And all hell broke loose...

And All Hell Broke Loose

To keep it brief, I dutifully refer you to the Chessbase Summary Article. I see no point here in rehashing everything that has been said, and has been said better than I could put it. Having said that, it is my opinion that:

1) Danailov should be disciplined/investigated by FIDE Ethics Committee
2) Game 5 should be played and the forfeit reversed
3) Kramnik, regardless of the result of the match, should proceed legally against FIDE

My personal opinion is that Topalov has his hand in this somewhat, Danailov being his manager. I'm not so sure that Topalov was aware beforehand the extent to which Danailov was going to go regarding personal attacks against Kramnik, and for that I believe he is sincerely sorry for. However, Topalov's decision to keep the forfeit point seems strange to me. Keeping the point and winning the match by +1 or tiebreaks will forever leave a mark on his championship status. Keeping the point and winning the match by +2 seems highly unlikely. Failing to tie the match and having a forfeit point will solidify Kramnik as the Unified Champion, so I'm not so sure what there is to gain by this.

Unlike some "other" bloggers, I am willing to take sides in this match. I believe a great disservice has been done to Chess, Kramnik, AND Topalov, thanks to Danailov and his very questionable tactics. I have been a huge Kramnik fan since the "de-toothing" of Kasparov.

I stand by Kramnik now.