17-Year-Old Maurizzi Dominates In Djerba With Spectacular 2900 Performance
Young French GM Marc'Andria Maurizzi delivered a masterclass at the Djerba Chess Festival, producing one of the most stunning tournament performances of 2025 so far.
The 17-year-old grandmaster was seeded only ninth in the 10-player round-robin that concluded on the Tunisian island on Sunday. Maurizzi won six games and drew three to finish on an undefeated 7.5/9 and an astonishing 2898 rating performance.
He had already clinched tournament victory after beating GM Bassem Amin in round eight, but then went on to beat GM Volodar Murzin with the black pieces in the final round.
19-year-old GM Daniel Dardha from Belgium was a point and a half behind with six points, still an excellent score. Top seed GM Parham Maghsoodloo ended third on five points, ahead of Murzin on tiebreaks.
"I am very happy to win the tournament and gain 40 rating points," Maurizzi told Chess.com when asked about his performance. "I did not expect this, for sure. It's crazy that I didn't lose a single game."
I did not expect this, for sure. It's crazy that I didn't lose a single game.
—Marc'Andria Maurizzi
Asked to explain what factors helped him perform so well, he said: "I think I did a lot of work and played some good openings. And some luck."
Maurizzi, who comes from Bastia on the Mediterranean island of Corsica, has long been considered one of France's brightest talents. In 2021, he broke GM Etienne Bacrot's 24-year-old record to become the nation's youngest-ever grandmaster at 14.
His biggest achievement is winning the prestigious 2023 World Junior Championship ahead of 13 grandmasters as a 16-year-old. In Tata Steel Chess 2024 he made waves by coming close to to qualifying for the Masters, leading the Challengers by a full point with 8.5/11 before ultimately tying for second.
His recent rating fluctuations have seen him drop from a peak of 2620 in July 2024, down to 2576 in December. Now, with his stellar Djerba performance earning him 35 rating points, he is set to hit a new career-high of 2621.
"This is for sure the best performance of my career. Winning the World Junior was good, but this feels even better," he said. "This is very good for my motivation. I am back to 2600, and I want to reach 2700 this year, maybe," he said.
I want to reach 2700 this year, maybe.
—Marc'Andria Maurizzi
In Djerba, Maurizzi got to show off his highly tactical skills with some brilliancies. Here's how he finished off young IM Faustino Oro in the first round.
After outplaying the legendary GM Vasyl Ivanchuk in an endgame in round three, he went on to beat his compatriot GM Jules Moussard in a complicated game in round four. In the following round against GM David Navara, Maurizzi said he was "lucky" to hold the endgame and escape with a draw.
He called his 22-move win against GM Etienne Bacrot in round six his best game of the tournament with "good preparation and a nice finish." It was certainly brutal!
Maurizzi also expressed his satisfication with beating the reigning World Rapid Champion.
Meanwhile, the world's youngest-ever IM, 11-year-old Oro, gained further experience in a high-level round-robin tournament after his debut in the Challengers group of Tata Steel Chess 2025.
Despite finishing with a mere 1.5 points after his three draws, he did play some decent games, such as a draw with Black against Navara and holding Moussard in the final round.
Oro also once again proved his skills in speed chess, finishing second in the blitz tournament with 8/9 and a 2578 performance. His only loss came against the winner, Dardha. Not too shabby for an 11-year-old.
Djerba Chess Festival, organized for the fifth time, took place in Tunisia from February 15-23. In addition to the Masters, there were three Open tournaments and a blitz event. Players had 90 minutes plus 30 seconds added from move 1. The total prize fund was €7,200, with the winner cashing in €3,000. Check out the games and results on our Events page.
