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'Gukesh won't be favourite in World Championship match if...': Magnus Carlsen makes strong prediction
Magnus Carlsen, the 2025 Norway Chess winner, recently said Gukesh could lose his World Champion title and that he is not ahead of track yet, just on track. Carlsen also reflected on his own performance in the tournament. read more
Norwegian chess legend Magnus Carlsen has shared his honest thoughts about Indian grandmaster D Gukesh, who won the 2024 World Chess Championship. Carlsen, who recently lost a match against Gukesh at the 2025 Norway Chess , stated that the 19-year-old would lose his title if he were to play a game against Hikaru Nakamura, Fabiano Caruana, or Ian Nepomniachtchi at present.
Carlsen shares his honest thoughts about Gukesh
While praising Gukesh's achievement, Carlsen said that other top players like Nakamura, Caruana, or Nepomniachtchi would be the favourites if they had won the Candidates and faced Gukesh in a World Championship match right now.
Speaking to Chess24 ahead of the final day of Norway Chess, Carlsen said, 'I think if Hikaru (Nakamura) or Fabi (Caruana), or probably Nepo (Ian Nepomniachtchi) for that matter, win the Candidates they would be, at the moment, they would be a favorite in a match against Gukesh. Hikaru's come close twice. He's still extremely good so there's no reason why he couldn't.'
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'Gukesh showed in this tournament he's on track, he's doing fantastic, but he's not ahead of track,' Carlsen maintained even after the end of the 2025 Norway Chess.
Carlsen on his performance at Norway Chess 2025
Carlsen also reflected on his own performance at the Norway Chess, which he eventually went on to win despite losing his Round 10 game to Arjun Erigaisi. Gukesh finished third, while Caruana took the second spot in the men's event after their game ended in the American's favour. He admitted that his loss to Gukesh in an earlier round affected his goal of having a perfect tournament.
'Honestly, it could have meant a lot to me if I had finished off the game against Gukesh and then played a really good tournament. Now, regardless of what happens, it would kind of be like a bit of stumbling into a win,' Carlsen said.
He explained that even if he ended up winning the tournament, which he did, it wouldn't feel as satisfying anymore. 'There is a very good chance that I don't win the tournament, but it honestly wouldn't make that big of a difference to me. The dream of playing a really good tournament burst with that game. Of course I want to win, but it's not that important,' he said.
'I wanted a score that reflects the fact I think I'm still significantly better at chess and since I couldn't achieve that, a potential tournament win would not mean as much.'
MAGNUS CARLSEN is the 2025 Norway Chess CHAMPION! 🔥 🔥
📷 Norway Chess / Tor Nilssen & Kjetil V. Tveito #NorwayChess pic.twitter.com/J2dGMWeCP7 — Norway Chess (@NorwayChess) June 6, 2025
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Norway Chess 2025 Final Standings
Magnus Carlsen - 16
Fabiano Caruana - 15.5
D Gukesh - 14.5
Hikaru Nakamura - 14
Arjun Erigaisi - 13
Wei Yi - 9.5
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First Post
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Carlsen takes a brutal dig at Gukesh, Erigaisi after winning Norway Chess: 'I can outplay the kids'
Despite a campaign that was far from perfect, world No 1 Magnus Carlsen successfully defended his Norway Chess title on Friday, finishing ahead of world champion D Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi. read more Magnus Carlsen made it amply clear that he still is the best player in the world across formats by successfully defending his Norway Chess title on Friday , winning the elite tournament for a record-extending seventh time despite a campaign that was far from perfect. Carlsen clinched the title on the final day of the elite competition in spite of being held to a draw by Arjun Erigaisi and losing the subsequent Armageddon playoff. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Classical world champion D Gukesh, who was half-a-point behind the Norwegian ahead of the 10th and final round, lost to Fabiano Caurana to finish third, with the American Grandmaster leapfrogging him to the second spot. Also Read | 'Gukesh won't be favourite in World Championship match if…': Carlsen makes strong prediction The final result of the two-week tournament in Stavanger, Norway also gave a fair idea that the old guard is here to stay, with 34-year-old Carlsen and 32-year-old Caruana finishing in the top-two spots and 37-year-old Hikaru Nakamura finishing fourth after collecting a solitary point against Chinese GM Wei Yi in the final round. 'I might be back here next year' Carlsen, for one, feels Gukesh, Arjun and the rest of the young brigade, talented as they are, aren't quite ready to take over the chess world just yet, and that he can still 'outplay the kids'. And despite being highly critical of the Classical format in recent months and suggesting earlier in the tournament that his days in the format might be numbered, Carlsen hinted at returning to Norway Chess next year. 