Sergey Karjakin Names the Favorite for the Sindarov–Gukesh Match

Sergey Karjakin Names His Favorite for the Sindarov–Gukesh World Championship Match

The upcoming World Championship match is already becoming one of the biggest chess stories of 2026. Reigning world champion Gukesh Dommaraju will defend his title for the first time, with rapidly rising Uzbek grandmaster Javokhir Sindarov standing in his way.

As anticipation builds, Russian grandmaster Sergey Karjakin has shared his assessment of the upcoming clash. In his view, Sindarov enters the match as the favorite. At the same time, Karjakin stressed that all of the challenger’s recent successes will have to be confirmed over the board.

Karjakin: Sindarov Is on a Huge Rise

Speaking to journalists at the International Youth Festival in Yekaterinburg, Karjakin said he considers Sindarov the favorite for the upcoming match.

The Russian grandmaster’s main argument is the Uzbek player’s recent momentum. Sindarov first won the World Cup and then successfully navigated the Candidates Tournament, earning the right to challenge for the world title.

Karjakin specifically highlighted the consistency of these results. For Sindarov, it is not simply a matter of one successful tournament, but rather a sequence of performances that has taken him to an entirely new level.

At the same time, the grandmaster pointed out an important feature of World Championship matches: previous results provide no guarantees.

“All the tournament successes that came before no longer matter,” Karjakin noted.

In other words, Sindarov will have to start almost from scratch.

Why Karjakin Is Backing Sindarov

The main intrigue is that the challenger is approaching the match in impressive form, while Gukesh’s recent performances have been less consistent.

Sindarov won the Candidates Tournament in 2026 and earned the opportunity to fight for the world chess crown for the first time. Reuters also noted that the Uzbek grandmaster is focusing primarily on his preparation for the match rather than predictions and discussions about his chances.

Karjakin, meanwhile, believes that this momentum is precisely what allows Sindarov to be considered the favorite.

At the same time, this does not mean that Gukesh has lost his status as one of the strongest players in the world. The Indian remains the reigning world champion, and his experience from his previous title match will also be important.

Gukesh Has a Major Advantage — World Championship Experience

Gukesh has already experienced the pressure of competing for the world crown. In 2024, the Indian grandmaster became world champion after defeating Ding Liren in the title match.

Now he will not be trying to win the title but to defend it. That creates a very different psychological situation.

On the one hand, Gukesh already knows what it takes to prepare for a World Championship match and understands how different this format is from a regular tournament. On the other hand, Sindarov enters his first world title match without having experienced defeat in such a setting.

Sindarov himself has urged people not to place too much emphasis on current ratings and recent results. In an interview ahead of the match, he said he prefers to focus on his preparation and his own game rather than on predictions.

A Historic Opportunity for Uzbek Chess

For Sindarov, the upcoming match represents much more than another step in his individual career.

Karjakin described the possibility of Sindarov becoming the first world champion from Uzbekistan as historic. In the Russian grandmaster’s view, Sindarov now has an opportunity that he needs to seize.

Uzbekistan has already established itself as an important force on the global chess map. A Sindarov victory in the World Championship match would represent another major milestone in the development of chess in the country.

The challenger is only 20 years old. Gukesh will also be 20 at the time of the World Championship match, making the upcoming contest one of the youngest World Championship matches in chess history.

But the Match Could Completely Change the Balance of Power

Despite Karjakin’s assessment, it would be premature to draw conclusions about the outcome in advance.

A World Championship match is fundamentally different from a regular tournament. Current form and rating are only part of the equation. Opening preparation, the ability to adapt to an opponent, energy management over a long match and the response to setbacks can all prove decisive.

The opening games could be particularly important. If one player manages to establish an early advantage, the psychological pressure on the opponent could increase significantly.

Interestingly, other top players have recently expressed similar views. Vladislav Artemiev, for example, has also described Sindarov as the favorite, while emphasizing the unique nature of the match format and the importance of Gukesh’s form.

Magnus Carlsen also publicly described Sindarov as the favorite for the upcoming match in September.

Sindarov vs. Gukesh — A Clash Between Two Young Generations of Champions

The upcoming match is also intriguing because the two players belong to the same generation.

Gukesh has already made history as a world champion, while Sindarov is now attempting to complete the final stage of his own journey toward the same achievement. One will defend the title, while the other will compete for it for the first time.

That is why Karjakin’s assessment adds another layer of intrigue to the upcoming showdown. Sindarov is certainly entering the match after an impressive run of results, but he will now have to prove his strength in an entirely new format.

The Main Intrigue Is Still Ahead

Karjakin sees Sindarov as the favorite because of his recent momentum and major tournament victories. However, the match itself will begin with the score at 0–0, and none of the challenger’s previous achievements will give him a single point.

Gukesh will have to demonstrate that his status as the reigning world champion is more than just a title. Sindarov, meanwhile, will be looking to take the final step after winning the Candidates Tournament and the World Cup.

That is what makes the upcoming duel more than simply a match between a champion and a challenger. It is a clash between two young grandmasters, each of whom has already begun writing his own chapter in the history of world chess.

The match is scheduled for late November–December 2026 in Switzerland.