Firouzja Defeats A World Champion For 1st Time – Chess.com
GM Alireza Firouzja gained his very first classical victory vs. a world champion in round five of the Superbet Classic Romania 2023. The youngest player to break 2800 defeated GM Ding Liren in a back-and-forth duel for the initiative, scoring his second win in a row.
The 19-year-old grandmaster joins GM Richard Rapport and GM Wesley So in a tie for second place. GM Fabiano Caruana continues to lead by half a point after a comfortable draw as Black vs. GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda.
GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave has begun to turn around a rocky start with his first tournament win. He defeated GM Ian Nepomniachtchiby turning a challenging defensive position into a tactical delight.
After the rest day on Thursday, the first leg of the Grand Chess Tour continues with round six on Friday, May 12, starting at 5:00 a.m. Pacific/14:00 CEST.
See what happened
With just four draws between them, their first-ever decisive classical game gaveFirouzja the honor of dealing Ding his first loss as the reigning world champion.
In a d3 Ruy Lopez, Firouzja opted for an enterprising sacrifice of his e4-pawn to instigate a combative middlegame. When he followed it up inaccurately, Ding wrestled the initiative from the 19-year-old's hands by launching his passed center pawn up the board. Both players brought all hands on deck to focus on the raging battle in the center. When Ding chose to leap the wrong knight to e4, Firouzja traded into an advantageous queen vs. rook and bishop ending.
Though Ding had chances to set up a fortress, he instead chose to bring his rook to his opponent's second rank to try to create counterplay. The Chinese grandmaster's scattered forces left his kingside too weak, and Firouzja stormed his connected passers up towards promotion to seal the victory.
The 2022 Grand Chess Tour champion was elated after the game: "I feel really happy. For sure, it's an easier world champion than Magnus. Of course, Ding is really strong. I'm happy to get this victory because now I move to plus one. It's really important."
This pivotal victory is our Game of the Day, analyzed by GM Dejan Bojkov.
With this victory, Firouzja returns to number two in the world in live rankings, leapfrogging the world champion and his recent challenger, Nepomniachtchi, who also experienced a disappointing turn of events today.
Vachier-Lagrave delivered Nepomniachtchi his second loss in a row today. In a queenless middlegame arising from an Alapin Sicilian, the challenger pressed a comfortable edge with the white pieces. But in his ambitions to play for the win, Nepomniachtchi allowed the French grandmaster to create powerful counterplay with his doubled rooks on the h-file. Inspired by the fresh life in his position, Vachier-Lagrave started a tactical onslaught against Nepomniachtchi's king, leading to a decisive win of material.
The French grandmaster was relieved to be back on an even score for the tournament. Before Nepomniachtchi let him back into the game, Vachier-Lagrave's own assessment of his middlegame position was quite bleak: "My position was s*****. There's no other word."
This was another matchup with a short history: 2-1 in Caruana's favor, with just four draws. The tournament leader managed to neutralize Duda's first move advantage in the opening. With White's rook awkwardly placed on e3 and his queenside undeveloped, Caruana centralized one of his knights on c5 and then planted the other on the appealing f4 post, offering him influence on the queenside, center, and kingside.
Tactic alert: On move 23, Caruana allowed Duda to capture his center pawn on e5. What idea did he have ready to keep the balance?
This comfortable result for Caruana with the black pieces keeps his lead heading into the rest day.
Shockingly, Rapport has never defeated Giri in a classical game. Contrastingly, Giri has four victories out of their nine games. The Romanian number one had chances today, gaining a substantial edge with Black as the queens were traded. Between his hopping knights, centralized rooks, and advanced e4-pawn, Rapport had full control of the center while every single one of Giri's pieces watched from the back rank. However, Black went astray with 31...f5, allowing the elusive Dutch grandmaster to create an advanced passer on the queenside and generate enough counterplay for equality.
With pawns left on only the d- to h-files, So gained a compelling space edge, a potent knight on f5, and a target in Black's backward d6-pawn. Though the American grandmaster maneuvered with the hopes of increasing his advantage, GM Bogdan-Daniel Deac defended with vigor, bringing his rook to White's second rank, creating a pin on his opponent's eager knight, and breaking in the center with 44...f5. His energetic play gained him full equality in the arising ending.
