Weissenhaus Day 1: Caruana and Sindarov share the lead, Carlsen struggles

by Carlos Alberto Colodro
2/8/2025 – The first day of the Freestyle Chess tournament in Weissenhaus featured the opening five rounds of the all-play-all qualifying stage. Fabiano Caruana and Javokhir Sindarov emerged as early leaders with 4½/5 points, while Nodirbek Abdusattorov sits in third place. Magnus Carlsen had a slow start, winning two games but also suffering three losses. With four more rounds to be played before the knockout stage, several players will need a strong second day to secure qualification. | Photo: Abhyudaya Ram
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Warming up!

The first five rounds of the all-play-all qualifying stage at the Freestyle Chess tournament in Weissenhaus took place on Friday, marking the start of the battle for the eight available spots in the knockout stage. Set in a luxurious venue, ten elite players competed under a 10+10 rapid time control, which, combined with the unpredictability of the Freestyle Chess starting positions, led to a number of blunders and tactical mishaps. Even experienced players such as Magnus Carlsen and Levon Aronian fell victim to early mistakes, finding themselves in clearly inferior positions even before reaching move 15.

Two players emerged as the early leaders: Fabiano Caruana and Javokhir Sindarov, who both scored an impressive 4½/5 points. Following behind in sole third place is Nodirbek Abdusattorov on 3½ points, while Alireza Firouzja sits in fourth place with 2½ points.

The remaining six players all ended the day with a minus score, including world number one Magnus Carlsen, world champion Gukesh Dommaraju, Hikaru Nakamura and Vincent Keymer, who each have 2 points. Vladimir Fedoseev and Levon Aronian, with only 1 point, are in real danger of missing out on the knockout stage.

Much attention was naturally drawn to Magnus Carlsen's performance. The Norwegian, who won last year's G.O.A.T. Challenge at the same venue, had a slow start - something not uncommon in his career, as he often improves as events progress. On Friday, he played a decisive role in shaping the standings, as all five of his games ended with a winner. He scored two victories but also suffered three losses, including consecutive defeats against Sindarov and Fedoseev, the two players who qualified via the online play-in event.

With four rounds to be played (on Saturday) in the qualifying stage, much can change in the standings. While Caruana and Sindarov have all but secured their spots in the deciding stage, the fight for places in the knockout remains open, with players such as Carlsen, Nakamura and Gukesh needing a solid second day to secure qualification. Meanwhile, Fedoseev and Aronian will need a significant turnaround if they are to avoid elimination before the classical phase of the tournament begins.

Analyses by Karsten Müller

Keymer 0 - 1 Sindarov

Vincent Keymer, Javokhir Sindarov

Vincent Keymer and Javokhir Sindarov | Photo: Abhyudaya Ram

Abdusattorov ½ - ½ Caruana

Freestyle Chess Grand Slam

Pre-game analysis | Photo: Abhyudaya Ram

Standings after round 5

All games

Links

Carlos Colodro is a Hispanic Philologist from Bolivia. He works as a freelance translator and writer since 2012. A lot of his work is done in chess-related texts, as the game is one of his biggest interests, along with literature and music.