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September FIDE Ratings: Carlsen 12 Points Ahead Of Caruana

September FIDE Ratings: Carlsen 12 Points Ahead Of Caruana

PeterDoggers
| 53 | Chess Event Coverage

During the Sinquefield Cup it was a close call, but Magnus Carlsen starts the month of September with a 12-point lead over Fabiano Caruana in the new FIDE rating list. The world champion also tops the lists for rapid and blitz.

Winning as Black was too much to ask, but the fact is that Caruana would have taken over the number one spot in the live ratings had he beaten Carlsen last week. As it went, the Norwegian kept his number one ranking which he has held since 2011.

Still, the gap between the top two players in the world is narrow. Before their match in November in London, Caruana still has quite a few games to play at the Olympiad, while Carlsen has a maximum of seven at the European Club Cup. In any case, there's a good chance that the world championship will see a battle between the world numbers one and two for the first time since Kasparov-Karpov, 1990.

Carlsen-Caruana, Sinquefield 2018

Carlsen-Caruana at the Sinquefield Cup, a Petroff that ended in a draw after Carlsen missed a big chance. It was their last game before the match. | Photo: Chess.com/Mike Klein.

The classical list shows Shakhriyar Mamedyarov's further rise to the top, based on his tournaments in Biel and St. Louis. He won a total of 19.1 points this summer.

There's one more 2800 player: Ding Liren. The Chinese GM, now mostly recovered from his hip fracture, played a four-game match with Veselin Topalov mid-August. He won two games and drew two, to gain 7.2 points.

The biggest margin in the top 10 is the one between number four and five. 24 points below Ding we see a trio of players, all with a 2780 rating: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Levon Aronian and Anish Giri.

Former top 10 regulars Hikaru Nakamura and Sergey Karjakin didn't have a great summer and are now in places 14 and 15, behind e.g. Ian Nepomniachtchi and Yu Yangyi.

FIDE ratings September 2018 | Classical | Top 50

Rank Country Name Title Rating Games B-Year
1 Carlsen, Magnus g 2839 19 1990
2 Caruana, Fabiano g 2827 9 1992
3 Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar g 2820 19 1985
4 Ding, Liren g 2804 4 1992
5 Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime g 2780 19 1990
6 Aronian, Levon g 2780 9 1982
7 Giri, Anish g 2780 0 1994
8 Kramnik, Vladimir g 2779 0 1975
9 So, Wesley g 2776 9 1993
10 Anand, Viswanathan g 2771 9 1969
11 Grischuk, Alexander g 2769 9 1983
12 Nepomniachtchi, Ian g 2768 0 1990
13 Yu, Yangyi g 2765 11 1994
14 Nakamura, Hikaru g 2763 9 1987
15 Karjakin, Sergey g 2760 9 1990
16 Svidler, Peter g 2756 10 1976
17 Radjabov, Teimour g 2751 0 1987
18 Jakovenko, Dmitry g 2747 14 1983
19 Harikrishna, Pentala g 2743 8 1986
20 Wei, Yi g 2742 12 1999
21 Navara, David g 2740 17 1985
22 Topalov, Veselin g 2740 4 1975
23 Duda, Jan-Krzysztof g 2739 7 1998
24 Wojtaszek, Radoslaw g 2727 0 1987
25 Vitiugov, Nikita g 2726 6 1987
26 Rapport, Richard g 2723 9 1996
27 Shankland, Samuel g 2722 7 1991
28 Naiditsch, Arkadij g 2721 7 1985
29 Cheparinov, Ivan g 2715 24 1986
30 Le, Quang Liem g 2715 16 1991
31 Wang, Hao g 2714 9 1989
32 Vallejo Pons, Francisco g 2713 11 1982
33 Fedoseev, Vladimir g 2712 16 1995
34 Bu, Xiangzhi g 2712 11 1985
35 Adams, Michael g 2712 9 1971
36 Andreikin, Dmitry g 2712 2 1990
37 Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi g 2711 12 1994
38 Ivanchuk, Vassily g 2710 0 1969
39 Dubov, Daniil g 2709 9 1996
40 Li, Chao b g 2708 13 1989
41 Eljanov, Pavel g 2703 15 1983
42 Artemiev, Vladislav g 2703 9 1998
43 Gelfand, Boris g 2703 0 1968
44 Almasi, Zoltan g 2702 0 1976
45 Tomashevsky, Evgeny g 2702 0 1987
46 Mamedov, Rauf g 2699 10 1988
47 Kryvoruchko, Yuriy g 2695 9 1986
48 Sadler, Matthew D g 2693 0 1974
49 Nabaty, Tamir g 2692 0 1991
50 Sargissian, Gabriel g 2691 9 1983

(Full list here.)

