Gashimov Memorial 2017: Three wins and Shak widens his lead

by Albert Silver
4/28/2017 – Though not quite as bloodthirsty as Grenke, the Gashimov Memorial has been very entertaining with good fighting chess overall. Round six epitomized this with three impressive wins, all in different conditions. Mamedyarov secured his lead as he defeated Kramnik in a key game, while Topalov beat Eljanov in a trademark attack, and So beat Karjakin in a fascinating technical bout explained in detailed instructive notes by GM Elshan Moradiabadi.
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Now in its 4th edition, the Gashimov Memorial brings an attractive lineup of top players such as Wesley So, winner of pretty much anything he entered in the last many months, then Vladimir Kramnik who has been sitting pretty with his 2811 Elo since the London Classic, Sergey Karjakin, and of course last year’s winner, local hero Shakhriyar Mamedyarov.  

Vugar Gashimov (1986 - 2014)

Participants

Player
Rating
Wesley So 2822
Vladimir Kramnik 2811
Sergey Karjakin 2783
Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 2772
Michael Adams 2761
Pentala Harikrishna 2758
Pavel Eljanov 2751
Radoslaw Wojtaszek 2745
Veselin Topalov 2741
Teimour Radjabov 2710

Day Off

On the day off, several of the players went to a convention center to give a shared simul with TV and press present. Sergey Karjakin kindly donated some of his time.

Russian no. 1 Vladimir Kramnik was also there. Clearly the promise of a cakewalk game was not quite accurate judging by his face.

Even chess players are a part of the selfie fad

Wesley So was also there to the delight of the children...

... as was Michael Adams.

Photos and autographs were handed out to the young fans

Round six

A fascinating battle took place between tournament leader Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Vladimir Kramnik. Kramnik played an Italian, and obtained an excellent position, missing opportunities where he might have gotten a near decisive advantage. Instead things got out of control and he got into trouble and subsequently lost. This effectively gave the Azeri a full point lead as none of those trailing him from the previous round won their games.

