Praggnanandhaa, Gukesh move up FIDE Circuit 2025 ladder after Tata Steel Chess heroics

Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh Dommaraju were among the biggest gainers in the latest FIDE Circuit 2025 standings after their heroics at the Tata Steel Chess in Wijk aan Zee, Netherlands, where they finished winner and runner-up respectively.

Praggnanandhaa became the toast of the Indian chess community after becoming only the second player from the country after the legendary Viswanathan Anand to win the prestigious tournament, defeating reigning world champion Gukesh 2-1 in the blitz tie-breaks after the two finished level on 8.50 points after 13 rounds.

Also Read | Tata Steel Chess champion Praggnanandhaa reveals how Gukesh, Arjun inspired him to work harder

Chinese Grandmaster Ding Liren sits at the top of the ladder with 40.64 points, which he had earned from his FIDE World Championship battle with Gukesh in Singapore that the latter won 7.5-6.5 in December .

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He is followed by Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh, who occupy the second and third spots with 25 and 22.37 points respectively. Uzbekistani GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov (18.42) and Russian-Slovenian GM Vladimir Fedoseev (15.79) complete the top five.

FIDE Circuit: 🇨🇳 Ding Liren leads as Tata Steel top finishers join the race

The results of the Tata Steel Masters and Challengers tournaments have already impacted the FIDE Circuit standings.

Ding Liren continues to lead FIDE Circuit 2025, having accumulated 40.64 in the title… pic.twitter.com/5kgSvUprjJ

— International Chess Federation (@FIDE_chess) February 4, 2025

Each member of the top five barring leader Ding had competed in the 87th edition of the Tata Steel Chess tournament, with Abdusattorov and Fedoseev finishing fourth and fifth respectively in the Masters section behind Praggnanandhaa and Gukesh.

Players from the Challengers section of the Tata Steel Chess tournament also moved into the top 10. Thai Dai Van Nguyen, Aydin Suleymanli and Erwin L’Ami had finished first, second and third respectively among the Challengers and were ranked sixth, seventh and eighth in the FIDE Circuit standings.

Also Read | Why R Praggnanandhaa will not be playing in Weissenhaus leg of Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour

Ding’s compatriot Wei Yi and Dutch GM Anish Giri sit at the ninth and 10th spots respectively.

The player that finishes at the top of the FIDE Circuit 2025 standings will be awarded a slot in next year’s Candidates Tournament. According to the new Candidates qualification rules, there will be two slots reserved for the FIDE Circuit – for the winners of the 2024 and 2025 standings.

However, since Gukesh is the defending world champion, his position in the 2025 FIDE Circuit will not really matter in the end.

As many as six tournaments that are eligible for the 2025 FIDE Circuit will be getting underway this month, including the Prague International Chess Festival. Also included in the list of eligible tournaments on FIDE’s website are the prestigious Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz and Sinquefield Cup, both of which will be taking place in August.

Italian-American GM Fabiano Caruana had finished on top of the 2024 Circuit standings, beating India’s Arjun Erigaisi to the top to become the first player to qualify for next year’s tournament.