The Latest Reminder that Magnus Remains King

As the 2024 Chess World Championship match approaches, we prepare for the very reasonable possibility of the second post-Magnus Carlsen World Champion being crowned, should challenger Gukesh pull through against defending champion Ding Liren. While some feel uneasy in talking about who the best Classical player currently is, given Magnus’s inactivity in the format, there is no question that he is still the dominant force in the chess world, as he once again reminded everyone in Tata Steel Chess India’s rapid portion.

An eighth-round victory over Daniil Dubov marked his sixth straight win, with which Magnus secured first place with a round to spare, at a score of 7/8. At that point, he had set his live Rapid rating at 2839, pushing his world rankings lead to 63 points on second place Ding at 2776, per 2700chess.com. He also still firmly holds the #1 spot in Classical, at 2831, as well as #1 in Blitz, at 2893.

While it was not the toughest field Magnus has ever faced, it is never easy to gain rating as the world #1. He has not relinquished his kingdom yet!