'I don't think I will be playing a lot (of Classical chess), but I am also not guaranteeing that I'm never playing a classical tournament again. I might be back here next year. I cannot be sure,' Carlsen said on the live broadcast after being crowned champion on Friday. 'At the very least it's nice to see I can still play. And it's nice to see that at least in parts of the game I can still be quite a lot better than the guys who are trying to take over," he added. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'I generally feel that I can outplay the kids (like Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi) which feels good. It's good to see that at least in parts of the game I am a lot better than kids who are trying to take over,' Carlsen said in a separate interview with Chess24. Carlsen has been the world No 1 in chess since 2011, having won the World Championship five times starting with a victory over Indian legend Viswanathan Anand in 2013, before voluntarily deciding against defending his title in 2022 citing lack of interest in the format. He has been heavily involved with Freestyle Chess, a.k.a. Chess960, in recent months, having co-founded the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour and the Freestyle Chess Players Club with German entrepreneur Jan Henric Buettner. Latest latest triumph at Norway Chess, however, indicates that he isn't done with Classical format just yet.
New Indian Express
5 hours ago
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The King's speech: Magnus Carlsen has the final say
It's kind of why the five-time world champion said that the kids aren't ready to take over. "At the very least, it's nice to see I can still play," he after his seventh crown in Norway's southwest. "And it's nice to see that at least in parts of the game, I can still be quite a lot better than the guys who are trying to take over." Carlsen's views on the Indian kids Two of those — Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi — featured in the event. Both players actually did beat the Norwegian (the former in Classical and the latter in Armageddon). "There is no one," the World No. 1, who abdicated his throne in 2023, added. "No one at the moment. That's the honest answer. There could be, but at the moment it's not likely. I think Gukesh showed in this tournament that he's on track, he's doing fantastic, but he's maybe not way ahead of track as we may have thought. I think he's kind of a little bit where I was 2008. You can do extremely well, but you can still see that there are that great results, like they come not only with the quality of the positional play, but it's a lot of fighting qualities. But that is what kids are supposed to do. "You're not supposed to master everything at that age. As for the others, yes, they are good, but the likelihood of one of them becoming like a very clear number one. I don't see it very clearly at the moment." Carlsen also reminded the world that once-in-a-generation players are once in the generation for a reason. Gukesh, who flat out refused to speak to the media in Stavanger, can see the 10-round tournament through two ways. One, would be to look at through the positive lens of finally beating Carlsen and Erigaisi in Classical, something he had never managed to. Two, and a more negative way to look, would be wonder why he allowed himself to fall behind out of the opening in a lot of matches. At this level, it's a bit like trying to stop a car without working brakes. He did it a few times but when you are so fall behind the eight ball, the pressure of having to defend in almost every game will tell. Carlsen's views on Norway Chess While the local favourite did mention that the strongest emotion he felt during the event was his loss to Gukesh, he said he was 'relieved' that he had won it in the end. "It definitely was a very memorable tournament," he said. Considering this is now the only Classical meet he plays on a year on year basis, why does he keep coming back? The answer lies in the pacier time controls. He has long held that four hours is more than enough time to play a good game of chess in this format. "It's rare to see so many twists and turns and of course... the quality wasn't perfect but there was still a lot of good chess. In terms of the format, the reduced time control helps a lot. It's not supposed to be easy to defend. You are not supposed to be helped by increments." In the short term, he remains the world boss across formats. What should concern the others is that he won this event while playing golf for pretty much three-to-four hours on an almost daily basis while some of the others prepped for games. "At the very least, it's nice to see I can still play. And it's nice to see that at least in parts of the game, I can still be quite a lot better than the guys who are trying to take over." Final standings: Open: Magnus Carlsen 16, Fabiano Caruana 15.5, D Gukesh 14.5, Hikaru Nakamura 14, Arjun Erigaisi 13, Wei Yi 9.5; Women: Anna Muzychuk 16.5, Lei Tingjie 16, Koneru Humpy 15, Ju Wenjun 13.5, R Vaishali 11, Sara Khadem 9.
