Iranian GM Sina Movahed scored 9 victories to win the October 16 Freestyle Friday tournament with 9/11 points. Runner-up Chinese GM Haowen Xue won 8 times, drew once, and lost 2 times, which led him to finish second with 8.5 points.

The Freestyle Friday (October 16, 2026) Top 5 are:

Place Player Score TB Prize
1. 🇮🇷 GM Sina Movahed 9 71.0 $400
2. 🇨🇳 GM Haowen Xue 8.5 66.5 $250
3. 🇷🇺 GM Ian Nepomniachtchi 8.5 65.5 $150
4. 🇷🇴 GM Felix Antonio Ilinca 8 66.0 $100
5. 🇫🇷 GM Pouya Idani 8 65.5 -

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. This event is a part of the 2026 Freestyle Friday Championship, the winner of which will qualify for the 2027 FIDE Freestyle Chess World Championship.

Credit: Lennart Ootes