FREESTYLE CHESS: MAGNUS vs HIKARU!!!!!!

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[@kyay10]

1:25 Levy's hostage taker appears

[@sthembisomabaso8283]

😅😅😅😅

[@ramnikstudywithme]

With something in his hand, it seems like a gun to me 😨😨😱😱😱,it seems like a camera with lens but he also has a gun

[@ramnikstudywithme]

Levy is at gunpoint 😱😱😭😭😭😭

[@TheR4cingGamer]

Don't forget 34:16

[@bertsiimon2879]

Duo still has him from last year

[@shreyjain3197]

1:28 levys kidnapper accidentally shows himself

[@ChrisYu-j3c]

Probably did not expect levy recording

[@22jayferd]

Eric?

[@HDMICIDE]

@@ChrisYu-j3cyeah him talking to the camera for 1:30 wasn’t enough of a clue

[@zhangyic]

⁠@@ChrisYu-j3c When he’s literally talking into a camera? Yeah I don’t think so

[@yallajalla2068]

Can't believe Chess actually got an update, it's so interesting seeing people playing the game instead of relying on memorization.

[@brokenwave6125]

That update occurred in 1996 btw. Fisher Random has been a thing for quite a bit

[@im.rishabh_ofc]

2:17 Game 1 Magnus vs Hikaru 7:15 Game 2 Gukesh vs Alireza 9:54 Game 3 Fabi vs Magnus 10:24 !! 12:53 Game 4 Vladmir vs Sindarov 16:15 Game 5 Magnus vs Vincent 17:27 !! 19:11 Game 6 Vladmir vs Magnus 19:16 ?? 22:03 Game 7 Fabi vs Alireza 25:07 Game 8 Nodirbek vs Vladmir 26:32 Kh1 27:32 Game 9 Gukesh vs Hikaru 28:11 !! 30:58 Game 10 Magnus vs Sindarov

[@mcfarvo]

🪿 🪿 🪿 🪿 🪿

[@BlitzGamblesYT]

get a life 😭

[@johannvimal2353]

W

[@mustafasawas6091]

@@BlitzGamblesYT HHHHHHHH

[@Stytchless]

Levy, I want to thank you for really showing me a side of chess I never saw before. I only saw it as a board game for many years, and knew there were good players, but never knew their name. When I found your channel, I slowly started to take it more an more seriously, and it's because of you, that I know about the amazing community chess has, and have started to try to expand my chess career and learn openings and tactics. Genuinely thank you Levy, you've changed a lot about chess for me.

[@akitteninabowl8872]

humans are simple species they see the thumbnail is clickbait, still click, confirm it's clickbait, still enjoy

[@DontReadMyPicture--9090]

😢😅 don't read myy namee

[@TheLegendaryBolt]

not clickbait?

[@shreyjain3197]

26:53 is the most insane position ive seen in a while, black literally does not have a decent move to play every single piece of black is stuck to its exact square almost like a zugzwang in middle game

[@bigschn0se541]

Thanks for repeating what was being said

[@Elijah42069]

yeah completely screwed its crazy

[@amrapali12]

4:35 Hikaru says he’s old proceeds to win Titled Tuesday (3+2)event

[@EEEEEEEE]

‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎E

[@Unmukt_Kunal]

28:25 "He's just standing outside of Hikaru hotal room with a hammer" 😭🔨

[@jtharp]

The best way to think about Freestyle, imo, is that you're just starting in the middle game. I know there is still opening theory you have to be adept at, but you so quickly just go into, essentially, puzzle middle game positions, and I do think what we see happening there is applicable to traditional chess in that way. Certainly that is what appeals to these great players because they're faced with situations that are extraordinarily unlikely traditionally.

[@Tacos_Sauce_Zea]

around the 6:50-7:00 mark, when Levy talks about not being able to take much away from freestyle games and apply it to regular chess, I realised that the appeal of this format is way more about taking it as a separate game and the potential it has. With a way wider scene and true analysis efforts involved, how many new types of openings, traps, tactics could be figured out ? if there are 950 valid starting positions, surely a lot of them can be grouped into similar categories with their general principles and variances on opening moves. the potential for spectacle, memes, and challenging struggles....

[@GeometrianGL]

I like that super-GMs frequently get losing positions in < 10 moves in this format. It just seems more interesting to see how they fight out of it (or don't). Really shows how much top-level chess has, for better or worse, become about memorized prep and metas-which of course was the motivation for freestyle chess in the first place.

[@Sugarman96]

Similarly, I also like that you look at these games with an engine and they're just full of mistakes, because it's hard to play optimally when so much of the chess gospel is thrown out the window.

[@otavioaugusto4727]

This whole event shows how much of a problem memorization has become in traditional chess. I mean, Magnus Carlsen losing in less than 10 moves?! This is something you don't see every day.

