LaviChess

Fabiano Caruana

Twelve games, twelve draws: that was American grandmaster Fabiano Caruana's title match against Magnus Carlsen in 2018, until Carlsen won it in rapid chess. Four years earlier Caruana had won seven straight games at the Sinquefield Cup. His highest rating, 2844, is the third highest on FIDE's lists.

Fabiano Caruana
Photo: Frans Peeters, 2025. CC BY-SA 2.0. Cropped and toned.
  • BornJuly 30, 1992, Miami, United States
  • CountryUnited States
  • TitleGrandmaster 2007
  • Highest rating2844 (October 2014)
    FIDE's official lists (from July 1971)
  • In the rankingsNo. 3 in the world, 2783
    FIDE's list, November 2026

Seven straight wins

At the 2014 Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis, with world champion Magnus Carlsen in the field, Caruana won his first seven games. All six players were in the world's top ten. He finished on 8½ points out of 10, three points ahead of Carlsen. On FIDE's October list he stood at 2844, his highest rating. Only Carlsen and Garry Kasparov have been rated higher.

Six years later, at Wijk aan Zee in 2020, he scored 10 points out of 13 without a single loss, two points ahead of Carlsen.

The title match and main results

Caruana's points come first, then wins (+), losses (−) and draws (=) in the classical games. A tiebreak at faster time controls is given separately.
YearAgainstResultWhere
2018Magnus Carlsen6–6 (+0 −0 =12), tiebreak 0–3
Lost		London
Caruana's own results. At the Chess Olympiad, medals go both to the teams and to the best player on each board.
YearEventResult
2014Sinquefield Cup
St. Louis		Winner
8½ of 10 points
2016Candidates tournament
Moscow		Shared 2nd place
7½ of 14 points
2016Chess Olympiad
Baku		Team gold, bronze on board 1
7 of 10 points
2018Candidates tournament
Berlin		Winner
9 of 14 points
2020Tata Steel Masters
Wijk aan Zee		Winner
10 of 13 points
2016, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025U.S. Championship
United States		Winner
2023, 2025Grand Chess Tour, overallWinner
2024Candidates tournament
Toronto		Shared 2nd place
8½ of 14 points
2026Candidates tournament
Cyprus		3rd place
7½ of 14 points

Twelve draws for the title

Caruana won the Candidates tournament in Berlin in March 2018 with 9 points out of 14, a point ahead of his nearest rivals. In November he faced Carlsen in London, the first American to play for the undisputed title since Bobby Fischer in 1972. All twelve classical games were drawn. Carlsen won the rapid tiebreak 3–0.

From the United States to Italy and back

As a child Caruana played for the United States. From October 2005 he played for Italy, and in 2015 he switched back. He became a grandmaster in 2007, at 14, taking Hikaru Nakamura's record as the youngest American with the title.

U.S. champion

Caruana has won the U.S. Championship five times: in 2016 and then four years running, 2022–2025. At the 2016 Chess Olympiad in Baku he won gold with the U.S. team and bronze on first board, with 7 points out of 10. He won the overall Grand Chess Tour in 2023 and 2025, and he came third in the 2026 Candidates tournament.

Sources

  • FIDE: Caruana's rating history (ratings.fide.com, read 2026-11-09)
  • Chess.com: player page on Fabiano Caruana
  • Wikipedia: Fabiano Caruana and the Sinquefield Cup
  • PGN Mentor: the games of the 2014 Sinquefield Cup, the 2016, 2018, and 2024 Candidates, Wijk aan Zee 2020, and the 2018 title match
  • ChessBase: on the 2014 Sinquefield Cup and the 2015 switch to the United States
  • Chess.com: on the 2015 switch and the final standings of the 2026 Candidates
  • Saint Louis Chess Club: the press release on the 2018 Candidates
  • Grand Chess Tour: the standings of 2023 and 2025
  • OlimpBase: the U.S. team and the medals at Baku 2016

The facts on this page come from the sources above, checked against each other. Where the sources disagree, only what they agree on is given. The match results are also checked game by game.

Updated November 9, 2026