Hikaru Nakamura 'triggers' FIDE rating system change: How will it affect top GM's like D Gukesh?

The world chess body, FIDE, has announced a major change to its rating system, set to come into effect from October 1. The reform directly impacts players rated 2650 and above, a group that covers around 70 of the world’s top grandmasters.

At the heart of the change is the removal of the long-standing 400-point rule. Under that rule, no player was considered more than 400 rating points higher than their opponent. This meant that even if a 2800-rated player beat someone rated 1800, they would gain at least 0.8 rating points.


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The amended rule reads: “8.3.1 For each game played against a rated player, determine the difference in rating between the player and their opponent, D.”

The statement adds, “A difference in rating of more than 400 points shall be counted for rating purposes as though it were a difference of 400 points, for players rated below 2650. For players rated 2650 and above, the difference between ratings shall be used in all cases.”

This means that for top grandmasters such as Magnus Carlsen and D Gukesh, games against significantly lower-rated opponents will bring almost no gain in rating points. However, a draw or defeat in such games could result in significant rating penalties.

The change comes after American GM Hikaru Nakamura drew attention by playing a string of lower-rated players in open tournaments. In September, he collected nine rating points from 11 wins at the Iowa Open and the Louisiana State Championship, where some opponents were rated as low as 1800.

Nakamura is chasing qualification for the 2026 Candidates Tournament through the rating route. FIDE rules say that one Candidates spot goes to the highest-rated player, based on the six-month average between August 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026. The player must also have played at least 40 classical games in that period. Before August, Nakamura had played only 18 classical games in 2025.

Explaining the decision, FIDE CEO Emil Sutovsky wrote on X: “No more farming. If you are a 2650+ player, do prove your skill vs opponents of comparable strength. Why 2650? It is a top-100 level, and these players rarely face low-rated opponents. While, for example, GMs with 2500-2650 mostly play in large opens, and they should not suffer from the new regulations.”

Sutovsky added that the decision was not targeted at Nakamura alone, as explained in a post on X.

With the change, FIDE has signaled that top players will now need to prove themselves primarily against their peers if they want to climb the rating ladder.


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