DrLupo explains how he "cheated" in chess while playing in PogChamps 6

YouTuber and Twitch streamer Benjamin "DrLupo" has released a more detailed statement on X addressing the PogChamps 6 cheating controversy. This has come almost a day after he admitted to having used another engine to gain an unfair advantage while playing in the amateur chess tournament hosted by Chess.com. He revealed how he had used Lichess.com to analyze the game he played in real time to gain an advantage.

For those out of the loop, on May 1, DrLupo went live on his Twitch channel and came clean about using an engine to cheat when he was playing against WolfeyVGC. On May 2, he released a written statement acknowledging that he lied about the allegations and tried to hide the fact that he had "cheated":

"I screwed up big time. The internet has been right basically since the beginning, and it's taken me multiple waves of self reflection and internal fighting to get to the point where I can fully admit fault without holding back. I lied to the internet, repeatedly. I cheated, and betrayed the trust of countless people that believed in me."

DrLupo also stated that he had privately apologized to WolfeyVGC, aka WolfeyGlick, the participant against whom he had cheated, writing that he had been used as a "prop":

"Viewers, family, friends. Everyone. Myself. I carry a lot of baggage, and you all got exposed to it in the worst way. I lied directly to @danielrensch. I lied directly to @WolfeyGlick and used him as a prop on stream. He didn't deserve that. None of you did. I messaged him directly to apologize, and I'll gladly do it on stream, too."

Notably, DrLupo also explained exactly how he had cheated during PogChamps 6 and claimed that he had used the analysis feature on Lichess.com while playing the tournament hosted by Chess.com before he made his moves. The feature essentially allows players to see the best possible moves on the board at any given point in a game. The streamer said:

"Between games while waiting, they said to be sure to only have one Chess.com window open. So I was playing games against a computer on my other monitor using lichess.org where my chat window usually is to practice between rounds. Once I blundered my queen, I panicked. I used the analysis feature there and my brain couldn't stop after that. I figured out the lines, but every time I panicked after that, I did it again."

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DrLupo thinks he cheated at PogChamps 6 for a "false sense of validation"

After explaining how he had used the analysis feature to essentially cheat during PogChamps 6, DrLupo also tried to explain his motivations to use Lichess to map out the best moves. The Twitch streamer claimed that he might have done it for a "false sense of validation" after he realized he was not going to win.

Stating that he deserved the consequences of his actions, DrLupo wrote:

"People kept asking me why I did it - I think I did it for a false sense of self validation. To convince myself that I could win when clearly I shouldn't have. It was disrespectful to the entire online chess community. I was stupid enough to not even considering the consequences of what I was doing. And I accept those consequences now, because I deserve it."

DrLupo also noted how this might make people question his entire video game streaming career:

"I understand that people are going to question everything in my career now. I don't blame them. I was the guy that vocally hated people who cheated in video games, Tarkov is riddled with it. And I did the most hypocritical thing I could do."

In the rest of the statement, the DrLupo talked about having sought mental health help from Sondermind and reiterated his apology to friends, family, the chess community, and his audience. Readers should note that many in the community, such as xQc and Asmongold, have called on Twitch to ban the streamer for cheating.