How To Watch Nakamura vs Hou Yifan Speed Chess Championship Today

The Speed Chess Championship resumes today as the tournament's highest seed, Hikaru Nakamura, takes on the top-rated woman in chess, Hou Yifan.

While Nakamura is a heavy favorite, this could be the "year of the 16-seed," as #16 UMBC shocked the world at the NCAA tournament in March. 

Watch the match live today, Thursday, July 26 at 5 p.m Pacific time (8 p.m. Eastern, 12 a.m Friday UTC, 8 a.m. Friday China).

The following viewing options will be available:

• Twitch.tv/chess: the official broadcast with IM Daniel Rensch and GM Robert Hess—watch here to see the Twitch chat.
• Chess.com/TV: watch here to see the Chess.com chat.

The match is the second of 15 action-packed events in the main Speed Chess Championship bracket.

The match format:

• 90 minutes of 5/1 blitz.
• 60 minutes of 3/1 blitz.
• 30 minutes of 1/1 bullet.
• 3-minute breaks between segments.
• Higher seed starts with White, and colors alternate thereafter.
• Highest cumulative point total wins. If points are tied after the bullet segment, a four-game 1/1 tiebreaker match will be played.
• If the match is still tied after the additional four 1/1 games, a single armageddon game will be played: White 5+0, Black 3+0, Black gets draw odds. The player with the highest Chess.com blitz rating at the start of the Armageddon chooses his color.
• Full match rules are available here. 

The match prizes:

• Winner: $1,000 and advances to round two of the SCC.
• An additional $1,000 split by win percentage.

Who's the favorite to win today? 

Nakamura is the heavy favorite to win the match, and the majority choice to win the entire Speed Chess tournament, with 54 percent of Chess.com poll users selecting the American grandmaster to go all the way. 

The Chess.com SmarterChess predictions give Nakamura a whopping 97 percent chance to win the match. The statistical model bases its predictions on prior performance by the players in selected Chess.com events.

What does that mean for you, the casual chess fan? Well, if you tune in and Hou Yifan does the impossible, then you'll have witnessed chess history. And even if not, there will be a lot of fun games along the way.

Next up for the Speed Chess Championship is Wesley So vs Wei Yi on Sunday, July 29 to conclude an amazing opening week for the SCC.

You can find all the information on the 2018 Speed Chess Championship here, including rules, format, players, and complete schedule. 

Let us know your match predictions in the comments or on Facebook.