the WPT Grand Prix de Paris.
The World Poker Tour Grand Prix de Paris got underway yesterday and one man who knows more about this event than most is Mike Sexton. Not only has he been commenting on this event for nearly a decade, he also won one of the early incarnations of it before the WPT was even created.
We grabbed a few words with him in Paris ahead of the main event.
"The Aviation Club has a James Bond atmosphere"
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| The voice of the WPT |
PokerStrategy.com: Paris is the longest running European leg of the WPT, what makes it so special?
Mike Sexton: The Aviation Club de France is an amazing casino with a James Bond atmosphere. Plus poker players, like everyone else, love to travel to Paris.
Historically, the Grand Prix de Paris is legendary in the poker world and for years was the largest poker event in Europe - it's still one of the biggest.
The Aviation Club will always be special to me. I've been going there since the '90s (long before the WPT came into existence) and one of my greatest poker moments was when I won the Grand Prix de Paris in 2000. That tournament was the largest ever in Europe at that time.
PokerStrategy.com: What makes the Aviation Club so different from all the other poker venues in Europe?
Mike Sexton: For sure, the Aviation Club is unique. It has an ambiance like no other casino in the world and without question, its location is the best of any poker room in the world. It's smack dab in the middle of Paris on the Champs-Elysees, the most famous street in the world.
Bruno Fitoussi (creator and operator of poker at the Aviation Club) has been a fixture in developing poker not only in France, but all of Europe. In my view, for all he has done for the growth of poker in Europe, he would be a worthy candidate for the Poker Hall of Fame.
"My respect for French players is probably higher than most"
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| Mike is a regular at the Aviation Club |
PokerStrategy.com: Some people think that French poker fields are softer than most, do you agree?
Mike Sexton: My respect for French poker players is probably much higher than most - probably because I was there not long after it opened and I remember the calibre of players back then (those were the days!).
But I've seen poker grow in France over the years and have witnessed the improvement of players. If you look at the results of big-time tournaments around the world now, the French hold their own with anybody.
Having said that, tournaments at the Aviation Club (as well as the cash games) are noted for being great to play in and I can't wait to get there and be right in the middle of them!
"Poker in France has grown more than any other country"
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| Mike playing in Paris |
PokerStrategy.com: In the same month we have the Partouche Poker Tour, WPT Paris, and the WSOPE Cannes - just how big is French poker these days?
Mike Sexton: Certainly poker in France has grown as much or more than any country in the last ten years.
They nationalised online poker and now hold a number of the biggest poker tournaments in the world. As for me, give me Paris and the Aviation Club over all of them.
PokerStrategy.com: What do you like about Paris outside of the poker?
Mike Sexton: I didn't know there was anything there but the Aviation Club.
PokerStrategy.com: How impressed have you been with the live streams on the WPT?
Mike Sexton: Honestly, Vince and I are doing commentary for television during WPT final tables, so we don't get to see or hear the "live streaming". I do know the production crew is first rate and I'm sure Tony Dunst and his guest commentators do a great job in analysing the play.
PokerStrategy.com: Thanks Mike, enjoy Paris.
You can follow all the action from the WPT Grand Prix de Paris at the WPT Live Ticker as well as from daily recaps at PokerStrategy.com.
WPT Grand Prix de Paris Live Ticker
Qualify for WPT National Series Vienna
It is too late to qualify for WPT Paris, but you can still qualify for the WPT National Series at the Montesino in Vienna, which takes place between October 13-16.
You have until September 23 to win a $4,000 package to play in the main event. This includes the $1,500 main event buy-in, accommodation for three nights, and $1,750 spending money.
Daily freerolls and feeders starting at $1 are available to win your place in the $200+$15 direct satellite on Sundays at 15:20 ET. One in 20 players will win a package, and one package is guaranteed.
Qualifiers are running now exclusively on PartyPoker and WPT Poker.
This event takes place at the same time as the €1,000,000 guaranteed €500+€50 Concord Million at the Concord Casino in Vienna. Which means if you bust out of the WPT event, you can play this event instead with your prize package spending money.
