Matthew Payne (Rinqed222): The National Master of the Night Shift
Some chess masters sharpen their craft with morning espresso and deep engine study. Matthew Payne, a National Master known online as Rinqed222, sharpens his craft at 2 AM, apparently powered by the kind of confidence only available to someone who knows everyone else should be asleep. With a peak Blitz rating of 2518 (2026-03-06) and a 13-game winning streak on his resume, Matthew has climbed the online chess ladder the old-fashioned way: slowly, stubbornly, and preferably after midnight.
The 2 AM Assassin
The data is genuinely eerie. Matthew's win rate at 1 AM, 2 AM, 3 AM, and 5 AM is a flawless 100%, making 02:00 his officially recognized best time to play. Thursday belongs to him as well, where he converts a monstrous 86.54% of his games. Then there is Tuesday, a cursed 24 hours in which his win rate collapses to a mortal 37.29%. If you are matched against Rinqed222 on a Tuesday morning, understand that you may simply be the beneficiary of a planetary alignment and not a chess genius.
- Best day of the week: Thursday (86.54% win rate)
- Worst day of the week: Tuesday (37.29% win rate)
- Best hour: 2 AM, where wins appear to be mathematically guaranteed
The French Fortress
When Matthew has the black pieces, brace yourself for the French Defense. His pet line, the MacCutcheon Variation, sits at a perfect 8 wins from 8 daily games, which is less an opening preference and more a legal warning. The French Exchange Variation (72.73% win rate) and the Burn Variation (71.43%) round out a repertoire engineered to punish anyone who opens with optimism.
And if opponents grow tired of the e4 versus e6 wars, Matthew keeps other weapons ready. He is a perfect 3-for-3 in rapid with the Caro-Kann Defense, and he has never lost a daily game with the Barnes Defense, a claim that would be more famous if more people dared to test it.
Rivalries and Rogues
Every National Master keeps a mental list, and Matthew's is colorful. He is a flawless 4-0 against erik, 4-0 against pat_frap, and holds winning records against Sam Copeland and Vladimir Ivanović. Against Pepe Doval, however, the script flips to 1-4-1, proof that even masters get humbled. And then there is Greg Shahade, whose 3-0-1 record against Matthew suggests some problems can only be solved at 2 AM with the French Defense and a steely heart.
- Perfect 4-0 career score versus erik
- 4-1-1 against caro-scamdefence, a rival he handles with grace
- Struggles most against gregshahade, his recurring bogeyman
Style: Grind, Grit, and Endgames
Matthew's game is built for the long haul. A striking 68.83% of his games reach the endgame, where he is clearly most comfortable. Even after losing a piece, he wins nearly half the time at 48.91%, and his 70.59% comeback rate means gifting him material is not a strategy, it is a donation. His early resignation rate of just 4.64% tells you everything: when he loses, his opponents average over 72 moves of suffering before the point is settled.
- Comeback rate: 70.59%
- Win rate after dropping a piece: 48.91%
- Early resignation rate: 4.64%, meaning he almost never quits
- Average winning game: a tidy 58 moves; average losing game: a marathon
The Climb Continues
From a 2201 blitz debut in February 2022 to a peak of 2518 in March 2026, Matthew Payne's rise has been steady, punctuated by swashbuckling streaks, one 13-game surge, and the occasional Tuesday collapse. Whether he is perfecting the MacCutcheon at midnight or plotting redemption against gregshahade, Rinqed222 remains one of the most reliable, and reliably nocturnal, forces in online blitz chess. Set your clocks accordingly.