See: Chess calendar of Wei Yi / Chess calendar of Levon Aronian

Wei Yi and Levon Aronian will play 4 classical games and 4 rapid games. The time control of the classical games is 90 minutes + 30 seconds and for the rapid games 15 minutes + 10 seconds. Each win in the classical games is awarded 3 points, each draw 1 points. For the rapid games a win is 1 point, which a draw is 0,5 points. If the score is equal at the end of the match, a blitz tiebreak of two games with time control 5 minutes + 3 seconds. If the score is equal again, an Armageddon game will be played.

Live games will be daily on Chessdom.com. You can find more top competitions in The Chess Calendar.

News and updates by Xia Xuejing aka Sky Xia

This article is brought to you by Xia Xuejing aka Sky Xia. She is a Hong Kong chess player, born May 28th, 2007. Sky Xia is currently #7 ranked among female players of Hong Kong.

More news from Sky Xia: Chinese Team Chess Championship 2025 / Chinese Women Team Chess Championship 2025 / Five-Time World Champion Ju Wenjun visits Hong Kong / Nemo Zhou’s Live Chess Blitz Night in Hong Kong / Ding Liren visits children’s chess school

Live games will be daily on Chessdom. The Chinese National Chess Games is one of the top events in The Chess Calendar for the month of June.

Invited players: Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Gukesh D, Ding Liren, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Nodirbek Abdusattorov, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Wei Yi. Live games will be daily on Chessdom, while additional news can be found in the Chessdom Newsletter – you can sign up for free in the form below

New: If you are looking for more action by Carlsen and Nakamura, do not forget to check out the complete Magnus Carlsen calendar and the complete Hikaru Nakamura calendar, which are now integral parts of The Chessdom Chess Calendar

Chess.com Classic 2025

Play in knockout

Play in Swiss

The Chess.com Classic kicks off with the qualifiers for non-grandmasters on May 18 at 11 a.m. ET / 17:00 CEST / 8:30 p.m. IST. The Play-In starts a day later at the same time, with the Playoffs taking place from May 20 to May 23.

More: Nakamura vs Leela with knight odds / Carlsen wins Grenke with 9,0/9 / Replay Ding Liren vs Gukesh / Magnus Carlsen Clinches Paris Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Title in Thrilling Final Against Hikaru Nakamura

Chess.com Classic Qualifier (May 18)

Starts: 8:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST

Non-grandmaster titled players compete in a Swiss, with the top three making it to the Play-In.

• Open to all non-grandmaster titled players
• Players contest a nine-round Swiss
• Time control: 10+0
• The top three players are eligible to compete in the Play-In

Chess.com Classic Play-in (May 19)

Starts: 8:00 PT / 11:00 ET / 17:00 CEST

Qualified players join grandmasters to compete in two phases, Swiss and Match Play. The winner of the Swiss goes straight to the Playoffs. Players ranked second through 15th go to Match Play, with the winners reaching the Playoffs.

• Open to all grandmasters and the top three players from the Qualifier
• Time control: 10+0
• Players compete in a nine-round Swiss
• The top player from the Swiss goes straight to the Playoffs and selects their bracket position
• Players ranked second through 15th advance to Match Play
• Players ranked second through eighth choose their opponents
• The 14 players who compete in the Match Play phase contest a two-game match
• The winner of each Match Play match moves on to the Playoffs

Chess.com Classic Playoffs (May 20 – 23)

Starts: 8:15 PT / 11:15 ET / 17:15 CET

Eight invited players join the eight players who made it to the Playoffs to compete for top prize money and CCT Points, which may grant them a spot at the Esports World Cup.

• Eight invited players join the eight players who made it to the Playoffs
• Players contest a double-elimination bracket
• Winners Bracket matches consist of four games
• Losers Bracket matches consist of two games
• Grand Final match consists of four games
• Grand Final Reset, if necessary, consists of two games
• If the match ends in a tie, a bidding armageddon game with a base time of 10 minutes decides the winner

Divisions Cash Prizes

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Aronian said he felt “amazing” after the win. Aronian, an undoubted big beast in world chess, entered the $150,000 event as the favourite but struggled in the early rounds and only just made the cut to get into the knockout. “I didn’t really deserve to be top eight,” he admitted. “Because my play was very, very poor but after that I think I got myself together and I played better.”

