It is arduous to think about a greater week for GM Jose Martinez, who, after sweeping Titled Tuesday simply two days prior, went on to win Chess.com’s first Variants Group Sequence (VCS) Remaining.

His march to victory, and a $1,000 first-place prize, included two 3-0 sweeps, in opposition to IM Ruben Kollner within the Quarterfinals after which, within the Remaining, in opposition to French streamer and content material creator NM Kevin Bordi (Blitzstream).

This seven-week cycle featured King of the Hill. The second cycle of the VCS begins after every week break, on November 2, and runs each Thursday beginning at 12 p.m. ET/18:00 CEST/21:30 IST. The chosen variant, by group vote, might be 3 Examine Chess. 

The VCS is a collection of occasions for streamers and the chess variants group. Every seven-week cycle is centered round one variant. Each Thursday for six weeks, members compete in a two-hour area of that variant, the place the prize fund per cycle is $3,750 plus 610 Twitch/Kick subs. Extra particulars may be discovered right here.

The Thursday of Week 7 is the Remaining, the main focus of this text. The eight winners from earlier weeks (six area winners and two top-scoring streamers) have been pitted in a single-elimination knockout bracket. Every match was a finest of 4 with a time management of three+2. 

Of 31 whole video games within the Remaining, there have been simply two attracts. For the reason that variant provides a 3rd method of successful the sport, apart from checkmate or successful on time, it’s maybe much more shocking that there have been any attracts in any respect.

Martinez, extra popularly often known as Jospem (his username), was easy crusing within the Quarterfinals the place he received all three video games and skipped the fourth. He received video games one and three by putting his king within the heart, however he completed sport two with a checkmate on the board:

Bordi, who streamed dwell and would go on to play within the remaining spherical, had a markedly tougher time in opposition to Polish GM Zbigniew Pakleza. After their 4 video games led to a fair rating, they performed two 1+2 video games—each have been received, lastly, by Bordi. 

The second is entertaining because it contains a technique that’s particular to solely this variant and easily doesn’t exist in common chess. Black sacrificed his knight with 26…Nce5!, then the alternate, to interrupt down the white heart. The identical kamikaze knight accomplished its obligation with 34…Nxe4, a remaining sacrifice and the final transfer of the sport.

Bordi was rewarded with a much less strained path within the Semifinals as he swept IM Renato Terry, a daily participant in group occasions, 3-0 within the Semifinals. 

This time, it was Martinez who confronted a larger problem in GM Thomas Beerdsen. The Peruvian grandmaster prevailed 2.5-1.5 after dropping the primary sport, drawing the second, and successful the final two.

The draw, the second and final of the event, is the funniest. Only one pawn left the board for your complete sport, which lasted 105 strikes and ended with repetition in a hopelessly locked place.

Within the Remaining in opposition to Bordi, Martinez clinched after successful all three video games. Within the first sport, he received a full queen, within the second he introduced his king to d5 within the middlegame, and within the third he received the queen once more. 

The primary of these video games had a pleasant variation the place followers have been disadvantaged of the mic-dropper 27.Bc4!!, which White by no means obtained a possibility to play.

This week will definitely be powerful for Martinez to observe and shortly, hopefully, followers will see if he can repeat the identical efficiency within the 3 Examine Chess variant!

Remaining Standings

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