D Gukesh suffers crushing loss against Hikaru Nakamura at Norway Chess, Koneru Humpy regains sole lead

American Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura ended world champion D Gukesh’s streak of classical victories by decisively defeating the Indian, securing three full points, while Arjun Erigaisi surged back into contention with a win against Fabiano Caruana in Norway Chess 2025.

In the eighth round of the esteemed tournament on Tuesday, India’s Erigaisi cornered his adversary Caruana in a time scramble. World No. 2 and former Norway Chess champion Nakamura capitalized on his early lead with the white pieces to overpower his 19-year-old rival, achieving a “very smooth” win and avenging his Round 3 defeat to the Indian.

Gukesh, having found his rhythm after a lackluster beginning to the tournament, defeated world No.1 Magnus Carlsen and Erigaisi in Rounds 6 and 7, respectively, but was ultimately trapped by Nakamura, who refused to grant his rival any advantage throughout the nearly four-hour match.

With two rounds remaining, Gukesh was tied for third with Nakamura at 11.5 points, while American GM Caruana, despite losing to Erigaisi, led with 12.5 points. Carlsen, who was defeated by China’s Wei Yi in the Armageddon tiebreak, finished second with 12 points, while Erigaisi ranked fifth with 10.5 points.

“It was a very smooth game, I’m very happy with it. It looks very good,” said Nakamura after the win. The 37-year-old Nakamura, winner of the 2023 edition of Norway Chess in which Gukesh finished third, said that the reigning world champion was uncomfortable with the pawn structure, which probably resulted in him coming under time pressure and giving an easy win to the American.

“I’m not sure what happened, whether Gukesh  just didn’t know this bishop g6 move, or what exactly it was, but it was very clear to me that, based on the long think, he didn’t like the pawn structure at all,” said Nakamura, who at 15 years of age had become the youngest American GM.