Superbet Chess Classic!

Here's a brief review of the Superbet Chess Classic Romania 2025:

The Superbet Chess Classic Romania 2025 was a high-level chess tournament held from May 7-16 at the Grand Hotel Bucharest in Romania. Here are the key highlights:

*Results:*

- *Winner:* Indian Grandmaster Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu claimed the title after a thrilling blitz playoff against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave and Alireza Firouzja.
- *Final standings:* Praggnanandhaa won with 5.5 points, closely followed by Vachier-Lagrave and Firouzja with 5 points each.
- *Playoff:* The title was decided in a blitz round-robin between the top three players, where Praggnanandhaa showcased his skills and prevailed in the decisive game against Vachier-Lagrave.

*Notable games:*

- *Praggnanandhaa vs. Wesley So:* In round 8, Praggnanandhaa played with black and surprised So with a win in a Benko Gambit.
- *Gukesh vs. Levon Aronian:* Young Indian Grandmaster Gukesh scored an important win with black against Aronian after the latter's questionable pawn sacrifice [1][2].

*Awards and recognition:*

- *Prize money:* Praggnanandhaa took home $77,667 and 10 points in the Grand Chess Tour.
- *Ranking impact:* The win earned Praggnanandhaa ranking points and maintained his seventh place in the world rankings [2].