When the pressure was really on, Aronian’s class shone through as he knocked out India’s impressive teenager Arjun Erigaisi in the quarters and then World Cup winner Jan-Krzysztof Duda in the semis.

Aronian, a Tour winner in the Goldmoney Asian Rapid last season, ended Wei’s challenge with two games to spare after a winning a wild first match that could have gone either way by 2.5-0.5 yesterday.

Aronian, who was playing from Yerevan but has recently transferred federations to the US, took the lead when Wei suffered what appeared to be a catastrophic mouse-slip under intense time pressure. Until that point, it had looked like a dead draw. Then, sensing he needed to do something, China’s No. 3 started the second game with 1… g6 and quickly threw caution to the wind.

Aronian had at least two golden chances to finish off Wei in just two games, but missed them. Wei, playing from Hangzhou City, escaped with a draw and lived to fight game 3. In the third, Wei took even bigger risks with the eyebrow-raising 3. g4 offering a free pawn, which Aronian didn’t take, and then the committal 8. h4.

Aronian, however, stayed calm and gradually took advantage to seal the win. Aronian said: “I think this was definitely one of my performances. Play-wise I think I was being resilient, which is very important, and it’s a good confidence boost. I think I’ll try to build on this.”

The FTX Road to Miami was the fifth leg of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and the qualifier for the Tour’s next Major, the FTX Crypto Cup. The two finalists, Wei and Aronian, have now secured their places. FTX is the Official Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and was the title partner of the first FTX Crypto Cup in the inaugural season of the Tour.

Aronian’s semi-final with the always-sharp World Cup winner Jan Krzysztof Duda was a thriller. Game 3 caught fire when Duda went all-in with 21… Qh5 sacrificing a pawn on d7 and opening up wild possibilities on the board. Aronian, who has won the World Cup twice himself, then missed a chance to end the match early, before Duda also let a chance to level slip. On move 51, the game ended in a draw and the players entered the final game with Duda needing a win to take it to tiebreaks.

Duda played a quiet novelty with 9. Ne2 that took the game into a new line but the premature 12. f4 was a big mistake that left the Pole’s defence wide open to attack. By move 15, the writing was on the wall and Duda resigned on move 25.

The final starts tomorrow at 18:00 CEST. The FTX Road to Miami is the fifth leg of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and the qualifier for the Tour’s next Major, the FTX Crypto Cup. The line-up of top players is competing for places in the Major and a prize fund of up to $150,000. Those who make it through to the FTX Crypto Cup can vie for the Tour’s largest prize fund so far this year: $210K plus an additional $100K tied to the price of bitcoin provided by leading cryptocurrency exchange FTX. FTX is the Official Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and was the title partner of the first FTX Crypto Cup in the inaugural season of the Tour. Every move will be streamed live and for free on chess24.com/tour with commentary for all.

But after a draw in the second, Aronian hit back in game 3 to level the score. Then, in game 4, the decisive moment in the match came when Erigaisi, in a position where he could have forced a draw, allowed his king to be trapped on the back rank.

FTX Crypto Cup 2022 all the information / FTX Crypto Cup 2022 Miami Qualifier live

With 41. Qe4 Aronian took control and there was no way back for the youngster. Aronian, who only just scraped into the knockout stage, had won two games in a row to clinch his semi-final against Duda. Playing from Yerevan in Armenia, Aronian said after that he got his confidence back after the third game.

Meanwhile, Dutch No.1 Giri crashed out to Poland’s World Cup winner Duda in a bizarre fashion.

Giri saved a seemingly lost position in game 2 before falling behind in the third after having rejected a draw offer. It left left him teetering on the edge of elimination. Then, in a must-win situation in the final game, Giri allowed a draw under the 50-move rule after there were no captures or pawn pushes from move 23.

