Deputy Editor
Maurice Hawkins added to his World Series of Poker Circuit record with his 24th ring win. That puts him four ahead of the nearest competitors, Ari Engel and Dan Lowery.
Hawkins took down the opening event of the WSOP Circuit festival at Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin, located in the Chicago suburbs. It was a $400 no-limit hold’em double stack event with a $50,000 guarantee. Hawkins won a reported $17,419, though the WSOP does not appear to have released official results.
And the knockouts he got on the felt apparently weren’t enough. In the aftermath of the win, he challenged Dan ‘Jungleman’ Cates to a mixed martial arts (MMA) bout.
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Hawkins Takes Down 24th Ring
It’s been a busy year for Hawkins, as he already has more than $200,000 in poker tournament cashes listed on his Card Player profile. Most of those have come at his pet WSOP Circuit stops, including two prior ring wins, both of which came in $400 events in Tunica.
Tunica is typically one of the more popular spots for ring hunters due the smaller fields in the once-thriving casino town.
Hawkins made it three ring wins in $400 events with the Grand Victoria stop, which has quickly become one of hotter Circuit stops in the Midwest.
Hawkins’ dedication to the Circuit grind and continued ability to put up results has allowed him to quickly distance himself from Lowery and Engel. The latter appeared to be closing in on him at one point last year, pulling to within one, 21 to 20. Engel is currently chasing bigger money across the pond at WSOP Europe, a point of contention between Hawkins and sometime-rival Shaun Deeb.
Hawkins vs. Jungleman in MMA?
Instead of enjoying his victory, Hawkins lashed out at his perceived haters. In addition to attacking Deeb on social media, Hawkins singled out Cates. He offered to square up with the poker legend-turned-pugilist in MMA:
Ah @junglemandan since you can’t keep my name out your mouth and you like challenging people. I challenge you to a UFC style match . Three months from now.
Put up or shut up— EatingOnAllStages (@mauricehawkins) April 6, 2026
Cates recently endured a rough amateur boxing debut. He ended up on the receiving end of a controversial haymaker from sports betting personality Ryan ‘Elf’ Noel in a January match. Despite the scary blow, Cates expressed cautious interest in another turn at combat sports eventually.
Cates apparently angered Hawkins with his ongoing monitoring of Hawkins’ alleged failure to repay individuals in the poker world. Cates has made outing alleged bad debtors and scammers a continuing mission on social media.
Most notably, Cates posted about Hawkins’ dispute with one-time backer Denise Pratt. Today, he followed up by accusing Hawkins of “playing the victim” in a spot where an arbitrator was likely to rule against him. Cates said he prefers to take the battle to the felt:
“Or we could … play poker,” he offered in response to the MMA challenge.
