A Chess Fan And 35,000 Games
Mesut Bayram, known on the board as mesut_bayram, is not a casual chess tourist. Since 2020 he has played more than 35,000 rated online games, and the profile says his preferred time control is Rapid. The stats, meanwhile, say he has spent most of that time in a very loud relationship with Blitz. He brings 1.d4 almost every game, then stays long enough to turn simple positions into grinding endgames and long stories.
His opening life is a mix of loyal habits and bullet-proof curiosity. As White he loves the Amazon Attack and the London style of setup; as Black he returns again and again to the Barnes Defense and the King's Indian Defense. Mixed in are gambits, ironic defenses, and a serious collection of games named after places that may not exist on his travel list.
The Preferred Time Control Mystery
Ask his profile and Rapid is the answer. Ask his server history and the answer is a loving, chaotic, Blitz-heavy file. His Rapid record is short but decent, with around 27 rated games and more wins than losses, and it even came with a nice peak of 1829 (2022-08-31). His true peak in Blitz is 2329 (2021-11-14), reached in a stretch of November 2021 when his opening adventures were running hot. After that he simply kept playing, because stopping was never the plan.
If there is one day to catch him, it appears to be around 15:00. His win rate by day of week does not vary much, but if he is going to put together a proper streak, lunchtime is apparently the right time.
Rivalries and Regular Opponents
With this many battles, a person makes enemies and friends at the same time. His most frequent opponent is Ariel Crawford, with roughly 119 meetings spanning wins, losses, and a few draws. Another regular is perodjetlic, and apparently their rivalry takes up office hours. The overall vibe is not one-sided, which is probably why the rematch button gets clicked forever.
His win rate against opponents by opening, from the first 15 moves and beyond, is another way to understand him. He does not fear repetition.
Hard Numbers, Soft Heart
- Longest winning streak: 14 games, meaning Mesut can still smell like a monster when the position goes his way.
- Longest losing streak: 16 games, meaning the monster can also get caught in traffic.
- Decent at comebacks: the stats say he recovers in many tough positions, so it is wiser to hold the resign button.
- He wins more often when he is the first to deliver check, and that habit is basically his battle plan.
- Over 35,000 games, he has found around 3500 mates, thousands of resignations, and a very healthy number of timeout wins.
In an online sea of one-off players, Mesut Bayram stands out as somebody who actually showed up every day with the same weird openings, the same d4 ambitions, and a clear willingness to keep going until the clock or the server gave up first.