Results - Round 5
Standings - Round 5
Round six will feature a key matchup: Coming off back-to-back wins, Firouzja will get his shot at the tournament leader, Caruana.
Pairings - Round 6
Previous Coverage:
See the article here:
Firouzja Defeats A World Champion For 1st Time - Chess.com
- Record-Breaking Opening for the 20th Annual KCF All-Girls National Chess Championship - US Chess Federation - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Chess: Tan Zhongyi takes shock lead over Ju Wenjun in Womens World Championship - The Guardian - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Record-breaking start to Magnus vs The World as 100,000 players take on Carlsen in largest-ever online chess game - Firstpost - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Hans Niemann withdraws from Paris Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour event at last minute - The Indian Express - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Chess.com Releases Revolutionary New Life Review On Android And iOS - Chess.com - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Announcing Your Coaches For Magnus Carlsen Vs. The World - Chess.com - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- From Chess Champion to Quantum Innovator, Physicist Is on Top of Her Game - The University of Texas at Dallas - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Magnus Vs. The World Hits 100,000 Participants, Breaks All-Time Record - Chess.com - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Lake Jackson engineer masters the board, takes third at state chess tournament - The Facts - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Chess Grandmaster shockingly pulls out of Paris Freestyle Grand Slam Tour hours before start, Clash with Magnus Carlsen off the Table - SportsTak - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Chess Openings In The Engine Era - Chess.com - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Queens Online Chess Festival 2025: Celebrating the winners International Chess Federation - FIDE - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Susan Polgar shares her path to becoming the Worlds Greatest Female Chess Player - WGN Radio 720 - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- A grand occasion: 2025 FIDE Womens World Championship opening ceremony International Chess Federation - FIDE - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- TRUMP MIGHT BE PLAYING 4D CHESS AND WERE JUST NOW CATCHING ON. - Binance - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Indias VC-backed chess academy churns out champions across the board - Financial Times - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Chess champ who hid phone in bathroom stall temporarily banned from game - PennLive - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Kirill Shevchenko Receives 3-Year Ban For Cheating Incident, Admits to Hiding Phone - Chess.com - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- SEE IT: Innovation and international connection at the Chess & Community Conference in Athens - Online Athens - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Stratford doctor seeks Democratic nomination for mayoral bid: 'I'm going to transform the town' - CTPost - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Webster Women Chess Players Helping Lead the Way to the National Championship - Webster University Newsroom - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Liam Hereford Crowned Atomic Chess Champion After Explosive Performance - Chess.com - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Sign Of Real Intelligence? Chatbots Cheat At Chess, Too, According To Study - Chess.com - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- MIKE Addresses Italian Kids Chess Meme Stunt In The Front Row Of His Concert - Stereogum - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Free Athens chess and robotics event to feature 'Teen Titans' actor, Zaxby's co-founder - Online Athens - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- How a Love of Chess Led the CEO of Google's DeepMind to a Career in AI and a Nobel Prize - Entrepreneur - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- The AI Hype Index: DeepSeek mania, Israels spying tool, and cheating at chess - MIT Technology Review - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Thinking differently: Inside Cook County Jails chess program and the wizardry of Coach K - WGN TV Chicago - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Chess gaining popularity on The Rock - Kodiak Daily Mirror - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Talented Chicago youngsters face off in chess competition - CBS Chicago - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- The New Yorker Chess Set: Where City Icons Make Their Move - Yanko Design - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Happy & proud of what India is achieving in chess - The Times of India - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- NFL Network's Brain Baldinge: defensive end Abdul Carter 'is going to be a real chess piece' at NFL level | 'The Insiders' - NFL.com - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Harikrishna's journey from becoming a Junior Champion to training the World Champions - Chess News | ChessBase - March 30th, 2025 [March 30th, 2025]
