GMs Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, and Ian Nepomniachtchi are the last ones standing in the Winners Bracket after day one of the 2025 Chess.com Classic Playoffs. On their last lives in the Losers Bracket are eight more players: GMs Vladimir Fedoseev, Fabiano Caruana, Ding Liren, Vladislav Artemiev, Wei Yi, Levon Aronian, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and Arjun Erigaisi.
We also saw four players eliminated after losing two matches on the first day, most notably World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju. Also out of the competition are GMs Jan-Krzysztof Duda, Denis Lazavik, and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu.
The Playoffs continue on Wednesday, May 21, starting at 11:15 a.m. ET / 17:15 CEST / 9:45 p.m. IST.
Playoffs Winners Bracket
Playoffs Losers Bracket
Winners Bracket: Nepomniachtchi Wins Closest Match Vs. Fedoseev
Losers Bracket: Gukesh Eliminated On Day 1
For four days, 16 players will compete in the Chess.com Classic Playoffs. While they vie for entry for the 2025 Esports World Cup, there is also a $150,000 prize pool. You can see the breakdown of the prizes below.
So far, we know that the following 10 players have clinched their spots in the 2025 Esports World Cup as nobody can catch them on the leaderboard by this point: Carlsen, Nakamura, Nepomniachtchi, Duda, Arjun, Firouzja, Abdusattorov, Caruana, Artemiev, and Wei. There are two more spots to be earned in this event.
Matches were best-of-four in the Winners Bracket, best-of-two in the Losers, with an armageddon tiebreak if needed. The time control was the same as previous days, 10 minutes for each side with no increment.
Winners Bracket: Nepomniachtchi Wins Closest Match Vs. Fedoseev
Carlsen Coasts Except For 1 Major Scare
The world number-one won his first match 2.5-1.5 against Duda and then his second with a 3-0 sweep against Vachier-Lagrave. While on paper the second match looks to be the more convincing, it was the rockier with more chances for his opponent.
The first match was actually smooth, as Carlsen won the first game and then drew three to secure the match. The first was a shockingly one-sided game, or as Tania put it, “pure destruction by the world number-one.” After Duda’s 15…Kg8?? (missing the only move 15…Qe8), there was no way of even putting up a fight once Carlsen sent his bishop flying.
In the second match, against Vachier-Lagrave, Carlsen landed into a losing heavy-piece endgame, but first escaped into equality and finally landed into a win after his opponent hung his rook to a fork.
Carlsen then went on to outplay MVL in the next two games to clinch with a game to spare.
Nepomniachtchi Wins Closest Matches, Both In Armageddon
Nepomniachtchi, having to play two armageddon games, had the longest day of anyone. But it was worth it, as he stays alive in the Winners Bracket.
After a draw in game one against Arjun, Nepomniachtchi capped off a nice attacking game with a devastating attack on the g2-square, making use of the undefended rook on e1.
Arjun won on demand in the next game and after a draw they reached armageddon. Nepomniachtchi held the draw with Black to advance on to the Winners Quarterfinals, where he faced an in-form Fedoseev.
That match was the longest and most decisive of the day, with zero draws across all five games.
The Petroff Defense has gained a reputation as perhaps the most solid defense against 1.e4, along with the Berlin Defense, and Fedoseev has employed the same variation previously. Despite its merit, Nepomniachtchi broke through in game one, ultimately converting the rook endgame with excellent precision. That’s our Game of the Day, analyzed by GM Rafael Leitao below.
But Fedoseev evened the score in game two and then won again in game three—but only thanks to a major gift. In an equal position, Nepomniachtchi had to just flag his opponent, but he walked into a mate-in-one; Fedoseev managed to execute the move with one second left. Nepomniachtchi had 20 seconds and would have otherwise won on time.
Even Nepomniachtchi smiled in disbelief at what had just happened.
Nevertheless, the Russian number-one managed to first win on demand with the black pieces in game four and then even won the armageddon game with Black to take the match.
Nakamura Beats Aronian In Armageddon, Then Finishes Ding With Game To Spare
Nakamura’s first match was the more turbulent. With a win in game two and two draws in the bag, he needed to just draw against Aronian to finish the match. But in the time scramble—where the world number-two usually excels—he hung his rook and lost the game.
No matter, he won the armageddon game with the black pieces after finding a nifty double attack. Aronian shook his head once 24…Qa3! was on the board, knowing it spelled the end.
Nakamura then defeated 17th world champion Ding by winning two games and then holding a draw. Nakamura was just faster in both games. First, he flagged Ding in a drawn rook and knight vs. rook endgame. Then Ding actually got a winning position in game two but had no time to convert it; Nakamura escaped and won it himself. With a draw in game three, Nakamura had an early finish to his work day.
You can check out Nakamura’s video recap of the day below.
Abdusattorov Outwits Lazavik, Then Wei, To Advance
Abdusattorov was the fourth player to win both of his matches, and in the first one he handily defeated a regular finalist of the Champions Chess Tour, Lazavik.
The Uzbek phenom’s resourcefulness was on full display in game four, where he saved—and won from—a lost position. He expertly took advantage of White’s slight inaccuracy, namely 34.Qf3, and ultimately his flustered opponent hung an exchange as a result. Already up a point in the match, Abdusattorov only needed to draw, but he won just as well.
Against Wei, he won a wild pawn race in the endgame, saved a draw from a worse-to-losing position in game two, and finished the match with a game to spare by winning again, by converting an extra pawn in the endgame.
His reward? He gets to play Carlsen on Wednesday!
Losers Bracket: Gukesh Eliminated On Day 1
After his first game, nothing quite seemed to go right for the reigning world champion in the Playoffs. He won the first game against Fedoseev, but then lost the rest of his games across both matches.
Particularly crushing was the fact that Gukesh was indeed on his way to winning on demand, with the black pieces, in that final game against Arjun. But, with little time and in a complicated position, his countryman and colleague finished first in the pawn race.
The key to winning the endgame was understanding that the a-pawn was fast enough to win the game. None of this was easy, however, with both players on their last minute.
Caruana just barely lived by the skin of his teeth, eliminating Duda in an armageddon game after two draws.
Praggnanandhaa started both of his matches with wins in game one, but then couldn’t hold onto the lead. While disappointing for the Indian GM’s fans, one of the most heartwarming moments of the day was Ding’s smile when he evened the score. Ding would go on to win again in game four to take the match.
Lazavik got all the way to armageddon before he was eliminated by Artemiev. There, he held equality with the black pieces for essentially the entire game, but when both players got under 30 seconds he traded into a losing opposite-color bishop endgame. The general rule of thumb is that trading rooks eases the defensive task, but this was an exception.
Who do you think will finish at the top of the Winners Bracket? Carlsen, Nakamura, Nepomniachtchi, or Abdusattorov? Let us know in the comments below.
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