 "Aravindh Chithambaram is at third in FIDE Circuit 2025 standings after winning Prague Chess Masters. Image: Prague Chess Masters")
Ding Liren continues to lead the FIDE Circuit 2025 standings, which are dominated by Indian chess Grandmasters in the top five. The latest FIDE Circuit 2025 rankings, released by the global chess body on Monday (March 10), feature three Indian players in the top five.
The winner of the FIDE Circuit 2025 will earn a direct entry into the 2026 FIDE Candidates, the tournament that will determine the next challenger for the world chess title against D Gukesh.
Gukesh became the world chess champion after defeating Ding Liren in the 2024 World Chess Championship .
How participants for FIDE Candidates will be picked?
A total of eight players will compete in the 2026 FIDE Candidates, with the winner earning the right to challenge 18-year-old Indian Grandmaster Gukesh in the 2026 World Chess Championship.
Two spots in the 2026 FIDE Candidates will be decided through the FIDE Circuit, with the winners of the 2024 and 2025 editions guaranteed qualification.
Italian-American Grandmaster Fabiano Caruana, who edged out Indian star Arjun Erigaisi to top the 2024 FIDE Circuit standings, has already secured his place in the Candidates .
The remaining six spots in the 2026 Candidates will be filled by the top three finishers in the 2025 FIDE World Cup, the top two finishers in the 2025 FIDE Grand Swiss Tournament, and the player with the highest average rating between August 2025 and January 2026.
Praggnanandhaa and Aravindh among top 5 in FIDE Circuit standings
Coming back to the latest FIDE Circuit 2025 standings.
Liren leads with 40.64 points that he earned in the 2024 World Chess Championship. India’s R Praggnanandhaa is second with 36.06 points, earning 11.06 points with a joint second-place finish in the Prague Chess Masters 2025.
The latest to enter the top 10 and currently at the third spot is India’s Aravindh Chithambaram (24.34), who recently won the Prague Chess Masters 2025 .
Also Read | Who is Aravindh Chithambaram, latest chess star from India
World champion Gukesh is in fourth spot with 22.37 points, but his ranking doesn’t matter as he won’t be taking part in the Candidates.
Completing the top five is 17-year-old French Grandmaster Marc’Andria Maurizzi (22.02 points). He won 16.04 circuit points by clinching the Djerba International Masters and added 5.88 points by earning a third-place finish in the Prague Chess Challengers 2025.
The top 10 in FIDE Circuit 2025 standings
| Rank | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ding Liren | 40.64 |
| 2 | R Praggnanandhaa | 36.06 |
| 3 | Aravindh Chithambaram | 24.34 |
| 4 | Gukesh Dommaraju | 22.37 |
| 5 | Marc’Andria Maurizzi | 22.02 |
| 6 | Nodirbek Abdusattorov | 18.42 |
| 7 | Ian Nepomniachtchi | 18.01 |
| 8 | Anish Giri | 17.64 |
| 9 | Wei Yi | 17.64 |
| 10 | Vladimir Fedoseev | 15.79 |