- Exclusive | Parents push for chess to be included as a sport in NYC public schools - New York Post - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- The Guardian view on the chess boom: how rooks and knights captured the world | Editorial - The Guardian - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- D Gukesh shaves head as offering to God; drops improve in all formats verdict after winless Freestyle Chess run - Hindustan Times - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Dorian Thompson-Robinson explains how playing chess helps his decision-making as a QB - Bleeding Green Nation - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Bloomington's Hoosier Chess Academy teaches kids to be observant, think critically - The Herald-Times - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- More Randomness In Chess? MIT Sloan Panel Explores The Future Of The Game - Chess.com - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- 22-year-old Wetherholt has remarkable poise on field -- and at chess - MLB.com - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Carlsen to participate in 'Magnus vs The World' showdown: All you need to know about one-of-a-kind game of chess - Firstpost - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Chess Masters: The Endgame Proves That No, Chess Is Not a Spectator Sport - Den of Geek - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Chess Masters: The Endgame review so dull its almost unwatchable - The Guardian - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- 25th European Individual Championship 2025 - The Week in Chess - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- In another chess move with Microsoft, OpenAI is pouring $12B into CoreWeave - TechCrunch - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Vidit to spend honeymoon at chess tournament just like Vishy Anand did - Onmanorama - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Eagles QBs Jalen Hurts and Dorian Thompson-Robinson share the same Chess coach - Eagles Wire - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Chess Masters: The Endgame review opening gambit is middling TV - The Times - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- BBC2 series Chess Masters: The Endgame does a 'pathetic disservice' to the game, say viewers - Daily Mail - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- FIDE extends fee waiver for Rapid and Blitz through 2026 World Chess Federation - FIDE - March 15th, 2025 [March 15th, 2025]
- Freestyle Chess: Magnus Carlsen, D Gukesh among elite chess stars to battle in Paris with $750,000 at sta - The Times of India - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Prague R5: Wei scores second win in a row - Chess News | ChessBase - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Chess: England over-65s lead all the way to world senior team gold at Prague - The Guardian - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Carlsen says no opponent can tempt him to compete in classical World Chess Championship: 'Best moves are discarded' - Firstpost - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Carlsen's World Famous Jeans Auctioned For $36,100 After Bidding War - Chess.com - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- If Visma-Lease a Bike riders were chess pieces, which would they be? - Escape Collective - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Howard University Chess Team Breaks Through with Pan-Am Win and Mayoral Proclamation - The Dig - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- NFL fans all say the same thing as Ivanka Trump shares photo of Tua Tagovailoa playing chess with her son - Daily Mail - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Boris Spassky, Chess Champion Who Lost Match of the Century, Dies at 88 - The New York Times - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Daughter of Kol couple to represent US in under-12 Chess World Cup - The Times of India - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Magnus Carlsens controversial jeans sell for $36,100 at auction - The Athletic - The New York Times - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- ChessCafe: The Birmingham venue bringing young people together - BBC.com - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- The Viking Chess Master: Unraveling the Enigma of Magnus Carlsen - Jomfruland.net - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Waterloo Chess Academy teaches Guelph kids to make their move - Guelph Mercury Tribune - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Grivas on trapping a piece 2 - Chess News | ChessBase - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Boris Spassky, Soviet-era chess champion who lost "match of the century" to American Bobby Fischer, dies at 88 - CBS News - March 3rd, 2025 [March 3rd, 2025]
- Why the three-year-old Magnus Carlsen vs Hans Niemann cheating scandal is making waves again - The Indian Express - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- How BBC Competition Format Chess Masters: The Endgame Is A Love Letter To Producers Daughter - Deadline - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- "The Best Is Yet to Come": Magnus Carlsen talks with Andrea and Alexandra Botez about love, life, chess and more - Chess News | ChessBase - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- D Gukeshs chief coach casts doubts on Magnus Carlsens Freestyle Chess projects future: No guarantee in 2 years - Hindustan Times - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- My Wintersession Experience Making Chess Boards in the Carpentry Shop - Princeton University Admission - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Checkmate: How Chess.com Produces Hundreds of Live Broadcasts in the Cloud - Sports Video Group - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Who Has The Best Chess Roster At The Esports World Cup? - Chess.com - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- 17-Year-Old Maurizzi Dominates In Djerba With Spectacular 2900 Performance - Chess.com - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen broke a dress code with jeans. Now he's selling them for charity - The Associated Press - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Carlsen Beats Nakamura In Grand Final, Wins 2025 Chessable Masters - Chess.com - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Bullet Brawl Feb. 22, 2025: Nakamura Wins 36th Title In 'Back To Work' Brawl - Chess.com - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- Chess: Carlsen wins again as he qualifies for the $1.5m Saudi Esports World Cup - The Guardian - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]
- World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen cannot beat his smartphone in chess - Onmanorama - February 25th, 2025 [February 25th, 2025]