Russian GM Ian Nepomniachtchi scored 9 wins and 1 draw to win the January 16 Freestyle Friday tournament with 9.5 points. Runner-up GM Amin Tabatabaei won 8 times, drew once, and lost twice, which led him to finish second with 8.5 points.

Three players finished with 8.5 points and three players with 8 points, requiring a tiebreak to decide the final standings. The Freestyle Friday (January 16, 2026) Top 5 are:

Place Player Score TB Prize
1. 🇷🇺 GM Ian Nepomniachtchi 9.5 68 $400
2. 🇮🇷 GM Amin Tabatabaei 8.5 75.5 $250
3. 🇵🇪 IM Renato Terry 8.5 74 $150
4. 🇰🇿 GM Rinat Jumabayev 8.5 64 $100
5. 🇷🇸 GM Alexey Sarana 8 76.5 -

Freestyle Friday is a weekly Chess.com event for verified titled players, featuring the Chess960 variant. The event is an 11-round Swiss tournament with a 3+1 time control featuring a $1,000 weekly prize fund.

Credit: Rafal Oleksiewicz/FIDE