I got the idea many years ago from Rod Stewart and his song Every Picture Tells a Story. It got me thinking: every chess position tells a story. Every game, every player, and every tournament tells a story. And with stories comes a song, a lyric, and music. I followed each round presented by the broadcast team at the Saint Louis Chess Club.

In Forrest Gump, we had a great soundtrack that helped tell the story emotionally. That got me thinking — what is the sound track for this tournament?

I see chess players as thoroughbred racehorses — bred and trained from an early age. They spend their lives studying openings, playing tournaments, and learning theory. In many ways, elite chess players are very similar to racehorses.

So the first track, Run for the Roses, fit perfectly. The song is about racehorses running for glory, just as these young chess players, in the 2026 Candidates Tournament, are racing for the right to challenge for the World Chess Championship.

This track represents Sindarov winning the early games of the tournament and slowly rising to the top of the leaderboard.

“Mr. Mojo Risin’” is an anagram of Jim Morrison’s name, and the song has an inspired pace and energy to it. I associated that energy with Sindarov’s rapid rise in the tournament standings.

This track is really about Hikaru Nakamura. At 38 years old during the tournament, this could be one of his last real chances to compete for the world title.

Before the tournament, he came under criticism for selectively playing local events to protect or boost his rating instead of competing in more international tournaments. Ian Nepomniachtchi and others criticized this approach and said it would be bad for chess if  Nakamura won.

But as Bobby Fischer once implied, all that really matters are the moves on the chessboard. To me, this tournament felt like Nakamura’s last dance — possibly his final great chance to fight for the world championship.

This track represents Sindarov’s laser focus during the tournament and how he kept winning critical games. He defeated Nakamura and Caruana and showed incredible determination throughout the event.

This song is about pulling away from the field. Sindarov had built a comfortable lead and was racing away from the pack. Everyone was now talking about him as the clear tournament leader.

At the start of the tournament, Caruana and Nakamura were favored to win, but after key defeats, there was no longer much doubt. There were no elites anymore — Sindarov was firmly in the driver's seat and clearly in control of the tournament.

This track represents Giri winning two games in a row and beginning to close the gap. He cut the leader’s advantage significantly and made it feel like the race was not completely over yet.

Beating Caruana with the black pieces had to boost Giri’s confidence. Hold on now — Giri is coming. He is on his way.

Many analysts were saying the tournament was already over, but there was still life left in it. Sindarov was leading, but he was not on that white horse yet. There was still a horse race happening as the tournament approached the final stretch.

This song is about taking your time, not living too fast. Troubles come and they will pass. Be a simple kind of man. Follow your heart.

Sindarov stayed calm and focused despite all the noise surrounding the tournament. He wasn’t paying attention to the hype, the pressure, or the standings. He simply took it one game at a time and focused on playing the best chess possible.

It was a simple man’s approach.

This track represents Anish Giri’s missed opportunities to turn the tournament into a real horse race.

He had chances to close the gap — especially with favorable opportunities against Sindarov — but he couldn’t capitalize. Throughout the tournament, Giri had multiple opportunities to gain ground, but each time, he missed again and again.

With Sindarov still firmly in the lead, and Giri unable to gain meaningful ground, the thrill is gone.

With only a couple of rounds remaining, much of the suspense and excitement had faded. Sindarov has been the dominant force in the tournament from beginning to near the end, clearly outpacing the field.

The end my only friend, the end. For many of the players other than Sindarov, this probably felt like a relief. He had thoroughly outplayed the field throughout the tournament.

Looking at the standings, he clearly performed above everyone else. So when the tournament finally ended, it likely brought relief to many of the players, who could finally leave the pressure of the event behind them.