It was a pricey choice however it wasn’t a tough one Poker execs Dara O’Kearney and David Lappin say their cut up from WPT International got here all of the sudden — and left them with little room to maneuver.
“We weren’t informed in regards to the announcement forward of time and felt completely blindsided,” O’Kearney informed pokerfuse. “There’s much more to it than simply that however, suffice to say, it was a shock.”
“I instantly eliminated any point out of WPT International from my social media and from The Chip Race accounts too. Straight away, I requested for a gathering and acquired no reply,” Lappin added throughout an unique interview.
“Then that evening, the announcement publish was eliminated. Dara and I didn’t know interpret that however clearly hoped that the corporate had seen sense. We talked about it and determined that we might keep in the event that they reversed their choice. The following morning, the publish went again up and that was that. We had our assembly and commenced the method of disentangling.”
The choice to stroll away from WPT International adopted the signing of high-stakes and former GGPoker ambassador Ren “Tony” Lin, a participant who is understood for having cheated. That made it untenable for Lappin and O’Kearney to proceed of their position as ambassadors, they are saying, due to their outspoken emotions on the matter.
“On the final episode of The Lock-In we criticized the GGPoker and the WSOP choice to permit [Lin] to play once more so quickly,” Lappin informed pokerfuse, as a part of a wider dialog on the breakdown of their partnership with WPT International. “[We expounded] on our explanation why it was such a critical offense and why his statements, significantly his preliminary one wherein he stated that 90% of gamers that he is aware of are ghosting, had been regarding,” he added.
The signing of Lin was a line drawn within the sand — one they weren’t ready to cross.
“It was a pricey choice however it wasn’t a tough one,” Lappin stated. “We stated what we stated about Ren Lin as a result of that’s what we consider. It might be the peak of hypocrisy to face by then as he grew to become a fellow ambassador.”
“David and I had been in lockstep on this,” O’Kearney added. “I spoke in depth on the latest Lock-In about why the sort of dishonest to which he admitted is a critical offense and much from being punished, it’s like he has been rewarded. We couldn’t give our tacit approval to that call by staying, nor by staying silent.”
The pair have now formally disentangled themselves from the partnership. The deal was solely inked again in June 2025. It lasted lower than a yr.
It began off so nicely. Their beloved podcasts, The Chip Race and spin-off present the Lock-In, had been put in jeopardy after shedding their long-standing partnership with Unibet. WPT stepped in and supplied ambassadorships and a headline sponsorship deal for the podcasts. WPT International was the white knight.
The pair additionally labored extensively behind the scenes on the WPT International partnership with the Worldwide Poker Open. They hoped to lend their experience to different WPT International occasions shifting ahead.
Roll the clock ahead to January 2026, and throughout the span of 24 unlucky hours, the connection got here aside on the seams.
To recap, Lin admitted to his half within the ghosting scandal through the remaining desk of the GGMillion$ high-stakes match in October 2025, which resulted in his ban from each GGPoker and sister model WSOP.
We stated what we stated about Ren Lin as a result of that’s what we consider His ban was lifted simply seven weeks later. O’Kearney and Lappin didn’t maintain again with their ire for the scenario. The pair are famend for saying what they imply and that means what they are saying. All the time.
Lappin and O’Kearney needed to watch the announcement of Lin’s signing play out in actual time, with WPT International asserting his signing on social media, deleting the publish earlier than then reposting the content material to substantiate that Lin was the truth is a brand new ambassador for the model.
“The horse had bolted,” stated O’Kearney, “and from that time on, our solely precedence was safeguarding our personal reputations.”
A press release from WPT International refers to Lin’s humility and resilience and the corporate’s perception in redemption however Lappin and O’Kearney appeared unimpressed by that presentation.
“We’ve got sturdy opinions on why they partnered with Lin however we might quite not talk about them at the moment,” stated Lappin.
Realizing these two, there may be positively extra to the story — and one they in all probability will solely share after they deem the second is correct.
What’s Subsequent for The Chip Race
We don’t wish to go into hiatus. For followers of the Chip Race and Lock-In, episodes are nonetheless anticipated for the quick future, even when there isn’t any most important sponsor at the moment.
“We don’t wish to go into hiatus so, if we have now to stop that, we’ll put out an episode or two independently earlier than making an enormous choice,” O’Kearney informed us. “The recognition of The Chip Race has by no means been larger and our final six months of episodes present a 13% improve on what was already the most important numbers of any podcast within the poker house. We hope that sponsoring that’s engaging to an organization or operator.”
Who that sponsor might be is extra of a head-scratcher. PokerStars can be an apparent match, because the pair love the PokerStars stay occasions and the model is understood for protecting excessive requirements. Nonetheless, sponsorship offers nowadays are few and much between, with Stars lately pulling again from such offers and scaling again sure advertising and marketing operations and ambassadorships.
“In brief, we’re exploring our choices however I believe our viewers will obtain notification of an episode launch quickly sufficient,” O’Kearney added.
The WPT Model at Massive
I’ve personally withdrawn all my funds and received’t be enjoying on the location within the foreseeable future It’s uncontroversial to say that the World Poker Tour was as soon as a pinnacle of what a poker operator needs to be. They ran world class occasions and had been famend for sustaining the very best requirements.
In the previous few years, the model has been diluted. It has been licensed out to a number of unbiased operators, every with totally different enterprise fashions and advertising and marketing methods. Past WPT International, an actual cash worldwide on-line poker website, its new US sweepstakes offshoot, ClubWPT Gold, has employed risqué advertising and marketing methods, going through criticism for sexist and offensive social media content material. There has even been public infighting between the WPT manufacturers.
“Zooming out to WPT writ giant, I don’t assume it’s controversial to say that it was once the classiest operator with the very best requirements. I don’t assume we will say that anymore,” Lappin says.
“That is one other topic on which we have now plenty of opinions, however for now let’s say that there have been curious selections which actually take the WPT International model identification away from core values like sport integrity and participant safety,” O’Kearney concluded. “I’ve personally withdrawn all my funds and received’t be enjoying on the location within the foreseeable future, so individuals can draw their very own conclusions from that.”
