Chess World Champion Gukesh Withdraws from Las Vegas Freestyle Chess Citing Exhaustion; Vidit Gujrathi to Replace Him

D Gukesh, the reigning World Champion, will not be competing against Magnus Carlsen at the upcoming Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour event in Las Vegas. The official lineup was released last week, and Gukesh's absence was immediately noted.

Indian chess prodigies: From left to right, Gukesh, Vidit, Erigaisi and Praggnanandhaa. (Photo Credit: ChessBase India)

Jan Henric Buettner, co-founder and CEO of Freestyle Chess, revealed that Gukesh withdrew due to exhaustion.

"He said he’s exhausted and needs rest," Buettner told TimesofIndia.com. "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."

Buettner elaborated that Gukesh initially accepted the invitation to the Las Vegas leg, but his participation in Norway Chess proved to be too taxing.

"But then, there was Norway Chess. This exhausted him so much. Even I would be exhausted. 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."

Vidit Gujrathi has been named as Gukesh's replacement in the lineup. "So we invited Vidit again as a replacement. So Vidit will wear the red jacket of Gukesh this time in Vegas," Buettner confirmed.

Freestyle Chess events feature players wearing distinctively colored jackets. In Paris, R Praggnanandhaa wore green, Arjun Erigaisi blue, Vidit maroon, and Gukesh red.

Gukesh has been striving for consistency in the Freestyle Chess circuit. He finished eighth at Weissenhaus and 11th in Paris, placing him 11th overall with four FCC points. After the Grenke Open, he dropped to 16th.

However, Gukesh demonstrated his skill at the Norway Chess tournament, finishing third behind Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana. He also secured victories against Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, and Arjun Erigaisi.

D Gukesh and Magnus Carlsen in a tense chess battle (Photo Credit: Freestyle Chess/Lennart Ootes)

The Las Vegas event, the fourth stop on the 2025 Grand Slam Tour, marks Freestyle Chess’s debut in the United States. The tournament will be held at the Wynn Las Vegas from July 16 to 20, featuring a live audience and a prize pool of $750,000, with $200,000 awarded to the winner.

The Indian leg of the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, scheduled for September 17–24 in New Delhi, has been cancelled due to a lack of sponsors. Jan Henric Buettner will step down as CEO on July 1, with COO Thomas Harsch assuming daily operations. Buettner will remain as Executive Chairman in a strategic role.