Authorities in Martin County have issued an arrest warrant for the man who was involved in an altercation with Maurice Hawkins last month at a Florida poker game.
Eugenio Castaneda allegedly attacked the 19-time World Series of Poker Circuit champion during a home game in southeast Florida. After the incident, players leaked video of the confrontation. The video shows Castaneda landing several blows as Hawkins is bent over after apparently getting up from his chair.
Hawkins said on X last week that he filed a complaint with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office against Castaneda.
“The guy who attacked me while sitting in my chair now has a warrant out for his arrest and will be tried for assault,” Hawkins posted. “Actions have consequences.”
Opinions Differ On Cause Of Fight
The sheriff’s office confirmed to Card Player that someone filed a complaint. It was just awaiting a judge’s signature before officers would attempt to arrest Castaneda.
The exact reason for the fight remains unknown. An anonymous source told PokerNews that Hawkins was “running his mouth about how good of a boxer he is” before the altercation. Other players in the game said Castaneda attacked Hawkins for no reason, which is Hawkins’ contention.
“The narratives are hilarious,” Hawkins posted on X afterward. “A guy tried to sucker punch me and sneak attack me while I (was) in my seat.”
Castaneda told PokerNews that the fisticuffs began after a dispute over nationality. Additionally, he said Hawkins was rude to him earlier in their careers.
Lastly, Castaneda alleged that Hawkins borrowed $20,000 from an elderly man in the game and never repaid him.
Other Poker Fights Through The Years
Tempers can certainly flare at the poker room on occasion, leading to physical skirmishes. In June, former NFL running back Adrian Peterson was involved in a fight in a poker club in Houston.
A fight in Red Rock Casino’s poker room in Las Vegas in May involved just a single punch, with the recipient of the punch hitting the floor.
In 2023, Italian player Michele Nizzardelli was disqualified from an event at the European Poker Tour Prague stop after fighting a player after the player had been eliminated. Nizzardelli head-butted Ghattas Kortas after Kortas supposedly grabbed Nizzardelli’s hat as he left the table.
Two players went all-in with their fists rather than their chips at California’s Hustler Casino in 2022. An insult to one player’s mother was the last straw and led to one player ultimately getting tased by a security guard.
In 2020, a dealer threw punches while he chased a player from the table. Supporters of the dealer set up a GoFundMe page for him after he lost his job. Poker player Farah Galfond said the player berated the dealer before throwing beer on him.
A Massachusetts man received three years in prison in 2015 after “sucker punching” a fellow player at a poker event at a Veterans of Foreign Wars hall. The pugilist believed the man had insulted his girlfriend.
