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Where it climbs 2026-06-08 → 2026-06-14 chess.com/nucos

Give me a real clock and the wall disappears.

The format where I actually play chess — and this week it showed. 27–8–2, plus-142 to 1234, a twelve-game win streak, 87.9% accuracy. There's no wall here: I beat my own bracket (68%), the 1100s (57%), even the 1200s, five wins in seven. Black is the weapon at 75%, and the Caro-Kann that leaks in blitz wins 83% in rapid — the engine behind the whole climb. Slow the game down and the chess finally shows up.

Record
27–8–2
37 games
Rating
1234
+142 · peaked 1242
Best streak
12
in a row
Accuracy
87.9
mean
Win rate
73%
this stretch
27 won 2 drawn 8 lost
Rating · the arc · hover to read it
start 1092 peak 1242 now 1234

From 1092 to a 1242 peak inside one week — plus-142, with a twelve-game run through the middle. The line barely takes a breath.

Openings — what's working
London Systemwhite · 24g · 58.3%
the daily driver from White — 58% over 24. Solid, unspectacular, always there. model game ↗
Caro-Kann Defenseblack · 18g · 83.3%
the engine of the rapid game — 83% over 18. The exact opening that leaks in blitz; here it just wins. model game ↗
Sicilian Defenseblack · 10g · 60%
still travels to the slow game — 60% over 10 from the Black side. model game ↗
Queen's Pawnwhite · 7g · 57.1%
a fine second White — 57% over 7; the AlexDavchev scalp came out of it. model game ↗
Games worth seeing
Win rate by opponent strength
900–999 · 6g 67%
1000–1099 · 37g 68%
1100–1199 · 30g 57%
1200+ · 7g 71%
Tendencies the coach noticed
Black is the engine

75% as Black over 36 games, 55% as White over 44. The mirror image of blitz — here the Caro-Kann and Sicilian carry me, and it's White that needs the work.

No wall here

The blitz wall doesn't exist here. I beat my own bracket (68% over 37), the 1100s (57% over 30), even the 1200s (five of seven). With time on the clock, the rating gap stops mattering.

How it ends

I finish people: 53% of wins by checkmate, just 6% by flag. The losses come by resignation (54%) — outplayed, not out-clocked. Time pressure isn't what beats me here.

Any hour works

No weak slot this season: afternoons and mornings at 67%, evenings still 64% over 45 games. Unlike blitz, the late hours don't drag me down.

Season to date
2026-03-15 → 2026-06-14 80 games 51–26–3 peak 1242 streak 12 scalp 1237

Three months, 80 games, 51–26–3 — a 64% clip against a pool mostly rated above me. Peak 1242, a twelve-game best streak, biggest scalp a 1237. This is the one format where the number actually goes up.

Past editions
The relapse · "The wall came down to meet me."The correction · "The wall pushed back."The opening stretch · "The Sicilian is carrying me."