The world champion didn’t lose a single game in a three-hour duel against his 2018 challenger, winning 18 games with eight draws in an unprecedented feat of dominance.
The quarterfinals of the 2022 Speed Chess Championship pitted Magnus Carlsen against Fabiano Caruana in a hotly anticipated rematch of the 2018 world chess championship match in the classical format. That time, the players drew all their games in a hard-fought affair before the Norwegian dominated the rapid tiebreakers. This time, despite Caruana’s recent ascendancy in blitz, the match turned into a bloodbath and a result neither player will forget any time soon.
The match comprised of three segments: 90 minutes of 5+1 chess, 60 minutes of 3+1, and 30 minutes of 1+1 bullet games. Each win, regardless of the time control, merited one point for the winner. Carlsen was the clear favorite heading into the matchup, but the level of dominance and play was far above anyone’s expectations.
Not only did Carlsen easily secure a victory against a fellow super-Grandmaster, a significant accomplishment in its own right, but he also went undefeated across 28 games played, which is especially notable in the fastest time control, bullet, where the sheer volatility of affairs often leads to unexpected turnarounds.
Though the result was a rout, Caruana maintained a high level of play throughout the match, only showing slight signs of tilt in the bullet section, offering up a memorable performance for chess fans all around the world.
There were many notable games in the match, including the seventh 5+1 game where Carlsen’s clinical accuracy was worthy of classical-level play.
There was also the stunning first blitz game where Carlsen sacrificed his queen for a rook and a knight and managed to fully turn the tables on Caruana in the time scramble as the American continued to push and push for a win that never materialized, trying to recover an ever-growing points deficit on the scoreboard.
As the games kept on ticking by, it became clear that fans are witnessing something spectacular, which turned into historic once Carlsen managed to maintain his undefeated streak in the bullet section as well, capping off an incredible series of games to remind everyone of the distance between him and his peers.
Carlsen’s next opponent in the event will either be Wesley So or Maxime Vachier-Lagrave depending on the outcome of their match, with a potential eye-watering clash against Hikaru Nakamura still on the cards as a possible grand final. Later in December, Carlsen will also participate in the offline World Blitz Championship, aiming to add a sixth title to his collection and regain the crown he narrowly lost the last time of asking.