Vladimir Kramnik vs Shakhriyar Mamedyarov

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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0-0 Nf6 5.d3 a6 6.c3 d6 7.Re1 Ba7 8.a4 h6 9.Be3 Bxe3 10.Rxe3 0-0 Vladimir Kramnik is one of the many proponents of the Italian, both with White and Black. Though he ultimately loses the game, it was by no means a result of the opening, which overall left him with a small but certain advantage. 11.Nbd2 Re8 12.d4 One of the attractions of the Italian, especially for white players, is that White gets to choose between a wide variety of plans, whether in the center such as here, or a queenside expansion, or event a kingside push. Massive exchanges early on are not common, so there is plenty of room to try to exert one's skill. exd4 13.cxd4 Bg4 14.Qb3 Qd7 15.Bd3 d5 16.e5 Nh5 17.g3 f5? This very aggressive shot, typical of the Azeri player, might have landed him in hot water. Black wanted to justify his Nh5 with the ...f5 push, but a more measured choice to rehabilitate his knight was 17...g6 with the idea of Ng7-e6 18.Ree1 Another possibility was 18.Rc1!? and the reason comes down to exploiting a tactical vulnerability that ...f5 has caused. The immediate threat is simply Qxb7, since now the queen would not be trapped by Reb8 since White would have Qxc6 thanks to the rook on c1. f4 Logical, since the whole point of ...f5 was to try to justify the knight's awkward position on h5 19.Ree1 Rab8 Protecting the b7 pawn but now the issue with f5 comes to the fore: 20.Be4! Ne7 21.Bb1± 18...a5 19.Rac1? The right move but at the wrong time. Kramnik misses a chance to really pour the pain on Mamedyarov with 19.Bb5! This pin is more than a little unpleasant. Not only does it pressure c6, but it prevents Black from playing Ne7 and c6 to protect the d5 pawn. f4 20.Rac1 Qe6 21.Rc5 Red8 22.Rec1!± and now if the knight leaves, c7 is hanging. 19...Nb4! Not giving White a second chance. 20.Bf1 f4 21.e6! always ready to maximize his piece power, the idea is to free the e5 square for his pieces. Bxe6 22.Ne5 Qd6 23.Qf3 Nf6 24.Qxf4 c6 25.f3 Nd7 26.Nb3 Rf8 27.Qe3 Bf5 28.Qd2 Na2 29.Ra1 Nb4 30.Nxd7 White is trying to force the issue, but this move makes little sense. There was no need to rush it. if Black wants to exchnage, fine, let him, but otherwise the knight is beautifully place on e5. Why not just Rc1? Bxd7 31.Qc3 b6 32.Re5 Rae8 33.Rae1 Qg6 34.Nd2 Qc2 35.f4 Rxe5 36.dxe5 Be6 37.Qxc2 Nxc2 This endgame is quite bad for White, but there was not much chance to avoid it. Material is equal, but Black's pieces are better placed and the queenside pawns are very much to Black's advantage. White's kingside pawn aren't going anywhere for the moment. 38.Rc1 Nb4 39.Nf3 c5 40.h4 Kf7 41.h5? White wants to desperately activate his pieces, but there was no immediate need to give up a pawn to achieve this. Bg4 42.Nh4 Bxh5 Three words sum up the position now: Black is winning. 43.Nf5 Bg4 44.Ne3 Bd7 45.Bg2 d4 46.Nc4 Bxa4 47.Nxb6 Bc2 48.Nc4 d3 A mistake that might have compromised the win, but White was clearly out of sorts by now, and misses his chance. 49.Nd2 49.Bf3! Ke7 49...Rd8 50.Nd6+ Ke6 51.Kf2 d2 52.Ra1 and Black cannot prevent Ke3-xd2 50.Kf2 Rd8 51.Ke3 Rd4 52.Nd2 a4 53.Ne4 and White should hold. 49...a4 50.Kf2 c4 51.Ke3 Rc8 52.Ne4 Kf8 53.Nc3 Rb8 54.Rf1?! Rushing to activate his pawns, but patience was a better policy. 54.Bf3! Bb3 55.Kd2 Na2 56.Ra1 Nxc3 57.Kxc3 Rd8 58.Kd2 Kf7 and though the ball is in Black's court, there is still a long game ahead if Black is to win. 54...Na6 55.f5 Rxb2 56.f6 Nc7 57.Bh3 d2 58.Bg4 a3 59.e6 gxf6 60.Rxf6+ Kg8 61.e7 a2 62.Ra6 d1Q 63.Nxd1 Bxd1 64.Ra8+ Kg7 65.Bxd1 Rb1 66.Rxa2 Rxd1 67.Ra7 Ne8 68.Ra4 Rd3+ 69.Kf4 c3 0–1
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Kramnik,V2811Mamedyarov,S27720–12017C54Vugar Gashimov Mem 20176.3

Veselin Topalov was another player to notch a win, his second, as he defeated Pavel Eljanov emphatically

The smoothest win was the impressive victory by Wesley So over Sergey Kajrakin, beating him at his own game: defending a slightly unpleasant position. Enjoy the very instructive notes by GM Moradiabadi, a specialist in the opening they played.

Wesley So vs Sergey Karjakin (annotated by GM Elshan Moradiabadi)

