1 Sergey Karjakin (Carlsen's challenger in last cycle)

2 Levon Aronian (World Cup winner)

3 Ding Liren (World Cup runner up)

4 Vladimir Kramnik (Wild Card)

5 Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (Grand Prix winner)

6 Alexander Grischuk (Grand Prix runner up)

7 Fabiano Caruana (By rating #1)

8 Wesley So (By rating #2)

Grand Prix Cycle:

Chart provide by Europe Echecs