Caruana vs Nakamura — Round 1 of FIDE Candidates 2026

Featured is the Round 1 chess game between Fabiano Caruana and Hikaru Nakamura from the FIDE Candidates Tournament 2026. Arising out of the English Opening, Nakamura grabs early space with 3...d4, and not long after, namely following 7.Nxd4, we enter unfamiliar territory with a sharp opening phase. A key moment arises once the game transitions into an opposite colored bishop ending. After Caruana established his pawn on h5, he was in control. However, converting cleanly was not an easy task against such a resilient defender in Nakamura.

The FIDE Candidates is a 14-round event in which the winner becomes the challenger for the upcoming World Chess Championship, facing Gukesh D. The other participants in this event are Wei Yi, Anish Giri, Javokhir Sindarov, Praggnanandhaa R, Andrey Esipenko, and Matthias Bluebaum.

Fabiano Caruana vs Hikaru Nakamura | FIDE Candidates 2026, Round 1

Below the video, there is a pop quiz with four questions. If you are interested in improving your game, devote some time to answering them before watching the video.
https://youtu.be/QQ_EsZviYis

Question 1 of 4: What is black's best move?

Question 2 of 4: As black, what might you place a priority on in this opposite colored bishop position?

Question 3 of 4: Why did white play 78. Kd5 instead of capturing on d4?

Question 4 of 4: What is black's best move?

Closing words

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-Jerry