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The Shamkir super tournament started with a 'hiccup' for the top seed, US champion and world No.2, Wesley So. The Minnesota-based super GM went down at the hand of the host's best player Shakhriyar 'Shak' Mamedyarov with white pieces which put an end to his streak of 67 undefeated rated games. However, after three solid draws Wesley took down Russia No.1 Vladimir Kramnik, and today the world championship challenger Sergey Karjakin in smooth fashion. Coming back after such a painful defeat and winning back-to-back games against the No.1 and No.2 Russian players requires a 'Magnus-on-top' like spirit and Wesley shows us that he has the will and resilience to fight for the very top! 1.Nf3 0 Nf6 0 2.c4 0 This move order is within Wesley's repertoire. c5!? 0 Karjakin has no interest in checking Wesley's preparation in the Catalan and opts for a symmetrical line in the classical English. 3.Nc3 0 Nc6 0 4.e3!? 0 The most topical continuation. This line earned popularity after the Kramnik-Grischuk match in the 2011 candidates. e6 0 Karjakin goes for absolute symmetry! 4...e5 was Grischuk's choice. 5.Be2 and this was Wesley's reaction. d5 6.d4 cxd4 6...exd4 This line is probably considered bad for Black now. This is a classic, showing one of Black's many problems in this line. A superb strategic example by GM George Meier. 7.exd4 Be6 8.cxd5 Nxd5 9.0-0 Be7 10.dxc5 Nxc3 11.bxc3 Qxd1 12.Rxd1 Bxc5 13.Ng5 0-0 14.Bf4 Rfe8 15.Kf1 Rad8 16.Nxe6 Rxe6 17.Rxd8+ Nxd8 18.Rd1 Nc6 19.Rd5 Ba3 20.g3 h6 21.h4 Kf8 22.h5 Ke8 23.Bg4 Re7 24.Bc8 b6 25.Ba6 Bc5 26.Bb5 Re6 27.Bc7 Ke7 28.f4 g6 29.g4 Kf8 30.f5 Rf6 31.Bg3 gxf5 32.gxf5 Kg7 33.Bh4 Ne7 34.Bxf6+ Kxf6 35.Rd7 a5 36.Bc4 Nxf5 37.Bxf7 Ng3+ 38.Kg2 Ne4 39.Be8 Ke5 40.Rd3 Kf4 41.Bg6 Nd6 42.Kf1 Nc8 43.Ke2 Ne7 44.Kd2 Kg5 45.Be8 Nf5 46.Rf3 Kg4 47.Rf1 Ng7 48.Bf7 Kg5 49.Re1 Nf5 50.Bg6 Nd6 51.Rf1 Nc4+ 52.Kd3 Nd6 53.Rf8 Kg4 54.Rf6 Kg5 55.Re6 Kh4 56.Kc2 Kg5 57.Kb3 Nb5 58.Re5+ Kf4 59.Rxc5 bxc5 60.Kc4 Na3+ 61.Kxc5 Ke3 62.c4 Kd2 63.Kd4 1-0 (63) Meier, G (2659) -Caruana,F (2727) Porto Carras 2011 7.exd4 e4 8.Ne5 dxc4 9.Bxc4 Nxe5 10.dxe5 Qxd1+ 11.Kxd1 Ng4 12.e6! Originally played by Giri! Bxe6?! 12...fxe6 Later on MVL improved upon his play and drew comfortably against Wesley when a draw was ok for So. 13.Nxe4 Bd7 14.f3 Ne5 15.Bb3 Rd8 16.Bd2 Nd3 17.Kc2 Nb4+ 18.Bxb4 Bxb4 19.Nc3 Ke7 20.Rhe1 Bxc3 21.Kxc3 Rc8+ 22.Kd2 Rhd8 23.Ke3 e5 24.Rad1 Bc6 25.h4 h6 26.a3 Rxd1 27.Rxd1 Rf8 28.Rf1 Rf4 29.g3 Rd4 30.Rd1 Rxd1 31.Bxd1 g5 32.hxg5 hxg5 33.f4 gxf4+ 34.gxf4 exf4+ 35.Kxf4 1/2-1/2 (35) So,W (2794)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2804) London 2016 12...Nxf2+? is bad 13.Ke2 Nxh1 14.exf7+ Kd7 15.Bf4 15.Bg5 is interesting. 