In the "Way to the Candidates" match series, which takes place in Chartres, France, and was designed to help Alireza Firouzja to reach the Candidates, Firouzja has won five of the six scheduled games, overtaking Wesley So on the live-ranking list. However, Firouzja still has to win his second game against Sergey Fedorchuk today. Many chess fans criticised the event, and the US federation asked the FIDE not to rate the games played in these matches.