The UzChess Cup in Tashkent saw a fully decisive second round on Monday, with all five games concluding with a winner, maintaining the trend of victories for the player with the white pieces. Mukhiddin Madaminov, the tournament's lowest-rated participant, stands out as the sole leader with a perfect score of 2 out of 2. He achieved this after defeating Nikolas Theodorou, who had previously upset a higher-rated opponent. Following closely are the top seeds, Nodirbek Abdusattorov and Arjun Erigaisi, both at 1.5 points after securing wins against Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Nodirbek Yakubboev, respectively. Ian Nepomniachtchi and Hans Niemann also bounced back from their initial losses, with Nepomniachtchi overcoming Vidit Gujrathi and Niemann besting Shamsiddin Vokhidov in a challenging queen endgame. The tournament highlights the ongoing dominance of White pieces, as all eight games played thus far have resulted in victories for players with the white pieces.