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9 hours ago
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Magnus Carlsen keeps option of playing classical chess open: ‘Not saying never playing again'
Magnus Carlsen is not ending his classical career. At least not right away. Carlsen said he was 'on the fence' about quitting the most traditional format of the sport. This comes on the back of the world no 1 suggesting more than once that he was considering not playing classical chess at all. 'I don't think I will be playing a lot (of classical chess), but I am also not guaranteeing that I'm never playing a classical tournament again. I might be back here next year. I cannot be sure,' he said on the live broadcast of Norway Chess on Friday after winning his home event for the seventh time in 13 years of asking. 'At the very least it's nice to see I can still play. And it's nice to see that at least in parts of the game I can still be quite a lot better than the guys who are trying to take over.' Carlsen said over and over that winning the title this year was more of a 'relief than joy'. But asked on the Chess24 broadcast if he had sent a message to the young stars hoping to take his place by winning, he said he hadn't, since he had 'stumbled over the finish line'. 'I generally feel that I can outplay the kids (like Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi) which feels good,' he said with a shrug. 'It's good to see that at least in parts of the game I am a lot better than kids who are trying to take over.' Barring a few games a year in European leagues, Carlsen only plays the classical format at Norway Chess, whose rise to a super-elite tournament in 13 years has been inextricably linked with his own rise as the world's greatest player of this generation. When the first tournament was held, Carlsen was yet to win his first world championship title. Now, he's lost the appetite for the format after winning five. His father Henrik had told Indian media recently that his son does enjoy the classical format at Norway Chess — two hours for each player with players getting just 10-second increments from the 41st move — as it was spicy. He's frequently warmed up for games at Norway Chess with a round of golf, rather than hours of prep that others indulge in. The two games Carlsen, the world no 1, played against the world champion Gukesh at the tournament were significant and were extra spicy too. After beating Gukesh in round 1, Carlsen had tweeted a quote from The Wire, 'If you come for the king you better not miss.' After losing to Gukesh in round 6, Carlsen had slammed the table in a moment that was memed, spoofed and recreated around the world. After that defeat, Carlsen had said that the loss had made him question why he was playing in the format. Carlsen has spoken a couple of times about losing interest in the tournament after that ego-bruising defeat to Gukesh. But it was only after winning the title on Friday that he showed how deep the gash from the loss was. 'My reaction didn't really stop there (with slamming his fist). I was so out of it that I had to jump out of the car on the way back and just take several minutes just to compose myself,' he said. He said that the pain he felt after the defeat to Gukesh was the strongest emotion he had experienced in the tournament. 'There were some encouraging signs. But I also feel very old.' He was then asked to pick one player from the young lot who could dominate the sport like he did. 'There's no one at the moment,' he told Chess24 with a light slap on his chair's armrest. 'There could be, but at the moment it's not likely. Gukesh showed that he's on track at this tournament. But he's not way ahead of track as we may have thought. They're not ready to take over. Every single one of them has very clear flaws in their games, which you're supposed to do. Once-in-a-generation talent are once-in-a-generation for a reason.' (The writer is in Stavanger at the invitation of Norway Chess) Amit Kamath is Assistant Editor at The Indian Express and is based in Mumbai. ... Read More