Fans watching thought Giri was waiting patiently for the right moment to push the aggressive g4, but it never came. On move 73 the game ended in an automatic draw and Giri went out. Afterward, Duda said: “I was hoping he wouldn’t notice the 50-move rule was coming… I was trying to discourage him from pushing a pawn.”. Anish Giri vs Jan-Krzysztof Duda LIVE

Sevian, the winner of the prelim stage, had looked to be cruising into the semis with ease against China’s Wei Yi when he went ahead on game 2. But the 21-year-old from Massachusetts found a clean match win slip through his fingers in the final game as Wei staged a comeback to level the score at 2-2 and send the quarter-final into tiebreaks. Until that point, Wei hadn’t won for 12 games. Then, in the second blitz tiebreak game, Wei did it again to end Sevian’s impressive debut tournament.

It was a similar story in the last quarter-final match to finish as the 21-year-old Texan Jeffrey Xiong went ahead in his match against Richard Rapport, before the world No. 8 hit back. A final game draw made the score 2-2 and took it to tiebreaks. Rapport won the first of the blitz tiebreaks with a brilliant endgame before crashing through again in second. Xiong was out and the more experienced Rapport through.

The semi-final starts tomorrow before the two-day final kicks off over the weekend.

The FTX Road to Miami is the fifth leg of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and the qualifier for the Tour’s next Major, the FTX Crypto Cup. The line-up of top players is competing for places in the Major and a prize fund of up to $150,000. Those who make it through to the FTX Crypto Cup can vie for the Tour’s largest prize fund so far this year: $210K plus an additional $100K tied to the price of bitcoin provided by leading cryptocurrency exchange FTX.

FTX is the Official Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and was the title partner of the first FTX Crypto Cup in the inaugural season of the Tour. Every move will be streamed live and for free on chess24.com/tour with commentary for all.

The 21-year-old from Massachusetts, playing in his first Meltwater Champions Chess Tour event, followed up his impressive first three days with another assured performance to clinch top spot. Sevian’s rookie run has already earned him $8,000 ($250 per point), with his prize pot set to grow in the next stage. Today, Sevian did just enough to stay ahead of the event’s other breakout star, Indian young gun Arjun Erigaisi, picking up 4 points from a win and a draw. It left the American one point clear on the leaderboard after the final round of the prelim.

With three rounds left to play, Erigaisi – who won three games yesterday – started with a draw against Dutch No.1 Anish Giri that kept him breathing down Sevian’s neck.

Then the fireworks started. Round 14, the penultimate in the prelim, was as bloody as it could be as every game ended with a winner – a rare event at the top level. And there were a series of eyebrow-raising results. Erigaisi and Jeffery Xiong, the leader on the first day, faced-off against each other. The two youngsters, along with Sevian, have set the pace in this event but it was Erigaisi who came out on top. Sevian suffered his first defeat of the tournament against Poland’s World Cup winner Jan-Krzysztof Duda allowing Erigaisi to edge ahead going into the final round.

FTX Crypto Cup 2022 all the information / FTX Crypto Cup 2022 Miami Qualifier live

Meanwhile, Shakrhiyar Mamedyarov, one of the tournament’s big beasts, suffered a catastrophic defeat to Aryan Tari that left him outside the top 8 and in danger of going out. As crunch time approached, Wei Yi, Mamedyarov and Norway’s No. 2 Aryan Tari were all fighting it out for one qualification spot.

The first two results saw Giri beat the freefalling Hans Niemann in just 10 minutes to secure his spot while Aronian and Duda drew to send both of them safely through.

Mamedyarov, meanwhile, faced the in-form Sevian in a must-win game. It proved too much for Mamedyarov as the Azerbaijan’s No.1 was forced to resign, dumping him out of the tournament. Mamedyarov had lost all three of his games.

Sevian said: “I’m feeling great. I wanted to keep it simple today, play three solid games and get ready for tomorrow and I had some interesting fights nonetheless!”

The knockout starts with the quarter-final on Thursday, before the semi on Friday and then the two-day final over the weekend. Sevian faces Wei, while Erigaisi takes on Aronian in a youngest vs oldest clash.

