Overview
- Hans Niemann, Javokhir Sindarov and Nodirbek Abdusattorov are tied on 3.5/5 after Niemann–Abdusattorov drew and Sindarov outlasted Yagiz Kaan Erdogmus in 74 moves.
- World champion D Gukesh earned his first win by defeating Thai Dai Van Nguyen to reach 3/5, moving within half a point of the leaders.
- Vladimir Fedoseev beat Arjun Erigaisi, and Vincent Keymer defeated Aravindh Chithambaram to return to 50%, while Jorden van Foreest drew Matthias Bluebaum and R Praggnanandhaa drew Anish Giri.
- The leaderboard tightened following earlier brilliancies, including Niemann’s queen sacrifice versus Aravindh and Sindarov’s tactical win over Bluebaum in Round 4.
- In the Challengers, Aydin Suleymanli was joined on 4/5 by 12-year-old Faustino Oro and 18-year-old Andy Woodward, creating a three-way race for the qualifying spot.