[@AndersHaalandverby]

To me, Chess960 or Fisher is real chess. I know people like to go crazy memorizing several hundred openings, but I dont want (and I dont have) memory, I want thinking, from first move. To me, thinking from the current position, including the first one, is the best.

[@Human_Pers0n_Being]

Sindarov is in amazing form. He’s 7/7 in the German Bundesliga against 1 IM and 6 GMs.

[@KING-mz1cf]

As a 200 elo player I can proudly say that these people don’t know how to play chess

[@SignsofLife01]

6:00 Levy calls Hikaru a dinosaur

[@ciscobass6640]

There seems to be a slight exasperation with the randomness of the format, and how little a player like Levy can gain insight from watching or breaking down these games. However, the average player under 1500 can gain almost no insight from watching players of this level play traditional chess either, it's an entertainment resource either way. The amount of dynamics and swings in freestyle chess make it more entertaining in a lot of ways. So I'd just give the feedback that the average viewer doesn't need to connect this to their game. I'd also rather see a slightly fewer number of games broken down in more detail rather than speed running through a lot of games. Love the videos as always though.

[@0ussama0]

2:59 if you're wondering guys calc stands for calculator we're just using slang

[@GMvladi]

10:28 brilliant move

[@L1meSlice]

WHAT

[@beepboopbip]

bro watched a 10 minute video in 3 minutes

[@AyaanTNM]

@@beepboopbipit’s been 6 minutes now

[@SignsofLife01]

@@beepboopbip no, the video is seven minutes old (at time of commenting) and the comment is seven minutes old as well, which means they found this in less than a minute

[@Divinebeing-w2y]

broo 13mins video and 11mins old is your comment 😅

[@chanchi_ngullie]

After marriage, Magnus started sacrificing his Knight (night) for a Queen. 😂😂😂

[@shanathered5910]

so a format that requires extensive thinking on move 0 is being played at 10 minutes? honestly, classical time controls might work better for this format…

[@rhed-l1d]

Bros faster than the speed of light.

[@DontReadMyPicture--9090]

😅 Don't readd myy name

[@hrikam]

That's why it is dark around him

[@ramnikstudywithme]

​@DontReadMyPicture--9090trust me no one will

[@V_ChessGuy]

@DontReadMyPicture--9090 BOT

[@Valdagast]

Instead of "kingside" and "queenside", use "port" and "starboard". Port is left for white and starboard is right for white. Port is right for black and starboard is left for black.

[@mbrayearth3557]

Love levy's energy everytime, keep going future GM

[@Karthik-kt24]

24:48 ahem okay sure Levy sureee 😂

[@sevchess]

2:16 Game 1 Magnus v Hikaru 7:18 Game 2 Gukesh v Alireza 9:45 Game 3 Fabi v Magnus Brilliant move: 10:25 12:55 Game 4 Vladmir vs Sindarov 16:12 Game 5 Magnus vs Vincent Brilliant move: 17:17 19:11 Game 6 Vladmir vs Magnus Blunder 19:03 21:59 Game 7 Fabi vs Alireza 24:58 Game 8 Nodirbek vs Vladmir Kh1: 26:32 27:25 Game 9 Gukesh vs Hikaru Brilliant move: 28:09 31:02 Game 10 Magnus vs Sindarov

[@davehastin3683]

make this an every video thing

[@Someonepaused]

thanks

[@im.rishabh_ofc]

28:34 "Hikaru is not in the hotel room" Next video title

[@mcfarvo]

Is the Hikaru in the room with us right now?!

[@im.rishabh_ofc]

@mcfarvo 😏

[@Efootball-Cracker]

Hey Levy, I love you but your attitude towards fisher random is so dejecting. I like fisher random but your comments about it are making me hate it. I really hope you warm up to it

[@anthonycotham4346]

For real tho, he keeps saying stuff like ‘none of this matters’. He’s probably totes jelly because he’s stuck still working on getting to GM while the best players in the world are having actual fun.

[@GothamChess]

@@anthonycotham4346 Psychoanalysis elo = 100

[@rudrayadav5858]

Rooting for Gukesh

[@mikeog2617]

Yup and he's nowhere close to 1 place lol he's only good at classical Chess

[@pb8-8]

@@mikeog2617 Bro only top 8 matters in round robin, then its playoffs

[@andremicaglio]

The way I learn from this format is like, forgetting the first 25 moves they do and see how they deal the endgame (or middle game when the position become more “normal”)

[@Zevoxian]

6:51 The way you view freestyle Chess Levy, is the way a lot of us newbs view your regular chess reviews. It’s just fun! (And well forget about it and not apply it)

[@j0018]

Thank you for this amazing recap! I enjoyed it very much.

[@ForeverDivided]

2:15 start of video

[@ABoSs4ChRiSt]

Actually it started at 0:00 😂

[@hsbdbsjsjebbdbsbsb370]

@@ABoSs4ChRiSt😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@kingjizzam8988]

2:22 yapping stops

[@コノドロ]

Hey levy, I've started playing chess a year ago, I literally started playing chess after watching some of your videos, and today I won my first tournament. Thanks a lot levy🙏🙏 (I'm 1800 Elo right now)

[@thugroaster5543]

Manganese calcium or what

[@lucazolk862]

This format is so much fun, crazy fresh positions, no theory, Magnus loosing in 8 moves, I have nothing against regular chess but I love how unpredictable this format is

[@ShineMacwan-r1k]

Bro left the commentary panel to make a recap for us MAD Respect!!

[@smoorej]

The freestyle format really highlights just how insanely good Magnus and Hikaru are

[@stephenbarsh620]

This KZbin video recaps day 1 of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam tour of 2025, held at the Vion House Resort north of Hamburg. Tournament Format: Chess 960 (Fisher Random Chess): Each game starts with a randomized starting position out of 960 possibilities. Preparation Time: Players get 10 minutes to prepare before each game. Rapid Round Robin: 10 players compete in a nine-game rapid round robin (10 minutes per game). Knockout Stage: Top eight players advance to a knockout stage, bottom two are eliminated. Day 1 Highlights: Commentary: Provided by Naroditsky, Tanya Sachdev, David Howell, and James Dash. [00:00:18] Introduction of commentators Round 1: [00:01:40] Magnus Carlsen vs. Hikaru Nakamura: Carlsen won a chaotic game. [00:02:03] Gukesh vs. Alireza Firouzja: Firouzja checkmated Gukesh. [00:02:22] Fabiano Caruana vs. Magnus Carlsen: Caruana won in a shocking 8-move upset. [00:02:46] Round 3: [00:03:14] Vidit Gujrathi vs. Vladimir Fedoseev: Vidit won, continuing his strong performance. [00:03:22] Magnus Carlsen vs. Vincent Keymer: Carlsen won. [00:03:37] Round 4: [00:04:01] Vladimir Fedoseev vs. Magnus Carlsen: Fedoseev defeated Carlsen, who blundered his queen again. [00:04:10] Fabiano Caruana vs. Alireza Firouzja: Caruana won, showcasing strong defense. [00:04:29] Other Notable Games: Nodirbek Abdusattorov vs. Vladimir Fedoseev: Abdusattorov won. [00:04:48] Gukesh vs. Hikaru Nakamura: Drew a chaotic game. [00:05:05] Vidit Gujrathi vs. Magnus Carlsen: Vidit won against Carlsen. [00:05:22] Day 1 Standings (Top 4): [00:05:47] Fabiano Caruana & Vidit Gujrathi (4.5 points each) Alireza Firouzja (3.5 points) Nodirbek Abdusattorov (2.5 points) Tournament Notes: Playoff for 8th place tie (final knockout qualifying spot). [00:06:14] Day 1 had many decisive results (White: 11 wins, Black: 6 wins). [00:06:24]

[@Chrolofiltz]

1:31 whos that

[@gingerail4605]

gf

[@Chrolofiltz]

@gingerail4605 he has a wife and i dont think she came with him to europe

[@Destroyers485]

I just bought your course its great! Everyone who does not have it shoudl buy it!

[@Duskraven377]

This form of chess is so much more exciting.

[@rorykeegan1895]

Levy's kidnapper has chosen pretty good hideout, nobody is going to be checking the suites at Weissenhaus for him ...

[@josephsummerhays4650]

More free style! I love it

[@nathanmathesonfishing]

This is great, only one draw in the whole recap!!! This is starting to look like the type of chess I play as a 1600!!!

[@omerikhlas1862]

This is how people in 1400s must have felt about chess

[@creatingonthemargins1089]

Great content, and congratulations on upcoming 6M subscribers 😊

[@Yovoto_kezo]

those who didn't came from tiktok are allowed to like this comment

[@SMALL_DICK_618]

Okay

[@SMALL_DICK_618]

Ok

[@SMALL_DICK_618]

Done

[@SMALL_DICK_618]

Liked

[@SMALL_DICK_618]

Okkk

[@shaikmohammad]

Big fan man keep it up

[@Lechon_asiatico]

25:49 thats wild

[@nerncrypted]

Magnus became everyone's punching bag today 😂

[@FunnyCIips_]

Bro said that he has to go buy new shoes in the stream and then went to record a youtube video 💀😂😂

[@yoskiUCy_TfipEEJ9f]

This lineup is literally the dream team

[@Siddhant1174]

Nice it was good video sir ( i haven't watched it yet )

[@triciasaurus]

6:32 i feel like magnus would be the first person to tell you this is not a brilliant move 😭 this is a normal 1500 rated puzzle

[@nenickeqx]

1:22 levy really thought someone roots for hans😐

[@rxzyx401]

22:09 english opening in high elo is rare wow

[@0wenwest]

Commenting to raise your stats on this one. I like the tournament format!

[@taunokekkonen5733]

07:12 a dinosaur calls Hikaru a Levy.

[@EriMrT17]

Magnus vs Fabiano: actually, Magnus queen could be saved by playing knight e5 after the exchange in the middle. Queen could escape on d7, although this would allow much counter play

[@mattshuey1]

that elbow is deeplore

[@kdicus]

YOU GET TO DECIDE WHAT TO CALL THINGS! No one knows…. You’re the leading voice. You decide - others will follow.

[@benjaminarnold2881]

I am not as well versed in theory as I want to be, but couldn’t certain arrangements lead to borrowing ideas from standard main lines? Take the second orientation shown in this video(the one with white showing K N B in the bottom right corner): would that not call for some sort of Sicilian style of tactical patterns? It seems like a couple of tournaments in the best players will really start to be able to find arrangements that allow for adaptations of conventional tactical patterns and find equivalencies in the unconventional positions that arise from Fisher Random games! Fun to watch as it happens

[@WordJuggler]

It looks like old masters are inventing opening theory!

[@jimmy-b4f]

nice video as always bro

[@beansAREceeoh]

im so cool im watching goham chess 2 mins after he uploaded!!!!

[@madhavarora09]

bros back to milking magnus and hikaru

[@KingRinat]

Freestyle chess to chess is like beach football compare to football, you cant take this as serious tournament :) Even if you pay all chess celebs to cast it

[@surya_after_segx]

unpopular opinion: honestly despite how bizzare the game seems, I think this was better than regular chess in representing strategic game. people always said that chess is a strategy game where you have to think dynamically in many situation but everytime the game is played it's always the same board, same position and same old strategy that existed centuries ago

[@aaronkandlik]

I agree with you- especially with the computing power of today’s engines I feel that modern traditional chess appears like a two person solitaire/memory game. It is still interesting, but I think chess960 is more interesting as a competitive game.

[@SignsofLife01]

I can't believe Magnus Carlsen blundered a piece!

[@oklm_15]

00:06 bro chocked me when he said 2025

[@ChubDan]

i should be paying attention in class right now.

[@Ryunakamura2]

34:17 lucy's hand on the video?😂

[@nbaogaming3782]

i just watched this at 2am in vietnam bro:)

[@tezkalow]

nah sindarov only lost on time against fedoseev in that 960 elimination, he had absolute winning position. he bulldozed everyone else in that elim

[@Dillingham-]

Fischer's final revenge on chess 🤯

[@sausagemcmuffin7419]

He slightly changed the thumbnail, all hail the algorithm!

[@johndoe-s9w]

5:31 hikaru will come for you levy rozman

[@MarkLawry]

"Caught with your pants down would violate the dress code."

[@goodguycwyzz4768]

Eventually players are just going to find 1 or 2 opening traps for each starting position and farm people for easy wins

[@dreamescape284]

My 1st lesson was how to assemble the pieces.. Than I saw this video😂😂

[@yourpain4969]

bro went to recap farming instead of the shoe store

[@WeaponsRemorse]

LEVY THERE IS A ARM COMING TO STRANGLE YOU LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!!!

[@Karthik-kt24]

feels like this is history being made

[@m.delgadorv]

You won son!

[@Mncdk]

I was literally just watching your 960 video from yesterday thinking "I hope Levy has a video up now for day 1"... :D

[@randomfan168]

Is it a coincidence he mentions hans and his kidnapper appears? Hans is the kidnapper, no one's asking for him.

[@raulmuresan456]

Favourite player and hans neimann in the same sentence💔

[@norbivagasi181]

I just discovered that the whole video, especially Levi speaking, is way funnier at 0.75% speed.

[@ryndpsk6882]

I am rooting for Hikaru

[@brycehowell2560]

I think it’d be fun if the normal position was in the lottery (to keep 960, not 959)

[@crimenbs3588]

Ok guys I think levy is in trouble this time. The hostage keeper was right beside him.

[@ivinnyy]

just seen top comments, at this point might as well disable comment section

[@joja9413]

I don't understand your biased hate to this format of chess. It is actually better and more interesting as players do play just by memory. So they need to show strategic mindset,not just stupid memorization of position using computer engines

[@haigha-qb4kf]

Weissenhaus Day 1: 5 peops constantly yapping and as a side issue: chess.

[@InTheLifeOfMilo]

GOODLUCK PLAYING... there are many different ways to play chess... but the person who is having the most fun is the best player by far

[@aaliyaa2550]

12:10 That's why we got GM Levy!!!

[@tsenre_lam0758]

9:26 There is no mate in 2 right since knight e1 can block