In the seaside German town of Weissenhaus, Magnus Carlsen added the one missing piece to his unparalleled trophy cabinet. By defeating Fabiano Caruana 2.5–1.5 in the finale of the FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship, Carlsen claimed his 21st world title, demonstrating once more that his mental toughness is as impressive as his strategic brilliance.
The turning point of the four-game rapid final occurred on Sunday afternoon. For most of the game, Caruana held the World No. 1 on the ropes.
Blunder: On move 15, Carlsen jumped in with 15…Bxh4, a move he immediately realized was a disaster. "I realized he has an in-between check and I can resign," Carlsen admitted.
Fight: Instead of folding, Carlsen dug in, relying on his ability to "make it a dogfight" when the clock winds down.
Collapse: Caruana, facing a winning position against Carlsen, appeared to buckle under the pressure. A blunder with his rook on move 31 leveled the field, followed by two more catastrophic errors on moves 35 and 36 that resulted in an immediate checkmate.
With this win, Carlsen has now conquered every major format of the game.
| Format | Titles |
|---|---|
| Classical World Championships | 5 |
| World Rapid Championships | 6 |
| World Blitz Championships | 9 |
| Freestyle (960) World Championship | 1 |
| Total Major Titles | 21 |
Carlsen admitted that physical fatigue nearly derailed his bid for history, following a grueling schedule at the Speed Chess Championship in London just days prior.
Final grind: In the decisive fourth game, Carlsen played for a "cautious draw," acknowledging he had "no strength left whatsoever."
Caruana’s heartbreak: For Caruana, the defeat was bitter. Having held winning positions in three of the four games, the American remains without a world title in any format.
Bronze medal: Uzbekistan’s Nodirbek Abdusattorov defeated Germany’s Vincent Keymer to take 3rd place.
5th place: Hans Niemann (USA) dominated India’s Arjun Erigaisi with a 2-0 victory.
7th place: Levon Aronian edged out Javokhir Sindarov via an Armageddon tiebreak.
Women’s exhibition: Kazakhstan’s Bibisara Assaubayeva triumphed over Alexandra Kosteniuk.