Caruana wins Titled Tuesday on US Championship rest day before round 5 clash with Andy Woodward

Fabiano Caruana did not spend his rest day resting. With the US Championship paused on Tuesday, 13 October, the defending champion logged on to Chess.com's weekly Titled Tuesday blitz event and won it outright with 9.5 points, a day after a win over Ray Robson pulled him level with Wesley So at the top of the standings in Saint Louis.

A blitz title on a day off

Caruana finished half a point clear of a large group on 9 points. Hikaru Nakamura took second on tiebreak, ahead of India's Nihal Sarin, with Wesley So, Vladislav Artemiev, Dmitry Andreikin, Sergei Zhigalko and Artin Ashraf completing the top eight.

For much of the evening Nihal looked like the story. He won his first nine games and was chasing the event's perfect-score bounty until Caruana beat him in round 10, a game that was decided on time. Nakamura then helped his compatriot by defeating Nihal in the final round, which left Caruana alone in first.

The win was worth US$2,500 and was Caruana's first Titled Tuesday victory since 17 February 2026. The US$5,000 bounty for a perfect 11/11 went unclaimed and rises by US$250 for next week, according to Chess.com.

Where the US Championship stands after four rounds

The classical event at the Saint Louis Chess Club is a 12-player single round-robin in both the open and women's sections, running from 9 to 21 October.

So set the early pace, beginning with two wins, but drew with Levon Aronian in round 4 on Monday. That opened the door for Caruana, whose win over Robson in a rook endgame was his second of the event. The pair now share the lead on 3/4, with Awonder Liang and Andy Woodward half a point back.

Round 4 was a busy day for decisive games. Jeffery Xiong beat Liang after recovering from a piece down in a Berlin endgame, Hans Niemann defeated Abhimanyu Mishra and Grigoriy Oparin beat Sam Sevian.

In the women's championship, Alice Lee beat Megan Paragua to move to 3.5/4 and clear first place, half a point ahead of Thalia Cervantes. Irina Krush beat Nazi Paikidze and is tied for third with Rachael Li on 2.5.

Round 5: Woodward v Caruana, Oparin v So

Play resumes on Wednesday, 14 October, at noon local time in St. Louis, which is 1am on Thursday, 15 October in Malaysia. The leaders both face tricky assignments: Caruana meets Woodward, one of the surprise packages of the first week, while So has the black pieces against Oparin. Liang, a half point back, takes white against Sam Shankland.

In the women's section, Lee faces Tatev Abrahamyan, and Krush takes white against Cervantes in a game with direct consequences for the chasing pack.

Chasing history

Caruana has won the last four US titles and took the 2025 edition with 8/11. As ChessBase noted before the event, a fifth straight crown would match the record run of Samuel Reshevsky. With seven rounds remaining after Wednesday, the title race in both sections is still wide open.

Key takeaways

• Caruana won Titled Tuesday on 13 October with 9.5 points, half a point clear of Nakamura and Nihal Sarin.
• Nihal won his first nine games before losing to Caruana in round 10.
• Caruana and So share the US Championship lead on 3/4; Alice Lee leads the women's event on 3.5/4.
• Round 5 starts at 1am Malaysia time on Thursday, 15 October.

FAQ

When is round 5 of the 2026 US Chess Championship in Malaysia time? Round 5 starts at noon in St. Louis on Wednesday, 14 October, which is 1am on Thursday, 15 October in Malaysia.

Who won Titled Tuesday on 13 October 2026? Fabiano Caruana won with 9.5 points. Hikaru Nakamura was second and Nihal Sarin third, both on 9 points.

Who leads the US Women's Championship? Alice Lee leads on 3.5/4 after four rounds, half a point ahead of Thalia Cervantes.

Sources: Chess.com, US Chess, ChessBase