Super GM Hangs his Queen in One Move

While it is very common for an amateur chess player, enjoying their evening blitz session, to hit the blind spot and commit the so-called “Botez Gambit”, also known as the queen blunder, it is phenomenally rare for a Super Grandmaster. However, Teimour Radjabov fell victim to this nightmare!

During the ongoing 2025 Azerbaijan National Championship, an exciting semifinal clash between the seasoned veterans, Teimour Radjabov and Rauf Mamedov was at hand. The two competed in a 2-game match with standard time control with neither of the players blinking an eye. Both the games ended in two high-quality and accurate draws. When the tie couldn’t be broken even after two rapid games, the players went into an armageddon game where Teimour had the white pieces and a 5-minute advantage on the clock. The game was going white’s way; Teimour was an exchange up with a 30-second lead on the clock when he simply didn’t see that his queen was attacked –

Both the players were down to their final 2 minutes and the nerves got the better of the Azeri veteran. Even though Radjabov has been at the top of the chess for years – as high as the top 5 with 2793 – such setbacks are always tough for the players. And with this heartbreak, Teimour bowed out of the National Championship while Rauf Mamedov marched forward to the final. Mamedov will take on his long-time training partner, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov.