The 5th round was marked by the surprise victory of Italian-American Fabiano Caruana over last year’s champion Shakhriyar Mamedyarov. The surprise moves of the American put the great Azeri master in difficulty, and the victory in this round represented the re-entry into the fight for the great trophy.

Bogdan Deac remains in the fight for the first position after an unexpected tie with the young master, Alireza Firouzja. Both players looked for a way to win, but both players’ strategies led the fight to a draw.

5th round results:

▪ Levon Aronian – Wesley So ½ – ½

▪ Ian Nepomniachtchi – Maxime Vachier-Lagrave ½ – ½

▪ Bogdan Deac – Alireza Firouzja ½ – ½

▪ Fabiano Caruana – Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 1-0

▪ Richard Rapport – Leinier Dominguez ½ – ½

Ranking:

1 Wesley So 3.5p

2-4 Bogdan Deac 3p; Levon Aronian 3p; Maxime Vachier-Lagrave 3p;

5-6 Fabiano Caruana 2.5p; Ian Nepomniachtchi 2.5p

7-9 Alireza Firouzja 2p; Richard Rapport 2p; Leinier Dominguez 2p;

10 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov 1.5p

Media coverage: 

– sport.ro

– bursa