Mitrabha Wins King Of The Hill Championship Ahead Of 3,500 Participants

GM Guha Mitrabha was crowned the Chess.com King of the Hill champion on Friday after winning the latest edition of the Community Chess Championships. Following a 12-hour qualification marathon where he competed alongside 3,500 aspirants, Mitrabha cruised through the knockouts and defeated FM Semyon Puzyrevsky to claim the $750 first prize.

Indian IM Nitish Belurkar finished in third place, while the top-seeded qualifiers (by Chess.com blitz rating), GMs Oleksandr Bortnyk and Andrew Tang, finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

Bracket

Standings/Prizes

Qualifiers: Eight Titled Finalists

Eight qualifiers held on Thursday determined the quarterfinalists for the knockout, and these were some of the best-attended events in Community Chess Championship history. The players who booked their spot in the knockout played in a double-elimination bracket. Every match was a best-of-four 3+0 duel.

The first qualifier had over 702 participants and featured former super-GM David Navara, but it was 14-year-old Azerbaijani IM Khagan Ahmad who rose above the masses and secured first place.

The tournament's eventual winner Mitrabha won the final qualifier; however, he later admitted that his path to the knockout was arduous—the Indian speed chess specialist played for 12 hours straight in all eight qualifiers and got just four hours of sleep before playing in the finals.

Last but not least we have the one and only GM Mitrabha Guha! No introductions needed - dude's a legend! pic.twitter.com/aRIIoDabtE

— Chess.com Community (@GreenPawns) May 16, 2025

Qualifier Results

King of the Hill is one of chess's simplest variants, and the only difference is that a player can claim victory by placing their king on one of the four squares in the middle of the board: e4, d4, e5, and d5.

Winners Quarterfinals: Tang Stunned By Rojas

Tang was the most notable casualty in the first round of the knockout thanks to a clutch effort from Peruvian IM Steven Rojas. Leading the match with a score of 2-1, Tang's king loomed dangerously on c4. As he tried to open the center and achieve "King of the Hill," Rojas craftily designed a mating net, which put him back in contention.

GM Vugar Rasulov almost caused another upset after toppling Bortnyk in the first two games before the latter bounced back and notched a hat trick. See if you can spot the game-ending sacrifice Bortnyk found in the third game below.

Mitrabha and Belurkar also won their matches, albeit in a more comfortable fashion, to claim their Winners Semifinals spots.

Winners Semifinals: Mitrabha, Belurkar Progress

Mitrabha clicked into gear in his second match and defeated Rojas 3-1. The Indian GM acknowledged his opponent's King of the Hill adroitness and sought to close the center, forcing Rojas to play a version of the game that was close to standard chess. Mitrabha capped off the match with a striking smothered checkmate and announced himself as a contender.

In the other semifinal, Belurkar trounced Bortnyk 3-1 and set up and all-Indian showdown in the Winners Final.

Winners Final: Mitrabha Posts 3-0 Rout

The Winners Final was a rude awakening for Belurkar, who had coasted through his quarterfinal and semifinal encounters only to fall 3-0 to Mitrabha. The first game set the tone of the match, and after snapping up a pawn with 25.Qxe5?, Belurkar was subjected to a discovered attack combination that proved decisive.

Losers Bracket: Comeback King Puzyrevsky Wins

Meanwhile, in the Losers Bracket, Puzyrevsky clawed his way back from the jaws of defeat and earned his spot in the Losers Bracket final. Puzyrevsky knocked out Rojas and Bortnyk en route to the final and didn't stop there, posting a 3-0 score against Belurkar and setting up a rendezvous with Mitrabha for the top prize.

Many snippets from Puzyrevsky's games are highlight-worthy, although a brutal queen sacrifice against Belurkar, 19...Qh2+, which paved the path to the center for his king, is the most instructive.

Grand Final: Mitrabha Wins In Sudden-Death

Bolstered by his Herculean effort in the Losers Bracket, Puzyrevsky carried momentum into the grand final but was kept in check by a dominant Mitrabha. The pair traded blows until the scores hit 2-2, meaning that sudden-death overtime would be required to decide the champion.

Intriguingly, Black won every single game of this match, including the fifth and final game. Playing against Puzyrevsky's English Opening, Mitrabha tried to stake his claim in the center. On move 16, White dashed for the center with 16.Ke2 and soon crept to d3. Mitrabha's experience soon shone through, and he barred Puzyrevsky from the four middle squares.  

The intermezzo 21...Rc8! left White in a helpless position and several moves later, Mitrabha's king was able to make a successful run to the d5-square and prompt Puzyrevsky's resignation.

Speaking about the format to commentators GM Jon Ludvig Hammer and FM James Canty III, the newly crowned King of the Hill champion said: "In comparison to the other variants, like Atomic and all, I thought this was a much better chance for me because it is almost like a normal game of chess. There are certain differences, but I think my chess strength would have helped here."

The Chess.com King of the Hill Championship is part of the 2025 Chess.com Community Championships, and the event was open to all members of the Chess.com Community Club. The winners of eight arena Qualifiers played in a double-elimination knockout to determine the Chess.com King of the Hill champion. The event featured a $2,500 prize fund with $750 for first place.

Previous coverage:

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  • 3-Check Community Championship Knockout Will Have No GMs
  • Naroditsky Comes Clutch In Final Rush, Qualifies With 7 Others
  • It's Tactics Time! The Chess.com Puzzles Championship Starts On January 16
  • Chess.com Community Championships 2025 Cycle Kicks Off January And Features 12 Events