GM Vincent Keymer’s gamble of choosing to play his first ever Najdorf against GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave paid off as he took the sole lead after four rounds of the Super Chess Classic Romania 2026.
The biggest news of the day was that GM Alireza Firouzja was unable to play vs. GM Fabiano Caruana for medical reasons, while the remaining games were drawn. GM Jorden van Foreest spoilt a promising position vs. Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu and GM Javokhir Sindarov pushed until move 107 vs. GM Anish Giri. GM Wesley So came closest to a win, against GM Bogdan-Daniel Deac, with the final twist coming on move 84 of an incredibly complex endgame.
Round five is on Monday, May 18, starting at 9:10 a.m. ET / 15:10 CEST / 6:40 p.m. IST.
This is a flash report—come back later for full coverage of round four!
There was one win in round four, though only four games, as Caruana-Firouzja had to be postponed.
Round 4 Results
That saw Keymer take a half-point lead over the field, though Caruana has a game in hand and could join Giri, Van Foreest, and Praggnanandhaa in second place.
Standings After Round 4
Our Game of the Day is Keymer’s win over Vachier-Lagrave, which GM Rafael Leitao will analyze below.
Keymer has Black vs. Giri in round five, the last before the first rest day, though perhaps the biggest question is whether Firouzja will be able to face Sindarov. If he does continue, Tuesday’s rest day may see Caruana-Firouzja.
Round 5 Pairings
How to watch?
The 2026 Super Chess Classic Romania is the second event on the 2026 Grand Chess Tour and runs from May 13 to 23 at the Museum of the National Bank of Romania in Bucharest. It’s a 10-player round-robin with a time control of 90 minutes for 40 moves, followed by 30 more minutes for the rest of the game, plus a 30-second increment starting on move one. The prize fund is $475,000.
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