‘Disrespect’ or drama? Hikaru Nakamura tossing Gukesh’s king sparks storm in chess world as old rivalries resurface

Hikaru Nakamura tossing world chess champion D Gukesh’s king into the crowd after defeating the Indian Grandmaster in the final game of the Checkmate: USA vs India exhibition match has sparked a massive controversy. While many saw the celebration as disrespectful to both chess and Gukesh, others argued it was precisely the kind of spectacle a traditional sport like chess needs to break away from its “boring” image.

What’s important to note here is that world No 2 Nakamura did not do something unplanned. As it was not a FIDE event, the general rules of etiquette did not apply to the game. The Checkmate: USA vs India is an exhibition event featuring players from the world’s top two chess countries. But besides bringing some of the best players to the board, the exhibition tournament also attempts to find new audiences with many quirky changes to how the chess game is played.

The players were introduced to the stage with WWE-style announcements, walking up through the crowd like professional boxers. And, much like the 2025 Esports World Cup, this match featured a live audience — one that was encouraged to cheer and jeer, unlike traditional chess games that are usually played in complete silence.

Nakamura only did what he was asked

The “disrespectful” celebration was also part of the plan. It was pre-decided that the winner of the Nakamura vs Gukesh match would toss the opponent’s king into the crowd, while other winners were told to celebrate in different styles. The organisers held a discussion over the same with the participants and encouraged them to be as candid as possible. Possibly in an attempt to go viral and get popular.

YouTuber Levy Rozman, who runs the popular Gotham Chess channel and defeated ChessBase India’s Sagar Shah at the exhibition match, revealed that Nakamura only did what he was asked to do by the organisers and that the American Grandmaster later explained his actions to Gukesh in private.

“Without context, it will look like an unprovoked gesture. But we were encouraged by the organisers to do that stuff. I forgot that if I won my game against ChessBase India’s Sagar Shah, or he won, we were supposed to break the king. It was for the entertainment angle. The winner of Gukesh and Hikaru’s game was supposed to toss the king into the fans. I don’t know if Gukesh would have done that. Hikaru spoke to Gukesh later and explained that it was all for show and no disrespect was meant,” Rozman said.

Chess streamer and content creator Jules Gambit, who was also the co-host of the event, made a similar argument on social media as she explained how organisers asked the players to have fun after a win and why it’s unfair to compare Nakamura’s actions to traditional chess matches.

“I was there at the players meeting and they were all told to have fun with it, trash talk, take the king if there’s an illegal move, celebrate by crushing the king etc. Everyone was laughing and joking around. The rules aren’t the same as in traditional chess because it’s an exhibition for entertainment not a rated match. It’s like comparing WWE to Olympic wrestling,” she wrote on X.

I was there at the players meeting and they were all told to have fun with it, trash talk, take the king if there’s an illegal move, celebrate by crushing the king etc. Everyone was laughing and joking around. The rules aren’t the same as in traditional chess because it’s an… https://t.co/oucpZtks5s

— Julesgambit (@julesgambit) October 5, 2025

Nonetheless, the smart thing for the organisers would have been to share a few instructions with the fans in advance, it seems. Especially when most chess fans have grown up on traditional etiquette and when there’s a subtle disdain against Indian players.

The result of the secrecy was that many Indian fans felt disrespected by Nakamura’s actions.

“A grown man tossing his opponent’s King who’s half his age into the crowd. Real classy, Hikaru. The hate Magnus and Hikaru have for India’s Gukesh is just unreal,” a user wrote.

A grown man tossing his opponent’s King who’s half his age into the crowd. Real classy, Hikaru. The hate Magnus and Hikaru have for India’s Gukesh is just unreal.#Chess pic.twitter.com/aZ2HOxiSJH

— Meru (@MeruOnX) October 5, 2025

Another Indian fan said: “Hikaru Nakamura, 38, tossing the “King” of 19-year-old Gukesh into the crowd while Gukesh watching helplessly is so painful and grossly disrespectful. But make no mistake. He will rise, stronger & sharper, and the world will see his comeback.”

Hikaru Nakamura, 38, tossing the “King” of 19 year-old Gukesh into the crowd while Gukesh watching helplessly is so painful and grossly disrespectful. But make no mistake. He will rise, stronger & sharper, and the world will see his comeback. #Chess pic.twitter.com/s10nc7IcRL

— Saurav Trivedi (@Auravauraa) October 5, 2025

Former world champion Vladimir Kramnik termed the extravagant celebration as “degradation” of the sport. We shouldn’t forget that Kramnik made cheating allegations against Makamura two years back.

“This is not just vulgarity, but already a diagnosis of degradation of the modern chess,” Kramnik wrote on X.

Это не просто пошлость, а уже диагноз, современным шахматам

This is not just vulgarity, but already a diagnosis of degradation of the modern chess pic.twitter.com/e4uvENP86K

— Vladimir Kramnik (@VBkramnik) October 5, 2025

FIDE CEO and Israeli Grandmaster Emil Sutovsky took a dig at Nakamura for disrespecting the world champion.

“The event was a show. Fans were ecstatic. Players were encouraged to behave accordingly. All true. Now, for better or worse, name me one top player who would do what Hikaru did,” Sutovsky tweeted.

The event was a show. Fans were ecstatic. Players were encouraged to behave accordingly. All true.

Now, for better or worse, name me one top player who would do what Hikaru did.

— Emilchess (@EmilSutovsky) October 5, 2025

He, however, was quickly refuted by the Checkmate: USA vs India organisers, who took a subtle dig in return at FIDE and Sutovsky. Their reaction was shared by Nakamura with laughing emojis and only highlighted the tension that exists between top players and the FIDE.

“On behalf of the organizers, we admit having forced the players to have fun, to please the crowd and to forego the FIDE Etiquette. We sincerely apologize if the players, the live audience and the vast majority of online viewers had a good time,” the organiser’s official handle posted on X.

🤣🤣🤣 https://t.co/m2OmzJs2ct

— Hikaru Nakamura (@GMHikaru) October 6, 2025

World No 1 Magnus Carlsen and Nakamura have been at loggerheads with FIDE ever since the start of the private Freestyle Grand Chess Tour. Both parties have fought over the usage of the term world champion and it seems the rivalry refuses to die down.

For Nakamura, the good thing was that he also found a lot of support from the chess community, including that from Dutch Grandmaster Anish Giri, who isn’t particularly close to Hikaru.

“I am team Hikaru here. Organizers probably tried an experimental event, not pretending that this is the only way chess should be played in the future, but just to try to have some fun. Hikaru was just playing along and did something funky for the memes. Don’t see the big deal,” Giri wrote on X.

I am team Hikaru here. Organizers probably tried an experimental event, not pretending that this is the only way chess should be played in the future, but just to try to have some fun.
Hikaru was just playing along and did something funky for the memes.

Don’t see the big deal. https://t.co/nmDnSnysUe

— Anish Giri (@anishgiri) October 5, 2025

Everyone begs for more emotion in chess… then drags anyone who shows it. The irony. https://t.co/tJYV3p8jHy

— Alexandra Botez (@alexandrabotez) October 5, 2025

As far as India are concerned, they lost the first edition 5-0 to the USA on Saturday but will have a chance to exact revenge when the reverse fixture is played in India. And if Gukesh wins that one, he could toss Nakamura’s king into the crowd — though it’s hard to imagine him doing so.

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