Martirosyan Claims Group C Lead After Defeating Carlsen in Budapest

Martirosyan Tops Group C After Stunning Carlsen Victory

Budapest — On Day 3 of the Fast Classic group stage at the Total Chess World Championship Tour Pilot, Haik Martirosyan defeated Magnus Carlsen to claim the outright lead in Group C. The result came during a session that saw ten decisive games across twenty-four total encounters in Rounds 5 and 6.

Martirosyan played White in the first encounter and launched a dangerous attack that eventually broke through Carlsen’s defence. The Armenian grandmaster secured the victory before the pair drew the return game, earning four points from the double encounter and moving to ten points overall — good enough for solo leadership of Group C. Carlsen, who had drawn his previous four games, now sits on five points.

Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Abhimanyu Mishra split their two games in a draw, taking them to seven and five points respectively. Anish Giri moved into second place in the group standings on nine points after drawing with Ian Nepomniachtchi in their first meeting and then claiming a hard-fought win with White in the return. Giri’s victory left Nepomniachtchi on seven points.

Caruana Pulls Clear in Group B

Fabiano Caruana extended his commanding lead in Group B to four points after defeating Vincent Keymer with Black. Caruana outplayed his opponent in the endgame of the first game and converted his advantage. A draw in the return contest brought him to fourteen points from four wins and two draws. Keymer finished the day on four points.

Le Quang Liem drew both of his games against Richard Rapport to reach ten points, while Rapport moved to five. Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu and Vladislav Artemiev also shared the points in their two meetings; the first game lasted an impressive 89 moves. Artemiev has five points and Praggnanandhaa has four.

Firouzja Remains Top in Group A Despite Hong Upset

Andrew Hong recorded his first Fast Classic victory of the event by defeating leader Alireza Firouzja with White in a complicated battle. Firouzja responded emphatically in the return game, creating an advantage and forcing favourable exchanges before sealing the win. Both players earned three points, leaving Firouzja atop Group A on eleven points and Hong on six.

Jan-Krzysztof Duda and Levon Aronian each drew their pair of games. Duda remains second on nine points, two behind Firouzja, while Aronian sits on seven. Jorden van Foreest collected four points against Nodirbek Abdusattorov, winning the first encounter before drawing the return, moving to eight points while Abdusattorov has five.

Vachier-Lagrave Moves Clear in Group D

In the most significant direct encounter of the day, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave defeated Hans Moke Niemann to extend his lead at the top of Group D. After sharing the points in their first game, Vachier-Lagrave applied sustained pressure with White in the return and converted his advantage. He now leads on twelve points, three clear of Niemann.

Looking Ahead

All four groups now have outright leaders after six games per player. The tournament resumes with Games 7 and 8 on Saturday, November 14.

Highlights

• Haik Martirosyan defeats Magnus Carlsen to seize the Group C lead on ten points
• Fabiano Caruana extends his Group B lead to four points with a score of fourteen
• Maxime Vachier-Lagrave moves three points clear in Group D on twelve points
• Andrew Hong claims his first Fast Classic win by beating Alireza Firouzja
• Firouzja responds with a win in the return game to retain Group A leadership on eleven points

Source

This report is based on information published by FIDE — International Chess Federation.

Official source: https://www.fide.com/martirosyan-defeats-carlsen-on-day-3-in-budapest/