15...Ke7 15...Kc6 16.Bd5+ Kb6 17.Rxh1 with an almost winning position. The pawn on f7 is a monster and Black's pieces are dismantled. 16.Bg5+ Kd6 17.Nxe4+ Ke5 18.Kf3 Bd7 19.Bf4+ Kf5 20.Rxh1 h5 21.Rf1 Kg6 22.Nd6 with a massive initiative for White. 13.Bxe6 fxe6 14.Nxe4 Rc8 15.h3!? This is So's improvement over Giri's play a week before! 15.Bd2 Be7 16.Ke2 and White has a small but long-lasting edge! Kf7 17.Rac1 h6 18.Rxc8 Rxc8 19.Rc1 Rxc1 20.Bxc1 Nf6 21.Nc3 e5 22.f3 Ke6 23.Kd3 Nd7 24.Be3 a6 25.Ne4 Kd5 26.g4 Bh4 27.Bd2 Be7 28.Be3 Bh4 29.Nc3+ Ke6 30.a4 Be1 31.Ne4 Kd5 32.b3 Bb4 33.h4 Nf8 34.h5 Ne6 35.Ng3 Be7 36.Ne4 Bb4 37.Ng3 Be7 38.Ne4 Bb4 1/2-1/2 (38) Giri,A (2782) -Vachier Lagrave,M (2789) Paris 2016 15...Nf6 16.Re1 Be7 17.Nxf6+ Bxf6 18.Rxe6+ Kf7 19.Re2 Rhd8+ 20.Rd2 Bd4 21.Ke1 Rc6 22.Re2 Rdc8 23.Be3 Bxe3 24.fxe3 Rc1+ 25.Rxc1 Rxc1+ 26.Kd2 Ra1 27.a3 Ke6 28.Rf2 Rg1 29.Ke2 Rc1 30.Kf3 Rc5 31.Rd2 Rf5+ 32.Ke2 Rg5 33.g4 Rc5 34.Kd3 Rd5+ 35.Ke2 Rc5 36.b4 Rc3 37.Rd3 Rc2+ 38.Kf3 Ra2 39.h4 g6 40.Kf4 h6 41.Rc3 Rf2+ 42.Kg3 Ra2 43.Kf3 Kd6 44.Rd3+ Ke6 45.Rc3 Kd6 46.Rc8 Rxa3 47.Rg8 g5 48.Rg6+ Ke5 49.Rxh6 gxh4 50.Rxh4 Rb3 51.b5 Kf6 52.Rh6+ Kg7 53.Rh5 Rb4 54.Rd5 Kf6 55.Rh5 Kg6 56.e4 Rb1 57.Rd5 Rf1+ 58.Kg3 Rg1+ 59.Kf4 Rf1+ 60.Kg3 Rg1+ 61.Kf3 Rf1+ 62.Ke3 Rg1 63.Rd7 a6 64.b6 Rxg4 65.Kd4 Kf6 66.Rxb7 Rg1 67.Ra7 Ke6 68.Rxa6 Kd6 69.b7+ Kc7 70.Rb6 Kb8 71.Rb2 Rg4 72.Kd5 Rg8 73.e5 Rd8+ 74.Kc5 Re8 75.Kd6 Rd8+ 76.Ke7 1-0 (76) So,W (2770)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2789) Leuven 2016 5.d4 0 d5 0 5...cxd4 6.exd4 d5 7.c5 is a double-edged line which requires in-depth analysis. I am sort of glad that the players did not go down this path! 6.a3!? 0 Wesley insists on having an isolated pawn while... a6 0 Karjakin keeps refusing. 7.dxc5 0 Bxc5 0 8.b4 0 Ba7 0 9.Bb2 0 9.Ra2!? is an interesting idea uncorked by Korobov against the leader of this event 'Shakh' Mamedyarov! 0-0 10.Rd2 Qc7 11.cxd5 Nxb4 12.axb4 Qxc3 13.Bb2 Qxb4 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Be2 exd5 16.0-0 Be6 17.Qa1 Qe7 18.Bd3 Rac8 19.Qb1 h6 20.Nh4 b5 21.Nf5 Bxf5 22.Bxf5 Rc5 23.Rd4 Rc4 24.Rxd5 Rd8 25.Rxd8+ Qxd8 26.Rd1 Qe7 27.g3 Kg7 28.Rd7 Qc5 29.Qd3 Bb8 30.Kg2 Be5 31.Bg6 Qc6+ 32.Kh3 Qe6+ 33.Bf5 Qc6 34.Qd1 Kf8 35.Qh5 1-0 (35) Korobov,A (2692) -Mamedyarov,S (2768) Doha 2016 9...0-0 0 10.h3!? 