The London Chess Classic 2025 tournament was held in the Emirates Stadium complex in London, Great Britain.
Our young grandmaster Nodirbek Abdusattorov successfully participated in the tournament alongside 10 of the world's strongest chess players.
Our compatriot, who drew with British grandmaster Gawain Jones in the first round, went on to achieve six consecutive victories in the subsequent rounds.
- In the second round, playing with white pieces, he defeated Abhimanyu Mishra from India, who represents the USA.
- In the third round, playing with black pieces, he defeated Russian grandmaster Nikita Vitiugov, who represents England.
- In the fourth round, he defeated 54-year-old British champion Michael Adams.
- In the fifth round, playing with black pieces, he defeated US champion Sam Shankland. Abdusattorov was the only one to win in this round; all other matches ended in a draw.
- In the seventh round, Abdusattorov defeated English grandmaster Luke McShane with white pieces, securing his sixth consecutive victory. Thereby, he continued his sole leadership in the tournament table with 6.5 points.
His closest rival—Alireza Firouzja from France, who participated as the tournament's top seed—was 2 points behind him. They faced each other in the 8th round.
Abdusattorov achieved the minimal objective yesterday. Although he had an advantage in the game against Alireza Firouzja, he avoided taking risks and settled for a draw. Through this result, he secured the championship title ahead of schedule.