Carlsen also tops the rapid and blitz lists. Especially Nakamura is doing clearly better there, compared to classical chess, as he holds the world number two and three positions respectively.

The American GM won 20.4 points in the Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz event, where Caruana and Mamedyarov did even better: +50.8 and +40 respectively. Wesley So dropped 43.6 points there. (With a K-factor of 20 instead of 10, the swings are bigger than in classical chess.) 

Cuban GM Leinier Dominguez, now living in the U.S., lost points but still holds the world number three position in the rapid.

FIDE ratings September 2018 | Rapid | Top 30

Rank Country Name Title Rating Games B-Year
1 Carlsen, Magnus g 2880 0 1990
2 Nakamura, Hikaru g 2844 9 1987
3 Dominguez Perez, Leinier g 2816 9 1983
4 Fedoseev, Vladimir g 2810 0 1995
5 So, Wesley g 2808 11 1993
6 Aronian, Levon g 2802 9 1982
7 Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar g 2794 9 1985
8 Karjakin, Sergey g 2792 9 1990
9 Caruana, Fabiano g 2789 11 1992
10 Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime g 2786 9 1990
11 Wang, Hao g 2782 0 1989
12 Nepomniachtchi, Ian g 2766 0 1990
13 Ding, Liren g 2760 0 1992
14 Yu, Yangyi g 2758 0 1994
15 Kramnik, Vladimir g 2756 0 1975
16 Onischuk, Vladimir g 2754 0 1991
17 Svidler, Peter g 2753 0 1976
18 Le, Quang Liem g 2752 0 1991
19 Harikrishna, Pentala g 2743 0 1986
20 Jakovenko, Dmitry g 2742 0 1983
21 Korobov, Anton g 2740 0 1985
22 Giri, Anish g 2739 0 1994
23 Radjabov, Teimour g 2738 0 1987
24 Anand, Viswanathan g 2737 9 1969
25 Adams, Michael g 2736 2 1971
26 Sjugirov, Sanan g 2735 11 1993
27 Artemiev, Vladislav g 2733 0 1998
28 Mamedov, Rauf g 2733 0 1988
29 Grischuk, Alexander g 2732 9 1983
30 Andreikin, Dmitry g 2731 0 1990

(Full list here.)

The biggest change in the blitz ratings is the rise of Vachier-Lagrave to second place, only two points behind Carlsen! The Frenchman won a whopping 58.8 over the 18 blitz games that he played in St. Louis. Caruana also did very well, winning 58.4 points. His good performances in both rapid and blitz cannot hurt his level of confidence for a possible tiebreak in November.

Karjakin's blitz in St. Louis was highly disappointing as he lost 62 points. He's now world number seven in the list, behind blitz specialists Vladislav Artemiev and Nepomniachtchi. Nonetheless, Karjakin is still considered to be one of the favorites for the 2018 Speed Chess Championship. He plays Polish GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda in round one, on September 6.

FIDE ratings September 2018 | Blitz | Top 30

Rank Country Name Title Rating Games B-Year
1 Carlsen, Magnus g 2939 0 1990
2 Vachier-Lagrave, Maxime g 2937 18 1990
3 Nakamura, Hikaru g 2893 18 1987
4 Aronian, Levon g 2854 18 1982
5 Artemiev, Vladislav g 2849 0 1998
6 Nepomniachtchi, Ian g 2846 0 1990
7 Karjakin, Sergey g 2836 18 1990
8 Grischuk, Alexander g 2825 18 1983
9 Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar g 2808 18 1985
10 Yu, Yangyi g 2804 0 1994
11 Anand, Viswanathan g 2786 18 1969
12 Adams, Michael g 2782 2 1971
13 Andreikin, Dmitry g 2777 0 1990
14 Wang, Hao g 2775 11 1989
15 Ding, Liren g 2773 0 1992
16 So, Wesley g 2771 18 1993
17 Svidler, Peter g 2770 0 1976
18 Caruana, Fabiano g 2767 18 1992
19 Andriasian, Zaven g 2766 0 1989
20 Giri, Anish g 2751 0 1994
21 Fedoseev, Vladimir g 2750 20 1995
22 Le, Quang Liem g 2749 11 1991
23 Kramnik, Vladimir g 2748 0 1975
24 Mamedov, Rauf g 2745 0 1988
25 Radjabov, Teimour g 2743 0 1987
26 Dubov, Daniil g 2740 0 1996
27 Vidit, Santosh Gujrathi g 2727 0 1994
28 Bortnyk, Olexandr g 2723 0 1996
29 Gelfand, Boris g 2722 0 1968
30 Jones, Gawain C B g 2722 0 1987

(Full list here.)

