Nakamura Becomes First To Break 3400 In Blitz On Chess.com

GM Hikaru Nakamura recently extended his record on Chess.com to become the first player ever to break 3400 in blitz. His new high of 3405 is 28 points higher than number two on the list, GM Magnus Carlsen.

The electrifying online blitz rivalry between the two titans of the chess world shows no signs of ending. Nakamura set a new high of 3334 last November, breaking his own record by two points, a mark which had stood for nearly three years. That record didn't stay for long, as Carlsen retained the record in December, taking it to 3340.

The Norwegian eventually extended the record in the earliest days of 2024, to 3378, but Nakamura clearly wasn't interested in things staying that way for long. On February 9, Nakamura shattered the 3400 barrier to retake the throne as the blitz king on Chess.com.

HIKARU JUST HIT 3400 BLITZ! FIRST PERSON EVER 🤯 pic.twitter.com/UGcxVkVDsI

— Chess.com (@chesscom) February 9, 2024

Nakamura broke 3400 with a crushing 13 straight wins against 2890-rated Mark_Christian29 from the Philippines in three-minute blitz. He eventually extended the record by another five points with a five wins against NM James Chirilov, rated over 2800 in blitz. 

The record was set thanks to a brutal finish.

However, with a huge rating edge of hundreds of points over almost any opponent, losses are costly, and the 36-year-old's blitz rating has since dropped to 3310, second on the leaderboard behind Carlsen's 3341. 

On the list of the highest-ever Chess.com blitz ratings, Nakamura tops the list, 28 points ahead of Carlsen. Third-place Indian youngster GM Nihal Sarin is another 100 points behind Carlsen.

Nakamura's Chess.com journey as Hikaru started in 2014. Ten years later, the now-famous chess streamer has played more than 50,000 games on the platform, and 37,000 of them in blitz. He has constantly dominated the leaderboards in both blitz and bullet, but is facing stiff competition from rivals such as Carlsen, who has become more active on Chess.com in the past year.

Carlsen, who has just qualified for the final in the 2024 Freestyle Chess G.O.A.T Challenge in Germany, has understandably refrained from any blitz on Chess.com since he won 3-1 in a match against GM Daniel Naroditsky on February 8.

Nakamura on the other hand, is set to make his debut in the German Bundesliga February 23-25, which could serve as his final preparation as he tries to qualify for a World Championship match in the Candidates Tournament in April.

Until then, we're bound to face a few more clashes between the two in Titled Cup on Tuesdays.