0 In the past Wesley opted for a different path against Caruana. 10.Qc2 Bd7 10...Qe7 11.Rd1 Rd8 12.Be2 dxc4 13.Rxd8+ Nxd8 14.Ne4 Nxe4 15.Qxe4 Bd7 16.Bxc4 Rc8 is considered the mainline though, with an edge for White. 11.Rd1 Rc8 12.cxd5 exd5 13.Be2 d4 14.exd4 Bg4 15.d5 Ne7 16.Qb1 Bf5 17.Bd3 Bg4 18.Be2 Bf5 19.Qa1 Ng6 20.Nd4 Bg4 21.0-0 Nf4 22.Bxg4 Nxg4 23.Nf3 Qd6 24.Rd2 Rfe8 25.Kh1 Bb8 26.g3 Qh6 27.Qb1 Qh3 28.Rg1 Re5 29.Qf1 Qh6 30.gxf4 Nxh2 31.Nxh2 Rh5 32.Qg2 Bxf4 33.Qxg7+ Qxg7 34.Rxg7+ Kxg7 35.Ne2+ Be5 36.Ng3 Rg5 37.Nf3 Bxb2 38.Nxg5 Bxa3 39.Rd4 Kf6 40.Nf3 Rd8 41.Kg2 b6 42.Ne4+ Kf5 43.Ned2 a5 44.bxa5 bxa5 45.Nc4 Bc5 46.Ne3+ Kf6 47.Rf4+ Ke7 48.Nf5+ Kf8 49.Nh6 Kg7 50.Nf5+ Kf8 51.Nh6 Kg7 52.Nxf7 Rxd5 53.N7e5 Bd6 54.Rg4+ Kf6 55.Nc6 h5 56.Ra4 Bc7 57.Ncd4 Bb6 58.Kf1 Ke7 59.Ke2 Kd6 60.Kd3 Ke7 61.Ke4 Rc5 62.Ne5 h4 63.Ng6+ Kf6 64.Nxh4 Re5+ 65.Kd3 Re1 66.Nhf3 Rd1+ 67.Ke2 Rb1 68.Rc4 Rb2+ 69.Ke3 Ke7 70.Ne5 Kd6 71.Ke4 a4 72.Rxa4 Rxf2 73.Nc4+ Kc5 74.Ne5 1-0 (74) So,W (2770)-Caruana,F (2804) Leuven 2016 10...h6 0 it seems that Karjakin likes the idea of 'mocking' Wesley's move. 11.Rc1 0 Re8 1322 Karjakin played this after a long 'pause'. The idea is to take back on d5 with the e-pawn, so that the rook on e8 becomes useful. 12.Bd3 0 Obviously White is not interested in that kind of isolated pawn! Wesley is still 'blitzing' his moves. dxc4 66 Finally, Karjakin earned his tempo after stalling a while, but comparing Rc1 with Re8, White definitely got something to play now. 13.Bxc4 0 Qxd1+ 107 14.Rxd1 807 To decide between the three recaptures, Wesley spent 13:30 minutes. b5 233 15.Bd3 87 Bb7 77 16.Ke2 92 in a symmetrical pawn structure of this kind, tempi are less valuable while piece placement becomes important as it might take a number of moves for each piece to reach its optimal square. Kf8 1067 17.Rhg1!? 1498 probably with the idea of g4-h4-g5. It is hard to suggest a good plan for White in here so I like this plan! Rad8 1388 18.Bb1 950 Ne7! 638 The knight will land on d5, many pieces will be exchanged and Black has no weaknesses. I repeat that Black has no weaknesses! 19.Nd2! 625 Wesley opts for the same manuever where he has an eye on the c5 square too. Bb6 244 20.g4! 210 The logical follow up of the earlier Rhg1. Ned5 92 21.Nxd5 60 Nxd5 0 21...Rxd5 22.h4 h5 23.g5 Ng4 24.Nb3 Red8 25.Rxd5 Bxd5 26.Nd2 Bb7 27.Bc3 Rc8 28.Rc1 Ne5 seems like a better continuation than what Black played in the game but even in the game, Black's position was solid, if a bit passive compared to this line. 22.Nb3 270 f6 44 Black wants to play e5 but.... 23.Bg6 349 Re7 32 24.Rc1 44 Wesley is addressing the c5 square. It is interesting how he keeps creating problems in a dry position like this one! Red7 80 25.Rgd1 168 Ne7 32 26.Rxd7 35 Rxd7 34 27.Bb1 62 Rc7?! 