Hou Yifan's last classical games were played at the Grenke Chess Classic in April. She tops the list for female players with a 97-point lead over her compatriot and reigning women's world champion Ju Wenjun.

It remains to be seen how active Hou will be in the coming months, as she'll be starting her postgraduate study at Oxford university after winning the prestigious Rhodes Scholarships last year.

One player who is not in the list, but will return soon, is Humpy Koneru of India. She'll play both the Olympiad and the women's knockout world championship in November. Her last rating 2557 would make her the world number four.

Noteworthy is IM Elisabeth Paehtz's 6/7 in the Spanish league, with which she gained 13.4 points and entered the world's top 10.

FIDE ratings September 2018 | Classical | Top 50, Women

Rank Country Name Title Rating Games B-Year
1 Hou, Yifan g 2658 0 1994
2 Ju, Wenjun g 2561 4 1991
3 Kosteniuk, Alexandra g 2559 0 1984
4 Lagno, Kateryna g 2556 0 1989
5 Muzychuk, Anna g 2555 11 1990
6 Goryachkina, Aleksandra g 2535 0 1998
7 Muzychuk, Mariya g 2533 17 1992
8 Gunina, Valentina g 2528 0 1989
9 Tan, Zhongyi g 2527 8 1991
10 Paehtz, Elisabeth m 2513 7 1985
11 Dzagnidze, Nana g 2509 8 1987
12 Harika, Dronavalli g 2500 6 1991
13 Stefanova, Antoaneta g 2490 0 1979
14 Abdumalik, Zhansaya m 2482 6 2000
15 Batsiashvili, Nino g 2482 4 1987
16 Sebag, Marie g 2480 0 1986
17 Zhao, Xue g 2478 0 1985
18 Javakhishvili, Lela m 2475 0 1984
19 Saduakassova, Dinara m 2474 14 1996
20 Khotenashvili, Bela g 2469 4 1988
21 Pogonina, Natalija wg 2469 0 1985
22 Lei, Tingjie g 2468 9 1997
23 Cramling, Pia g 2465 10 1963
24 Shen, Yang m 2464 5 1989
25 Cornette, Deimante m 2462 7 1989
26 Girya, Olga wg 2462 0 1991
27 Ushenina, Anna g 2451 4 1985
28 Bodnaruk, Anastasia m 2449 0 1992
29 Atalik, Ekaterina m 2447 12 1982
30 Socko, Monika g 2446 9 1978
31 Huang, Qian wg 2446 4 1986
32 Hunt, Harriet V m 2439 0 1978
33 Mammadzada, Gunay m 2438 19 2000
34 Buksa, Nataliya wg 2437 21 1996
35 Kashlinskaya, Alina m 2431 9 1993
36 Khademalsharieh, Sarasadat m 2431 6 1997
37 Zatonskih, Anna m 2431 0 1978
38 Ding, Yixin wg 2429 4 1991
39 Ni, Shiqun wg 2427 13 1997
40 Zawadzka, Jolanta wg 2424 9 1987
41 Galliamova, Alisa m 2424 0 1972
42 Krush, Irina g 2423 6 1983
43 Hoang, Thanh Trang g 2423 0 1980
44 Zhu, Chen g 2423 0 1976
45 Munguntuul, Batkhuyag m 2422 11 1987
46 Shuvalova, Polina wm 2421 10 2001
47 Zimina, Olga m 2421 0 1982
48 Nechaeva, Marina m 2419 12 1986
49 Alexandrova, Olga m 2419 0 1978
50 Turova, Irina m 2418 10 1979

All data courtesy of FIDE.

Chess.com Blitz and Bullet

We'll also look at how things are on our own site. Let's check out the current blitz and bullet ratings on Chess.com.

