The Cangaceiro of the Clock
Artur Farias Lopes, known online as cangaceirochess, is a National Master with a handle that evokes the cangaceiro outlaws of Brazil's Northeast. Like his namesakes, he raids online chess lobbies, takes what the clock gives him, and disappears before the post-game analysis gets too serious. His preferred time control is bullet, which explains a lot.
A Warrior's Journey
Artur's online career stretches from a modest 989 Blitz rating in late 2018 to a Rapid peak of 2506 (2024-08-05), with a Blitz peak of 2363 (2024-04-28) along the way. The full climb can be seen in
. He has played more than 6,800 rated games in the dataset, and his strength adjusted win rate sits around 50% in Blitz and Rapid, with a slightly more optimistic 55% in bullet.His resilience is almost criminal. He posts a comeback rate of 86.01%, and even after losing a piece, he still wins 42.84% of the time. Opponents who expect an early resignation are often disappointed, although his early resignation rate of 18% adds a dash of unpredictability.
Opening Repertoire: Familiar Roads and Backcountry Trails
Under the hood, Artur's repertoire mixes sturdy foundations with frontier experiments. He has played the Caro-Kann Defense more than 750 times across Blitz and Rapid, making it his true home. As White, he is fond of the London Poisoned Pawn Variation, and he regularly dips into the rare Döry Defense when he wants to leave theory behind. The overall opening mix can be seen in
.- Caro-Kann Defense: his most loyal companion, especially with Black.
- London Poisoned Pawn Variation: a sharp way to make a quiet system loud.
- Döry Defense and Amazon Attack: proof that his opening book has some untranslated chapters.
Rivalries and Running Battles
No online warrior finds glory without rivals. Artur has a growing book of grudges against players like Gabriel Mesquita, who leads their 14 game series 8 wins to 4. Ariel Crawford has also been a thorn, winning 9 of their 12 games. But he has his own territory too: davidcrafter67 has lost 7 of their 12 meetings, which keeps the scoreboard honest.
His longest winning streak reached 12 games, while his longest losing streak hit 10, so his emotional graph resembles a very stressed heart monitor.
When to Catch Him
If you want a fair fight, avoid him at 10:00, his best time of day, when his win rate climbs above 52%. The tilt factor is real: a perfect 10 on the tilt-o-meter after losses means he will keep rematching until the narrative changes. But at peak hours, the cangaceiro is calm, precise, and almost 85% endgame oriented, which means he will happily grind you down for 80 moves while you wonder where your social life went.