Magnus Carlsen’s loss to Gukesh D at the Norway Chess 2025 took the internet by storm. Carlsen was in a winning position for most of the game, but made a blunder towards the end, which was then capitalised on by Gukesh to claim the win. It marked the first classical win of Gukesh against Carlsen, after which he was visibly frustrated.
Carlsen was seen banging the table after the loss, and it became almost a meme on social media. Carlsen’s competitiveness isn’t a new phenomenon. Especially with Gukesh D, as he has claimed multiple times that he isn’t good enough. This is why the defeat meant so much to Carlsen.
Fabiano Caruana’s Sensational Claims
Just a few days back, Caruana stated that he isn’t yet “scared” of Gukesh D and other Indian prodigies. In another sensational claim, Caruana has said that Carlsen wanted to defeat Gukesh to prove a point.
He said, “Magnus definitely wanted to win (against Gukesh) to prove a point: the point being that not only is he (Gukesh) not nearly as strong as Magnus, but also that he’s not as strong as other players. I think that would be his point; that’s what he was trying to go for. So I think Magnus wanted to dominate. And I don’t think he cared as much if he were to dominate Arjun (Erigaisi), for example”
Why Did Magnus vs Gukesh Matter So Much?
He further explained that the stakes were as high as they could get with Gukesh, as he’s a world champion. He said, “Gukesh is a world champion. So that carries a bit more weight. There was also Wei Yi, who’s a great player. But it doesn’t feel like Magnus has anything that he has possibly to prove against Wei Yi or against me. Maybe against Hikaru (Nakamura) and me, he would feel like this is a really nice game to win,”
Whatever the reason may be, the fact is that Gukesh D defeated the world number 1, Magnus Carlsen. This makes their rivalry even bitter and interesting. Although the sad part is, we might never get to witness them again in classical chess. Carlsen expressed that he’s considering retirement from the classical format as it doesn’t interest him anymore.
Also Read: Fabiano Caruana Not Yet Scared Of Gukesh D And Indian Grandmasters
