French Grandmaster (GM) Maxime Vachier-Lagrave has named India’s R Praggnanandhaa in the third category (B category) of the upcoming Candidates Championship, calling him a bit of a “favourite”.While he made it clear that all eight players have a chance to win, his rankings are based primarily on current form rather than pure skill.“It’s brutal because you know, from a technical point of view, if we were now in the first six to eight months of 2025, Prager would be in the S category,” Vasil-Lagrave was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
He acknowledged Praggnanandhaa’s strong form in 2025 but pointed to a dip in performance in recent games. According to him, results at tournaments such as the Swiss Grand Prix, World Cup and Wijk aan Zee show that maintaining top form is difficult.He added, “I really don’t believe in the performance of Wake. And Wake can also do some damage.” With the candidate game coming to an end, he believes that there may not be enough time to fully return to form. “If I guarantee that he can find the key to breaking this spiral, I will put him in the S level. But now I am going to put him in the B level. I think that is the importance of the current state.”Vasile-Lagrave also stressed that a dip in form can be difficult to recover from, especially for young players. “It’s hot, but it’s been six months and he’s really not in good shape.” He further explained, “From my own experience and the experience of other players, it’s not just a matter of a bad Wake right now. About six months of games that are far from his best, and it’s not easy to shake off six months of so-so results.”
