Bullet Brawl (Jan. 27): Nakamura Wins Bullet Brawl, Tries New 'Alien Gambit'

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GM Hikaru Nakamura secured $400 and his 17th Bullet Brawl title after putting on a tactical exhibition during Saturday’s arena, adding to his Titled Tuesday win earlier in the week. Scoring 67.5/73, Nakamura accrued 246 points and was able to outlast the second and third-placed GMs Oleksandr Bortnyk (241) and Jose Martinez (226), who received $250 and $150 for their efforts, respectively.

FM Anastasia Avramidou finished in 15th place with 110 points and was the winner of the $100 best female prize, achieving one of the highest placements for a female player in the tournament’s history, while Sundram Kumar once again topped the community event ahead of 350 untitled hopefuls.

The next edition of Bullet Brawl will take place on Saturday, February 3, 2024, at 12 p.m. ET/18:00 CEST. (Note: Bullet Brawl has been permanently brought forward by one hour).

Standings

Rank	Fed	Title	Name	Username	Rating	Score
1		GM	Hikaru Nakamura	Hikaru	3311	246
2		GM	Oleksandr Bortnyk	Oleksandr_Bortnyk	3174	241
3		GM	Jose Martinez	Jospem	3181	226
4		GM	Alan Pichot	platy3	2977	169
5		GM	Ediz Gurel	gurelediz	3067	165
6		GM	Matthias Bluebaum	Msb2	3027	165
7		GM	Christopher Yoo	ChristopherYoo	2979	155
8		GM	Andrew Hong	SpeedofLight0	2946	154
9		FM	Gabriel Arteaga	Gravity_Chess	2940	147
10		GM	Jose Cardoso	TheBigBoss04	2918	144
11		CM	Eqor Baskakov	stollenmonster	2817	125
12		GM	Leon Livaic	Elsa167	2823	119
13		FM	Dmitry Goltstev	GolstevDmitry2000	2855	119
14		GM	Falko Bindrich	Janosik	2847	112
15		FM	Anastasia Avramidou	Anasta10	2699	110
16		FM	David Haydon	Dhaydon19	2741	109
17		IM	Arystanbek Urazayev	Arystanner	2795	108
18		FM	Kagan Aydincelebi	Ritual2003	2848	106
19		CM	Nika Volkov	NikaVolkov	2910	104
20		FM	Daniel Olivares	WindWhistler11	2675	99

(Full final standings here.)

just your weekly dose of @gmhikaru going 67.5/73 🎉 pic.twitter.com/uy9MzPMgtT

— Chess.com (@chesscom) January 27, 2024

Nakamura’s dominance of 1+0 events has not diminished in the slightest in the new year. In his latest Bullet Brawl victory, the American streamer opted to play an eclectic mix of gambits and aggressive openings that helped him dispatch no fewer than 66 titled opponents.

Nakamura streamed the event on Twitch and Kick and was animated throughout. Image: GMHikaru/Twitch.

Early in the event, the world number-three was challenged by Bortnyk and Martinez but stamped out his chaser’s chances with a 44-game unbeaten streak in the second hour. During this time, Nakamura won a 10-move game with the unofficially named “Alien Gambit,” a new variation of the Caro-Kann Defense that has been made popular by Bullet Brawl regular CM Volen Dyulgerov.

If you would like to learn more about how to play the “Alien Gambit,” check out Dyulgerov’s analysis of a recent game by IM Levy Rozman (aka GothamChess).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYdWUTZPV0Q

Nakamura also fashioned several stylistic checkmates, most notably against NM Dmitry Korol following a devastating kingside assault.

While the five-time American champion’s run is impressive, he did fall victim to Avramidou, who became the first female player to overcome Nakamura since WFM Lile Koridze in November 2023.

In 2009, the eloquently spoken GM Yasser Seirawan stated the following about Nakamura’s bullet chess in the foreword to Nakamura’s book Bullet Chess: One Minute to Mate (FM Bruce Harper is listed as a co-writer), and the words still ring true today:

“Hikaru (or “H-Bomb” as he is known) is a bullet legend on internet chess servers around the world. His bullet skills are simply extraordinary, and watching him play is a marvelous, and at times jaw-dropping, experience. He is that good.” – Yasser Seirawan, 2009.

Watching him play is a marvelous, and at times jaw-dropping, experience.

—Yasser Seirawan

Just three players, GMs Daniel Naroditsky, Nihal Sarin, and Tuan Minh Le, have managed to finish ahead of Nakamura in Bullet Brawl arenas when he has participated, and the worst position he has ever finished is in second place. Now 15 years after Seirawan’s words, Nakamura’s stranglehold in online bullet chess tournaments remains intact.