The 2025 U.S. Chess Championships exploded into action on Day One, marked by immediate statements of intent from the tournament favourites.
Three-time defending champion GM Fabiano Caruana and top-seed challenger GM Levon Aronian scored the only decisive victories in the Open section, immediately establishing themselves as the early co-leaders with 1/1.
Caruana, aiming for a historic fourth straight title, did not hold back. Matched against his long-time second, GM Grigoriy Oparin, Caruana deployed an early novelty in the Nimzo-Indian Defence with 6.bxc3 and 7.e3. ‘Fabiano Caruana’s 6.bxc3!? is a very rare choice against his second Grigoriy Oparin (6.Qxc3 is about 80 times more popular)!’ tweets chess24.
While playing against a friend can often be difficult, Caruana pressed hard, initiating a powerful kingside pawn storm with the g-pawn. The game concluded in a mere 27 moves with a tactical flurry, forcing Oparin’s resignation and leaving no doubt about Caruana’s form.
The day’s other winner, Aronian, secured a critical psychological victory. He was paired with 15-year-old GM Andy Woodward, who had recently stunned him with a win at the FIDE Grand Swiss tournament.
“I sort of thought to myself, why can’t I play some opening that I used to play before Andy was born?” said Aronian in his interview.
Aronian, who took his sweet revenge for the loss he took to Woodward a month ago in the FIDE Grand Swiss, said, “I think maybe the reason why I won today is because I lost to Andy in such a terrible way a month ago that he probably thought this guy is totally senile and I can do whatever I want!”
We must also give props to Andy Woodward. Playing against a Grandmaster of Levon Aronian’s calibre while being an hour behind on the clock is not a task for the weak-willed.
Unfortunately for Woodward, low time led to mistakes that he would not have made, resulting in his last mistake at the 63rd move. He resigned the game, with many factors creeping in, such as the inevitable f-pawn promotion to a queen, or the last one second left on his clock.
Aronian, playing with Black, demonstrated his experience by neutralising Woodward’s opening play and slowly building a decisive advantage in a manoeuvring middlegame. His win was a calculated response, ensuring he joined Caruana at the front of the pack.