200 The first inaccurate move by my account. This move makes Black's position a bit passive in the ensuing three-minor-piece endgame. Black had to give up his dark squares and build a pawn chain against White's dark-square bishop. 27...Bd5 28.Nc5 Bxc5 29.Rxc5 e5 is solid but two bishops is always two bishops and if White manages to play f4 in the nick of time then Black's position will become critical. However, it seems very unlikely for White. 27...e5 28.Nc5 transposes. 28.Rxc7 73 Bxc7 31 29.Nc5 36 Bc8 32 30.Ba2 0 Nd5 101 31.f4! 142 Threatening f5. Bd6 69 Karjakin defends with resilience. Rememmber, this guy had defended for a month against Magnus Carlsen and held a draw. Therefore, he is not going to be an easy nut to crack. However, I believe that Karjakin does not defend at his best today. 31...a5 32.bxa5 Bxa5 33.Bd4 Bd8 34.f5 Nc7 35.e4 exf5 36.gxf5 Be7 is passive but Black should be able to secure a draw very soon after he challenges the knight on c5. 32.Bd4 253 32.Ne4 Be7 33.Bd4 with an annoying initiative. 32...Kf7?! 138 running into the a2-g8 diagonal X-ray? 32...Nc7 33.Ne4 Be7 34.Kd3 Ke8 35.Ng3 and White has a long-lasting torture but I cannot see a clear plan for a breakthrough. Bd6 36.h4 I do not see any other way to break through. Bb7 37.Ne4 Be7 38.Nc5 38.g5 hxg5 39.hxg5 Bxe4+ 40.Kxe4 fxg5 41.Bxg7 gxf4 42.exf4 Kd7 Only looks bad but Black has a nice fortress that cannot be broken. 43.Be5 Ne8 44.Bb3 Nd6+ 45.Kd3 Nf5 with a draw. 38...Bc8 39.g5 hxg5 40.hxg5 fxg5 41.fxg5 Bxg5 42.Bxg7 Nd5 43.Bxd5 exd5 44.Kd4 Kf7 45.Be5 Bh6 46.Bf4 Bg7+ 47.Kxd5 Bb2 and the two bishops and lack of material secure a draw. 33.Kd3 94 Ne7 80 34.Ne4 99 Bc7 32 35.f5 110 Wesley's simple and effective play should be praised alongside other great endgame players in chess history such as Capablanca, Anderson, Karpov, Kramnik, and of course Carlsen himself. Material loss seems inevitable now. Nc6 116 35...Nd5?? 36.Nc5 and Black would lose more than a pawn! 36.fxe6+ 37 Bxe6 37 37.Bxe6+ 33 Kxe6 33 38.Nc5+ 32 Ke7 108 39.Nxa6 35 Bd6 33 A pawn for Wesley So! 40.Bc5 0 Ne5+ 0 41.Ke4 0 Nc4 0 42.Kd5 0 Bxc5 0 43.Kxc5 0 Nxa3 0 44.Nc7 0 Kd7 0 45.Nxb5 0 Nc2 0 46.Nd4 619 Nxe3 0