It's not a surprise that Nakamura tops both lists, as he continues to be the most dominant, active online blitz player on our site. However, on both lists the runner-up is a slightly surprising name, and both are not too far behind.

Armenian grandmaster Hrant Melkumyan is 33 points behind Nakamura in the blitz. He is quite an active player in the classical open tournament circuit, but apparently a strong blitz player too!

Behind him, we find three super GMs: Aronian (who crushed Caruana in our Speed Chess event), Giri (the winner of our Speed Chess Open) and So (who knocked out Wei Yi).

Special mention: IM Nikola Bortnyk, FIDE rated 2462 in classical chess, but in 10th place on our website with a 2934 rating.

Chess.com Live Chess | Blitz | September 1, 2018 (Top 20)

# Title Player Rating 1/0/=
1 GM Hikaru 3053 7650/1235/833
2 GM Hanapazorya 3020 1259/766/294
3 GM LevonAronian 3002 20/12/12
4 GM AnishGiri 2961 27/6/15
5 GM GMWSO 2959 209/90/53
6 GM Zhigalko_Sergei 2952 655/425/118
7 GM Grischuk 2947 58/46/43
8 GM Lordillidan 2935 395/167/84
9 GM Azzaro25 2935 103/39/26
10 IM Mykola-Bortnyk 2934 666/524/130
11 GM lachesisQ 2925 550/287/123
12 GM 2Vladimirovich90 2924 442/140/100
13 GM EvgenyT 2923 123/76/46
14 GM Micki-taryan 2904 1053/518/156
15 GM DanielNaroditsky 2902 3275/1927/541
16 GM wudileige 2901 20/15/8
17 IM Rafa-Nadal 2890 619/398/111
18 GM viditchess 2889 209/108/51
19 GM OparinGrigoriy 2889 1495/641/343
20 GM Bigfish1995 2889 1421/934/303

(See full list here.)

In the bullet, we find Daniel Naroditsky being the "best of the rest" with only 37 points less than Nakamura. Two more Chess.com regulars are next: Vachier-Lagrave and Dmitry Andreikin. MVL obviously gained points with his 9-3 bullet victory as part of his Speed Chess match with Dominguez.

Belarus GM Sergei Zhigalko is doing pretty well on our site, with a sixth place in blitz and a fifth place in bullet. There are three IMs in the top 20 and even one untitled player: 18-year-old Saveliy Golubov of Russia. However, the FIDE website tells us he is also an IM, so that will probably be fixed soon. In any case, impressive online results for these non-GMs!

Chess.com Live Chess | Bullet | September 1, 2018 (Top 20)

# Title Name Rating 1/0/=
1 GM Hikaru 3098 7691/809/343
2 GM DanielNaroditsky 3061 3104/1708/281
3 GM LyonBeast 3025 517/120/57
4 GM 2Vladimirovich90 3014 152/62/23
5 GM Zhigalko_Sergei 3007 2887/1836/297
6 GM Bigfish1995 3001 426/261/54
7 GM LevonAronian 2980 13/9/4
8 IM KhalilMousavi77 2967 997/532/90
9 IM Shant_Sargsyan 2967 2513/2600/503
10 GM Firouzja2003 2964 2552/1799/242
11 GM GMWSO 2946 74/40/13
12 GM Polish_fighter3000 2941 138/87/16
13 GM Grischuk 2939 109/84/28
14 GM penguingm1 2938 6984/3839/544
15 GM AnishGiri 2927 11/6/4
16 GM klounessa 2923 440/185/49
17 The_bird_of_peace 2919 386/207/34
18 IM wonderfultime 2915 3385/3029/489
19 GM OparinGrigoriy 2914 1547/878/250
20 GM xxysoul6 2905 558/360/71

(See full list here.)


PeterDoggers
Peter Doggers

Peter Doggers joined a chess club a month before turning 15 and still plays for it. He used to be an active tournament player and holds two IM norms. Peter has a Master of Arts degree in Dutch Language & Literature. He briefly worked at New in Chess, then as a Dutch teacher and then in a project for improving safety and security in Amsterdam schools. Between 2007 and 2013 Peter was running ChessVibes, a major source for chess news and videos acquired by Chess.com in October 2013. As our Director News & Events, Peter writes many of our news reports. In the summer of 2022, The Guardian’s Leonard Barden described him as “widely regarded as the world’s best chess journalist.”

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