The final round of the British Championships, held at the St George’s Hall in Liverpool, promised plenty of drama. Six players shared the lead, and knowing the butterflies that swarm before critical games, it was a safe bet that at least one of the top three boards would see a winner.
Top seed Nikita Vitiugov, the former Russian champion who now represents England, faced Stuart Conquest, who won the championship in 2008. Vitiugov reacted poorly to Conquest’s provocative, offbeat opening (1 e4 Nc6!?) and landed in desperate trouble. Just when his chances seemed to be improving, he committed a howler.
Nikita Vitiugov-Stuart Conquest
Final round, British Championship, 2025
After 46 Nb7+ Kc7 47 Nc5 Black still has an edge as the h5 pawn is loose, but there is a long fight ahead. Instead: 46 Kd4? lost on the spot. Nd8! Knight retreats are easy to overlook. Vitiugov probably anticipated 46…Ne5 47 Nb7+ and White can keep wriggling. Placing the knight on d8 prevents this check on b7, and threatens Nd8-c6+ to win the Nc5. 47 Nd3 Rf3 White resigned as 48 c4 Ne6+ 49 Kc3 Nc5 wins.
On the second board, the eight-time title holder Michael Adams won a complex but steady game against the young international master Maciej Czopor. Meanwhile, a canny queen sacrifice from Peter Roberson posed insurmountable problems for Richard Pert on the third board. That put Conquest, Adams and Roberson into a playoff for the title. Adams, who had faced the strongest field, was seeded into the final, while Conquest defeated Roberson in the semi-final and was left facing Adams for the title. The diagram below shows a critical moment from the first game of their final playoff match.
Stuart Conquest-Michael Adams,
Playoff game, British Championship, 2025
38 Ne5? This meets the threat of Rxe2 but allows a powerful sacrifice. Far stronger was 38 Re1!, when a draw would be likely since it is hard for either player to do anything. Rxe5! 39 fxe5 Qxe5 White’s sidelined rooks on the c-file can do little to patch up the holes in the threadbare kingside. 40 Kf2 40 Qg5! was a better try, hoping for 40…Qxe2? 41 Rxd5 cxd5 42 Rc7+ with a winning attack. Qd6 41 Qg5 Re3 42 R5c2 42 Rxd5 was essential. After 42…Qxd5 43 Qf4 White can still mount a stubborn defence despite the pawn deficit. f4 43 Rg1 43 gxf4 Nxf4 and Black’s attack would soon decide matters. Re5 White resigns as his queen is trapped.
Adams won the second game as well, thereby winning his 9th British Championship title – one behind Jonathan Penrose, who dominated the event between 1958 and 1969.
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