Faustino Oro: The Blitz Grandmaster Who Never Stops Playing
A Grandmaster Built by Blitz
Faustino Oro, also known online as FaustinoOro, has earned the highest title in chess: Grandmaster from FIDE. On this platform, though, he is best known as a Blitz machine. His preferred time control is Blitz, and the numbers behind his profile are almost scary.
From a modest start in mid 2020, Oro climbed with astonishing speed. He played hundreds of games per month, absorbed lessons, and transformed his Blitz rating into one of the strongest anywhere.
The Climb to the Top
Oro's rise was not linear and it was not gentle. He crossed the 2000 mark in Blitz in 2021, pushed through the 2700s in 2022, and eventually reached a peak Blitz rating of 3307 (2026-09-02). Along the way he built an enormous sample: more than 15,000 rated Blitz games, plus thousands in Bullet. He has also tested himself constantly against elite opposition.
Playing Style and Fighting Spirit
Faustino is a practical, fighting player. He wins more often with the white pieces, around 57 percent, while still scoring above 53 percent with black. He is incredibly hard to put away: his comeback rate sits near 86 percent, and he wins more than 53 percent of games even after losing a piece.
He does not''t shy away from long battles. Most of his games reach the endgame, and his average decisive games last well beyond 80 moves. His longest winning streak is 18 games, while his longest losing streak is 16. Somehow, he bounces back from both.
Opening Repertoire
Oro is a 1.e4 player at heart, but with a twist. His Blitz repertoire mixes classical foundations with a love of wild sidelines. He has played the Sicilian Defense over 300 times and the Caro-Kann Defense nearly 500 times in Blitz alone, with strong results in both. He also enjoys the Scandinavian Defense, and he is not afraid to face unusual lines such as the Amazon Attack, Amar Gambit, or Blackburne Shilling Gambit.
Rivalries and Favorite Opponents
Nobody gets to face the world's best without leaving a paper trail. His most played opponent is Roman Zhenetl with 181 games, but the marquee rivalries are with elite grandmasters Hikaru Nakamura and Daniel Naroditsky. Oro has played 116 games against Hikaru and 166 against Daniel, proving that he will happily sit down with the strongest players on the site regardless of the scoreboard.
He also has a very friendly record against Joaquin Fiorito, winning 63 of their 92 meetings. Against lower-rated opposition overall, his win rate approaches 69 percent.
A Few Quirks Worth Knowing
- In June 2020 alone, he played 683 rated Blitz games. That is more games in a month than some players finish in a lifetime.
- He has more wins by resignation than by checkmate, which suggests opponents frequently decide they have seen enough.
- His best hour of the day is reportedly 3:00 AM. A true night owl.
- His win rate on Saturdays is his highest of the week at nearly 59 percent.