Firouzja Surges in Zagreb as Carlsen's Absence Blows Grand Chess Tour Race Open

The 2026 Super Rapid & Blitz Croatia has opened with a massive power vacuum, and French Grandmaster Alireza Firouzja is the first to step into it. At the close of Day 1 in Zagreb, Firouzja seized the sole lead with a commanding 5/6 score in the rapid section, shrugging off recent online bullet-chess setbacks to dominate over the board.[1]

The Zagreb tournament marks the critical third leg of the $2 million Grand Chess Tour (GCT). Because tour regulations allow players to skip certain events to manage fatigue, current overall points leaders Fabiano Caruana (20 points) and Wesley So (15.5 points) are resting this week.[2]

Even more notably, world number one Magnus Carlsen is absent. Carlsen has historically treated the Croatian capital as his personal fortress, winning the last four tour events held there—including a dramatic blitz comeback in 2025. His absence has blown the field wide open, giving tour regulars a rare, unobstructed path to maximum points.[1]

Firouzja capitalized immediately. He scored critical wins over local Croatian hero Ivan Saric and Romanian Grandmaster Bogdan-Daniel Deac, while applying heavy pressure to Anish Giri to secure a hard-fought draw.[1]

"I really didn't think about it five minutes after the match," Firouzja remarked regarding a recent high-profile online loss to Nihal Sarin, proving his focus remains entirely on the over-the-board classical and rapid circuits.[1]

Hot on Firouzja's heels is a four-player chasing pack sitting one point behind at 4/6: Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, Anish Giri, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and Vincent Keymer.[1]

Keymer’s path to the top of the leaderboard was the most turbulent. The German prodigy blundered his queen's positioning early to lose against Praggnanandhaa, but immediately bounced back with a convincing win over Jorden van Foreest and a spectacular, risk-heavy victory against Nodirbek Abdusattorov.[1]

For Keymer, the stakes in Zagreb are massive. He currently sits third in the overall tour standings with 13 points after a "dream start" victory at the Super Chess Classic Romania in Bucharest. A strong finish in Croatia could easily vault him past the resting Caruana into first place overall.[2]

Adding chaos to the standings race are the tournament's four wildcards, led by reigning World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju. While wildcards cannot qualify for the St. Louis Grand Finals, they are fully eligible for the event's $50,000 first-place prize and serve as dangerous spoilers. Gukesh had a rough start to the week, suffering an early defeat at the hands of Vachier-Lagrave.[1]

The format heavily punishes slow starts. The tournament features a single nine-round rapid round-robin where wins are worth two points, followed by a grueling 18-round blitz double round-robin where wins are worth one point.[2]

With two days of rapid play and two days of blitz remaining, the math is simple for the tour regulars: finish in the top half of the table, bank the points, and secure a ticket to the four-player Grand Finals in August. The St. Louis finale is the ultimate goal, offering the largest share of the tour's prize fund and the definitive season championship.[2]

As the players prepare for Day 2, all eyes remain on Firouzja and Keymer. Without Carlsen casting a shadow over the board and with Caruana watching from afar, the Super Rapid & Blitz Croatia has transformed into a pure, high-stakes sprint for the tour's most ambitious young stars.[1]