37-Game Streak Seals Bortnyk's 11th Title

GM Oleksandr Bortnyk, Bullet Brawl's third most prolific winner, added an 11th career title to his trophy cabinet after topping the 205-player arena on Saturday. Bortnyk turned back challenges from GMs Daniel Naroditsky, Jose Martinez, and Ediz Gurel, who filled out the podium.

Thanks to a 37-game unbeaten streak to kick off the event, Bortnyk finished with 87 wins, seven draws, and six losses, accruing a commanding 245 score and earning the $400 first prize. Bullet Brawl regulars FM Anastasia Avramidou and Sundram Kumar won the $100 best women's prize and community event, respectively.

The next edition of Bullet Brawl will commence on Saturday, April 19, at noon ET/17:00 CEST.

Standings

Bortnyk has been a constant force at the top of Chess.com's leaderboards over the last decade, and in 2024, the Ukrainian GM reached new heights after winning multiple editions of Titled Tuesday and seven Bullet Brawls. Bortnyk's success has continued into 2025 as well, with the 28-year-old picking up two Freestyle Friday wins ahead of GM Magnus Carlsen, leading one Reddit user to label him as the world number-one's "kryptonite." 

Until Saturday, Bortnyk had not won an edition of Bullet Brawl in 2025, finishing just short of GMs Andrew Tang, Hikaru Nakamura, and Naroditsky in several events. This edition was full of top bullet brawlers such as GMs Martinez, Tuan Minh Le, Narayanan S.L., and IM Renato Terry; however, it was clear on Saturday that Bortnyk was hungry for victory. 

After falling to GM Christopher Yoo, Bortnyk went on a 37-game unbeaten rampage, propelling him into the lead.

Bortnyk scored 2.5/3 against GM Yagiz Erdogmus and 1.5/3 against Naroditsky and was so dominant against non-GM opponents during this period that just one of the 33 games crossed the 60-move mark.

Bortnyk's success with White was partly owed to his mastery of the Jobava-Rapport London System, where subtle inaccuracies by his opponents were punished with unrelenting kingside aggression. Against Brazilian NM Adriano Nunes Cavalcante, Bortnyk played an almost perfect game, swooping on Black's 8...h5? before winning his queen with a discovered check.

A theoretically known exchange sacrifice helped Bortnyk knock over FM Bryan Lin in a similar fashion, although this time, the threat of smothered checkmate forced Black to give up his queen.

Following the streak, Bortnyk had a comfortable lead over the second-placed Naroditsky, though the 27-time winner still loomed within striking range in case Bortnyk faltered. Their final game against each other, a 42-mover that culminated in a winning king and pawn ending for Bortnyk, ended Naroditsky's hopes of a comeback.

Ukrainian esports club Natus Vincere, which has signed Bortnyk as well as GMs Wesley So and Nodirbek Abdusattorov ahead of the 2025 Esports World Cup, will be thrilled to see a peak in Bortnyk's form as the inaugural chess event draws closer.

We’re making a grand move! NAVI is officially entering the world of chess! @chesscom

Please welcome our Grandmasters @NodirbekGM, @WesleySo_, and @BortnykChess! pic.twitter.com/j1CxIGApyd

— NAVI Chess (@NAVIChess) February 15, 2025

All-Time Leaderboard

Bullet Brawl is an exciting arena featuring Chess.com's top bullet specialists. It takes place weekly on Saturdays. The format is a two-hour arena with a 1+0 time control; the prize fund is $1,000. Like Titled Tuesday and Arena Kings, Bullet Brawl often features top GMs, including Hikaru Nakamura, Daniel Naroditsky, Andrew Tang, Tuan Minh Le, and many more!

Previous coverage:

• • Announcing Chess.com Community Bullet Brawl Tournaments
  • Introducing Bullet Brawls And New Arena Options