Three wins on the fly for GM Daniel Naroditsky in October’s Bullet Brawls have left the American commentator in clear second on the all-time leaderboard with seven wins and closing quickly on GM Hikaru Nakamura, who has won the two-hour arena 10 times since its inception in April.

Indonesia’s IM Yoseph Taher won $250 for second place and forced Naroditsky to push all the way to the end after streaking to a score of 232, while GM Jose Martinez rounded out the podium and earned $150 for his efforts.

Fresh from her I’M Not A GM Speed Chess Championship group stage victory, IM Polina Shuvalova finished 32nd in the arena and picked up the top female prize of $100 with 80 points to her name. Aspiring master Jason Leverett managed to win the community event, amassing 65 wins along the way.

The next edition of Bullet Brawl will take place on Saturday, October 21, 2023, at 1 p.m. ET/19:00 CEST.

Strong finishes have typically been the lynchpin in victorious Bullet Brawl performances; however, in October’s second edition, it was a 19-game unbeaten streak to kick off the event that put Naroditsky in the box seat.

While the U.S. GM was the top seed, several dangerous GMs including Oleksandr Bortnyk, Matthias Bluebaum, Sergei Zhigalko, and Nihal Sarin, who played the event after drawing his fourth round against IM Aditya Samant at the Qatar Masters, opted to play.

Following his third-place finish in October’s first Bullet Brawl, Taher was the only competitor capable of keeping pace with Naroditsky, though, in their games against one another, Naroditsky was able to win all three.

The Blockade Variation of the Old Benoni Defense was the battleground for one of these key top-of-the-table clashes and despite the opening’s name, the middle of the board quickly opened up in favor of Naroditsky. With an eight-second advantage on the clock, the now seven-time victor hopped his knights toward Taher’s king and won a full rook. 

For Taher, the loss took a toll on his momentum and spelled a patchy period while Naroditsky continued steaming ahead.

The winner’s run was characterized by high-accuracy games, his trademark tactical speed, and most notably, the ability to sense important moments against the field’s highest-rated players. In a game against popular streamer GM Tuan Minh Le, Naroditsky spotted a timely queen move that changed the fate of a game that looked destined to be drawn.

Shuvalova’s efforts on Saturday provided a glimpse into what viewers can expect come Monday when the aptly named “Flawless_Fighter” takes on IM Lawrence Trent in the I’M Not A GM Speed Chess Championship Semifinals. Playing NM Dimitry Korol, Shuvalova intuitively found a brilliant move in one second and secured a win up by 20 seconds on the clock seconds later.

A monopoly on October’s Bullet Brawl titles would see Naroditsky move to within striking range of Nakamura’s all-time wins record of 10. Following the conclusion of the Qatar Masters, it should come as no surprise to see Nakamura return to challenge Naroditsky and defend his mantle.

Standings

Bullet Brawl is an exciting new titled arena that features Chess.com’s top bullet specialists and now takes place weekly on Saturdays. The format is a two-hour arena with a 1+0 time control; the prize fund is $1,000.

Much like Titled Tuesday and Arena Kings, Bullet Brawl often features top GMs, including Hikaru Nakamura, Daniel Naroditsky, Andrew Tang, Tuan Minh Le, and many more!

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