Fischer varied his replies to 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 a6, playing 5.c4 early in his career and also trying 5.Nc3, but finally settling on 5.Bd3.
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| Position after 5.Bd3 |
6.0-0 d6
The other popular move here is 6...Qc7, which Fischer did not face. The main line continues 7.Qe2 d6 8.c4 g6 9.Nc3 Bg7. There are more than 1,200 games with this position in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database. White is better, according to my main analysis engines Stockfish12 and Komodo11.01, although there is no clearly established best move. One popular line liked by both engines is 10.Be3 0-0 11.Rac1 Nbd7 12.Rfd1 when White's extra space and lead in development make the white position easier to play, but Black has no big weaknesses.
7.c4
As a general rule Fischer did not set up a Maróczy Bind against the Sicilian but, as I mentioned above, he did like it early in his career against the Kan, and here c4 is overwhelmingly the most-popular move.
7...Bd7
The main line in Mega20 goes 7...Be7 8.Nc3 0-0 9.Be3, with the usual slight edge White gets early on in Maróczy Bind positions.
8.Nc3 Nc6 9.Be3!?
More popular is 9.Nxc6 Bxc6 10.Qe2, which the engines reckon slightly favours White.
9...Be7 10.h3!?
Other moves are more popular but this prophylaxis against a black knight coming to g4 has been played in more-modern times by Nigel Short and Michael Adams. A secondary idea is that White may later expand on the kingside with g4.
10...Ne5!?
Sergei Rublevsky played 10...0-0 against both Short and Adams, but the engines prefer the text.
11.Be2!?
An interesting moment. Whites often allow their light-square bishop to be exchanged in Maróczy Bind positions, but Fischer, as has perhaps been apparent in this series, had a special affinity for that bishop against the Sicilian.
11...Rc8 12.Qb3 Qc7 13.Rac1 0-0
Black has problems after 13...Nxc4?! 14.Bxc4 Qxc4 15.Qxb7.
14.f4 Nc6 15.Nf3
White was better in Fischer - Miguel Najdorf, Olympiad (Siegen, Germany) 1970 (1-0, 48 moves).
Black develops the queen with 5...Qc7
6.0-0 Nc6 7.Nxc6!?
This is the main move in the position.
7...bxc6
The engines agree this is best, but 7...dxc6 is also popular, after which the engines like 8.Be3 Nf6 9.Nd2, when White has a slight edge in development and space.
Much-less popular is 7...Qxc6, when White gets an even bigger lead in development.
8.Nd2 Nf6 9.b3 Bc5 10.Bb2 e5 11.Kh1 d6 12.f4
White was better in Fischer - Lewis Hucks, Simul (Washington DC) 1964 (but 0-1, 21 moves).
Black challenges the developed white knight with 5...Nc6
6.Nxc6
This is easily the most-popular move.
6...bxc6!?
After the commoner 6...dxc6 the main line runs 7.0-0 e5 8.Nd2 Nf6 9.Nc4 Qc7, when the engines reckon both 10.Be3 and 10.Bd2 give White an edge.
7.0-0 d5 8.c4!? Nf6
Quite popular is 8...dxc4?! 9.Bxc4 Qxd1 10.Rxd1, but the engines reckon White is much better.
9.cxd5 cxd5 10.exd5 exd5!?
A key moment.
Most popular in Mega20 is 10...Nxd5. The engines like meeting it with the somewhat-unusual 11.Nc3!?, when 11...Nxc3 12.bxc3 is good for White, according to them, a sample line running 12...Bd6 13.Rb1 0-0 14.Be3, when White's control of open lines gives the first player an edge, according to the engines.
Grandmasters have also played 10...Qxd5 11.Nc3 Qc6,when 12.Be2! is strong for White.
11.Nc3 Be7 12.Qa4+ Qd7
Subsequent games saw most players prefer 12...Bd7!? but then 13.Qd4 leaves White well-placed to combat Black's IQP.
13.Re1 Qxa4 14.Nxa4 Be6 15.Be3 0-0 16.Bc5
White was better in Fischer - Tigran V Petrosian, Candidates' Final Game 7 (Buenos Aires) 1971 (1-0, 34 moves).
Black develops the king's bishop with 5...Bc5
Fischer did not face this popular try. The main line continues 6.Nb3 Be7!? 7.0-0 d6 8.c4 Nf6 9.Nc3 with a Maróczy Bind that the engines reckon is good for White.
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