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Why is D Gukesh not playing the Freestyle Chess tournament in Las Vegas? Indian World Champion's absence explained
D Gukesh withdrew from the Las Vegas leg of the Freestyle Tour despite receiving an invitation, and the tour's CEO revealed why.
While three players are representing India at the ongoing leg of the inaugural Freestyle Grand Slam Tour, the World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju isn’t one of them. As R Pragganandha, Arjun Erigaisi, and Vidit Gujrathi participate in Las Vegas in the variation of the classic game, Gukesh withdrew ahead of the tournament.
While Gukesh participated in the Paris leg of the Freestyle Grand Tour, he didn’t have the best result as he failed to qualify for the knockout round, finishing in the bottom four of the round robin and ultimately finishing the entire tournament in ninth place.
Why did D Gukesh withdraw from Las Vegas Freestyle?
Gukesh pulled out from the Vegas tournament, citing his wish to prioritise preparations for the upcoming tournaments to be played in St. Louis in August, which included the prestigious Sinquefield Cup, as well a time-controlled event leading up to it. The Sinquefield Cup is part of the Grand Chess Tour, where Gukesh currently sits in fifth.
Moreover, Gukesh’s packed schedule during the first half of 2025 and a need for mental recuperation were cited as reasons for his withdrawal by Freestyle Grand Tour CEO Jan Jenric Buettner. Speaking ahead of the Vegas event, Buettner explained:
“He said he’s exhausted and needs rest. His performances have not been that good at any Grand Slam. We were always expecting that he would decline to participate in the next event. Anyway, he had an invitation (for the Las Vegas leg). So after his not-so-good performance in Paris, he was still up for the task. He said, ‘We’re gonna come. I will come to Las Vegas.’”
“But then, there was Norway Chess. This exhausted him so much. Even I would be exhausted,” explained the co-founder of the Freestyle Tour. “He was so exhausted that I got a message. He said he’s exhausted and would like to rest. He can’t come to Las Vegas. Unfortunately, he needs rest. So, you know, that’s understandable.”
Gukesh famously beat Magnus Carlsen at the Norway Chess tournament in Stavanger, his first win over the Norwegian legend in the classical format, and is aiming to dedicate his time to defending his World Championship crown next year.
Nevertheless, Gukesh had explained he would like to continue his development in Freestyle chess — otherwise known as Chess360, or Fischer Random Chess, a format in which the back rank of pieces start off in a shuffled order and make for a less rote and more dynamic game, seen by some including Magnus Carlsen as the future of chess.