47.Nf5! 33 The pawn endgame is dead lost as White manages to keep his extra pawn. Nd1 0 48.Kb6?? 187 Wesley becomes too fussy and might have thrown away his entire advantage and concede a draw had Karjakin found the right continuation. Karjakin's resilience is admirable. He made a player like So blunder in such a clear-cut winning position! 48.Nxg7 Nf2 49.Nh5 Nxh3 50.Nxf6+ Ke6 51.b5 is simply winning. 48...g6! 0 Step one 49.Nxh6 133 Ne3?? 0 returns the favor! Step two was 49...Ke6! active defense is the best way to defend! 50.Kc5 f5 51.Kd4 51.b5 Nc3 52.b6 52.g5 f4 transposes. 52...Na4+ 53.Kc6 Nxb6 54.Kxb6 f4 55.g5 f3 56.Ng4 Kf5 with a simple draw! 51...f4 52.g5 Ne3 53.b5 53.Ng4 Nc2+ 54.Kc3 Nxb4 55.Kxb4 Kf5 is a draw 53...Nd5 54.h4 f3 55.Ng4 Kd6 56.Nf2 Ne7 57.Ke4 Nf5 58.h5 Ng3+ 59.Kxf3 Nxh5 60.Nd3 Ng7 61.Nf4 Kc5 62.Ke4 Nf5 63.Ne6+ 63.Nxg6 Nd6+ 64.Kf4 Nf7= 63...Kb6 63...Kxb5?? 64.Nd4++- 64.Nd4 Nh4 65.Ke5 Ng2 66.Kf6 Nh4 And the position is a fortress! 50.b5 207 f5 0 51.Ka6! 227 A subtle move! fxg4 51 51...f4 52.Nf7 Nc4 53.Ng5 Kc8 53...Kc7 54.Ne6+ loses the pawn while 54.Ka7 and the b-pawn will cost Black a knight! 52.hxg4 185 Nd5 128 53.b6 468 Kc6 36 54.b7 32 Nc7+ 35 55.Ka7 31 Nb5+ 35 56.Ka8 33 Nc7+ 0 57.Kb8 32 Nb5 36 58.Ka8 74 Nc7+ 37 59.Kb8 39 Nb5 36 60.Nf7 0 Kb6 0 61.g5 0 Ka6 0 62.Nd8 0 Kb6 0 63.Kc8 0 Nd6+ 0 64.Kd7 0 Karjakin wins the passed pawn but his pawn on g6 falls and he loses the game. A great victory for Wesley and a bitter defeat for Sergey who lost this battle in his own territory: Defending a slightly uncomfortable situation! 1–0
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WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
So,W2822Karjakin,S27831–02017D404th Shamkir Chess 20176

Mamedyarov now leds the tournament witha full point lead and only three rounds to go. He is a big favorite to win it a second straight time, especially as he beat So already, one of his would-be challengers, in the first round. Still, he also must face Topalov, another rival just a point behind. Should he lose that meet, anything goes.

Standings after six rounds

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Born in the US, he grew up in Paris, France, where he completed his Baccalaureat, and after college moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He had a peak rating of 2240 FIDE, and was a key designer of Chess Assistant 6. In 2010 he joined the ChessBase family as an editor and writer at ChessBase News. He is also a passionate photographer with work appearing in numerous publications, and the content creator of the YouTube channel, Chess & Tech.

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