ST. LOUIS, Missouri — World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen cruised to victory at the Clutch Chess: Champions Showdown, finishing nine points clear of runner-up Fabiano Caruana in an event that reaffirmed his superiority in rapid chess.
On the final day, October 29, Carlsen swept all four of his games — two against Dommaraju Gukesh and two against Caruana — securing the title with two rounds to spare. With the championship already decided, the 34-year-old Norwegian wrapped up the event by drawing his last two games quickly against Hikaru Nakamura.
Carlsen concluded the tournament with 25.5 points, from 10 wins, five draws, and three losses. He was particularly dominant against reigning World Champion Gukesh, scoring five wins and one draw in their six encounters. At one point, spanning the end of Day 2 and the start of Day 3, Carlsen won six consecutive games — two each against all three opponents.
That streak underlined his complete control of the four-player event, often referred to as the “Fantastic Four,” finishing with a +7 score — seven more wins than losses.
Caruana came second with 16.5 points, while Nakamura took third with 14 points. Gukesh, the youngest world champion in history, finished last with 10 points. Remarkably, all three of Carlsen’s rivals ended with negative records.
The victory earned Carlsen $170,000, a prize significantly higher than the €111,000 (about $120,000) Gukesh received for winning the 2024 Candidates Tournament, which qualified him to challenge Ding Liren for the world title. The comparison highlights both the lucrative nature of exhibition events like Clutch Chess and the shorter duration — just three days compared to the three-week marathon of the Candidates.
“It is really satisfying to be able to show that, when I’m playing well, I’m still quite a bit better than the others,” Carlsen said after lifting the trophy in St. Louis.
Reflecting on his dominant final day, he added, “When I feel good and I’m rested, I’m usually playing quite well.”
About the Tournament
Clutch Chess is a series of elite invitational events organized by the Saint Louis Chess Club, founded by billionaire philanthropist Rex Sinquefield. This year’s edition brought together the world’s top three players by classical rating — Carlsen, Caruana, and Nakamura — alongside reigning World Champion Gukesh.
The players competed in a six-round double round-robin of rapid games, each with a time control of 10 minutes plus a 5-second increment per move. The point value for wins increased each day — one point on Day 1, two on Day 2, and three on Day 3 — creating additional tension and rewarding strong finishes.
Caruana took home $102,000 for second place, Nakamura earned $77,000, and Gukesh received $63,000.
Rewatch the tournament here
I’m Xuan Binh, the founder of Attacking Chess, and the Deputy Head of Communications at the Vietnam Chess Federation (VCF). My chess.com and lichess rating is above 2300, in both blitz and bullet. Follow me on Twitter (X).