The FTX Road to Miami is the fifth leg of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and the qualifier for the Tour’s next Major, the FTX Crypto Cup. The line-up of top players is competing for places in the Major and a prize fund of up to $150,000. Those who make it through to the FTX Crypto Cup can vie for the Tour’s largest prize fund so far this year: $210K plus an additional $100K tied to the price of bitcoin provided by leading cryptocurrency exchange FTX.

FTX is the Official Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and was the title partner of the first FTX Crypto Cup in the inaugural season of the Tour. Every move will be streamed live and for free on chess24.com/tour with commentary for all.

Meanwhile, Ju Wenjun’s hopes of reaching the knockout after scoring three wins yesterday faded quickly. The only woman in the event lost all her games and is now out of the reckoning. It was a big disappointment for Ju who started confidently in the first round of the day against the Cuban-American Leinier Dominguez with the ambitious 20. h4 pawn push.

But a fumble in the endgame under time pressure let Dominguez off the hook. One mistake – the pawn grab 46. Nxf7 – cost Ju the game. From that point on, the Women’s World Champion collapsed.

Will Evans, from FTX, a partner of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour, appeared on the broadcast to outline why the big player in the crypto market had got involved in the event.

Speaking from Los Angeles, he said: “We see a great synergy between the chess and crypto communities. “So as chess players, there’s no single way to play the game, we all take different lines, we all have a little different style and I think the same is true with investing.”

Tomorrow rounds 13 to 15 will be played and eight will be eliminated before the knockout starts on Thursday. The FTX Road to Miami is the fifth leg of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and the qualifier for the Tour’s next Major, the FTX Crypto Cup. The line-up of top players is competing for places in the Major and a prize fund of up to $150,000.

Those who make it through to the FTX Crypto Cup can vie for the Tour’s largest prize fund so far this year: $210K plus an additional $100K tied to the price of bitcoin provided by leading cryptocurrency exchange FTX. FTX is the Official Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and was the title partner of the first FTX Crypto Cup in the inaugural season of the Tour. Every move will be streamed live and for free on chess24.com/tour with commentary for all.

Ju downplayed the achievement in an interview afterwards. She said: “Maybe it is because they want to beat me so they play an unclear game and I get some chances.”

International Master Jovanka Houska, in the commentary box, said: “I’m absolutely ecstatic. When the women play on the Tour I just cheer for them and I think it’s so fantastic to see Ju Wenjun do so well. I think she’s making that jump up to the next level.”

Among Sevian’s victims was world number 5 and top seed Levon Aronian, who has so far struggled with form in this event. Aronian is in a battle now to make the cut for the knockout when the prelims end on Wednesday. Sevian also dispatched Norway’s Aryan Tari and fellow American Hans Niemann before the walkover against Teimour Radjabov guaranteed him the sole lead without playing in round 8.

Azerbaijan’s No.1, who finished as the overall runner-up on the 2021 Tour, had become the first player to exit the tournament when he pulled out sick after the first round of the day.

Radjabov, who entered the tournament as one of the favourites, informed arbiters that he was suffering a health issue straight after losing to the Dutchman Anish Giri in round 5. Radjabov will be missed in the event.

Meanwhile, the overnight leader Jeffery Xiong impressed again in round 5 by beating Aronian but then fell back into third after a loss against Rapport and a draw with Radek Wojtaszek. Moving into second with 17/24 is 18-year-old Indian Arjun Erigaisi.

Tomorrow rounds 9 to 12 will be played. There are two big days to come in the prelim stage before eight are eliminated and the knockout starts.

The FTX Road to Miami is the fifth leg of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and the qualifier for the Tour’s next Major, the FTX Crypto Cup. The line-up of top players is competing for places in the Major and a prize fund of up to $150,000. Those who make it through to the FTX Crypto Cup can vie for the Tour’s largest prize fund so far this year: $210K plus an additional $100K tied to the price of bitcoin provided by leading cryptocurrency exchange FTX. FTX is the Official Cryptocurrency Exchange Partner of the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour and was the title partner of the first FTX Crypto Cup in the inaugural season of the Tour. Every move will be streamed live and for free on chess24.com/tour with commentary for all.