The success saw the Brazilian secure back-to-back televised titles on the World Seniors Snooker tour as he followed up on his victory in the World Seniors Championship at the iconic Crucible Theatre back in May.

The unique event, which sees the competitors face off in single-frame shootouts of no more than 15 minutes (or 900 seconds) and was shown live on Channel 5, began with a repeat of the Crucible final from earlier this year as 900 format debutant Figueiredo took on Ken Doherty.

The man known as ‘The Darling of Dublin’ had arrived in England at around 5am that morning, following time as a player and pundit at the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters in Riyadh, but showed no signs of fatigue as a break of 67 saw him gain revenge on his Brazilian opponent.

Doherty would follow this up with a further group stage victory over Barry Pinches, another debutant to the format, to secure his place in the semi-finals.

Malta’s Tony Drago was the first man to join him in the knockout stages as he secured a duo of impressive victories over four-time World Seniors champion Jimmy White and seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry.

Back-to-back victories for both Doherty and Drago meant that the final two group stage encounters were effectively knockout matches, with the two winners securing their places in the last four.

Breaks of 49 and 46 were enough for Figueiredo to overcome Pinches in the first of these contests, before White and Hendry renewed their famous rivalry in front of the Hull crowd – with a break of 66 from ‘The Whirlwind’ earning him the last semi-final spot.

The action continued to come thick and fast in East Yorkshire as the event entered the knockout stages and it was the two group runner-ups who set up a final meeting as White overcame Doherty in a repeat of the 2020 World Seniors Championship final, before Figueiredo continued his fine form by defeating Drago.

The title match saw the two most recent winners of the World Seniors Championship go head to head in a best-of-three frame contest.

White compiled the highest break of the day to take the opener with a 69 but, fittingly, the event would ultimately be decided by a final frame shootout as Figueiredo hit back with a 66 to restore parity.

‘The Whirlwind’, who has been defeated in the previous two Mr Vegas World Seniors Snooker 900 finals, look set to finally get his hands on the trophy as he was in the balls in the final frame on a break of 40.

Dramatically, however, White broke down allowing the Brazilian to clear up and seal the victory on the final black before letting out an ecstatic roar in celebration.

Post-match, Figueiredo said: “It’s a fantastic time for me, my career and for the Americas as well. I think it was a fantastic final, I feel over the moon with that clearance – I don’t believe it! I enjoy playing in the World Seniors events and I want to fix my place here and come back for every tournament.”

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Contested at the former home of the UK Seniors Championship, the event features a new and exciting format where anything can happen. Each match will last 15 minutes (900 seconds) and has a 20-second shot clock in play at all times, allowing for unmissable action that has proven a hit with fans and players alike.

Among those in action are seven-time world champion Stephen Hendry, who won the inaugural staging in Epsom in December, and 1997 world champion Ken Doherty – who lifted the Mr Vegas World Seniors Snooker 900 title on home soil at the iconic Goffs venue earlier this year.

They are joined by reigning World Seniors champion Igor Figueiredo, four-time World Seniors champion Jimmy ‘The Whirlwind’ White, Malta’s Tony ‘The Tornado’ Drago and former ranking event winner Barry Pinches.

How It Works

All matches throughout the tournament are just a single frame and each of these frames has a time limit of just 15 minutes. Should the frame not be complete at the end of the allocated 15 minutes, whoever is leading the frame claims the win. 

Played with a spotted cueball, cueists have just 20 seconds per shot and there are no extensions or time-outs (unless at the discretion of the referee). 

For every shot played, either a ball must be potted, or a cushion must be struck with the cueball or an object ball. 

All fouls result in cueball in hand for the opponent. 

At the end of the 15 minutes, should the players be tied on points, a blue-ball shoot-out will be used to determine the winner. 

The six players will compete in two round-robin groups of three players, with the top two advancing to the semi-finals. The winner of Group A will face the runner-up in Group B, and the winner of Group B will face the runner-up in Group A in the last four.

Group A

Sunday’s action will begin with a rematch of May’s World Seniors Championship final between Ken Doherty and Igor Figueiredo.

Brazil’s Figueiredo ran out a 5-2 victor at the Crucible Theatre to lift the prestigious trophy and will be looking to repeat the feat on his Mr Vegas World Seniors Snooker 900 debut in Hull.

The two recent World Seniors Championship finalists are joined by former ranking event winner Barry Pinches, who is also making his debut under the fast-paced and exciting format.

Group B

Stephen Hendry and Jimmy White will renew their storied rivalry at the Connexin Live in Hull as the two meet in the group stages.

The two contested the first ever Mr Vegas World Seniors Snooker 900 final in December, with Hendry coming out on top in Epsom, before White gained revenge at Goffs by eliminating the seven-time world champion at the semi-final stage.

Hendry and White are joined in the group by Malta’s Tony Drago, who reached the semi-finals of this year’s World Seniors Championship in Sheffield.

Schedule

The action gets underway at 13:00 BST on Sunday, broadcast live on Channel 5.

• Group Stages (Single-Frame Shootout)

• • (A) Igor Figueiredo v Ken Doherty
  • (B) Jimmy White v Tony Drago
  • (A) Barry Pinches v Winner of Match 1
  • (B) Stephen Hendry v Winner of Match 2
  • (A) Barry Pinches v Loser of Match 1
  • (B) Stephen Hendry v Loser of Match 2

• Semi Finals (Single-Frame Shootout)

• • Winner of Group A v Runner-Up of Group B
  • Winner of Group B v Runner-Up of Group A

• Final (Best of 3 Frames)

• • Winner of Semi-Final 1 v Winner of Semi-Final 2

Limited tickets remain available via the Connexin Live website – click here.

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People from the aging population of Hull, who are often vulnerable and living in isolation, will be invited to the event to meet each other and some of the snooker legends before watching the action unfold on the baize. The day follows on from a similar initiative held during the World Seniors Snooker Championship in support of Age UK Sheffield.

Rohit Sagoo, WSS Director, said: “There are well over one million chronically lonely older people in the UK and half a million older people go at least five or six days a week without seeing or speaking to anyone at all. We are delighted to continue the work we started in Sheffield with this event in Hull.”

Andy Haynes, CEO of Age UK Hull and East Yorkshire, said: “Many of the older people that we support often only come out of their homes and meet others because of the services or activities we put on.

“The Seniors of Hull Day along with the attraction of the starts that will be there will give people a reason to come out. Our team will also be in attendance to offer advice and support” he said.

To find out more about Age UK Hull and the support they offer, click here.

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