Fischer liked meeting 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 (Black's second and fourth moves are often transposed) with the aggressive 5.Nb5 (5.N1c3 is over six times more popular in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database).
After 5...d6 Fischer again usually continued with what is the second-most popular move, 6.Bf4!?, meeting 6...e5 with 7.Be3.
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| Position after 7.Be3 |
Black develops the king's knight with 7...Nf6
8.Bg5!?
This surprising (at least at first sight) continuation is the main line. The idea is to take control of the d5 square.
8...Be6!?
This has been given a question mark, for example by Ľubomír Ftáčnik, but it is a popular move and is the choice of my main analysis engines, Stockfish12 and Komodo11.01.
The main alternative is 8...a6, which Fischer did not face. The normal continuation then is 9.Bxf6 gxf6 10.N5c3, which has many similarities to the Sveshnikov.
Fischer did face 8...Qa5+. Fischer - Mark Taimanov, Candidates' Quarter-Final Game 2 (Vancouver) 1971, continued 9.Qd2 Nxe4 10.Qxa5 Nxa5 11.Be3 Kd7 (the only reasonable answer to the threat of Nc7+) 12.N1c3!? (Black scores well after 12.Nxa7 d5) Nxc3 13.Nxc3 Kd8 14.Nb5 Be6 15.0-0-0 b6 16.f4, when White has more than enough compensation for a pawn (1-0, 89 moves). Subsequent games concentrated on 13...b6!? 14.0-0-0 Bb7 15.f4, when the engines like White's compensation, and practical results have greatly favoured the first player.
9.N1c3 a6 10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.Na3 Nd4
Fischer - Tigran V Petrosian, Candidates' Final Game 1 (Buenos Aires) 1971, saw 11...d5!? 12.exd5 Bxa3 13.bxa3 Qa5 14.Qd2 0-0-0 15.Bc4 Rhg8 16.Rd1 Bf5 17.Bd3 Bxd3 18.Qxd3 Nd4 19.0-0 with a roughly equal game (but 1-0, 40 moves).
12.Nc4!?
Fischer - Miguel Najdorf, Piatigorsky Cup (Santa Monica, California) 1966, went 12.Bc4 b5 (12...d5!?) 13.Bxe6 fxe6 14.Ne2 with a level game, according to the engines (but 1-0, 47 moves).
12...f5 13.exf5 Nxf5
13...Bxf5 14.Ne3 Be6 15.Bc4 is slightly better for White, according to the engines, while 14...Bg6 15.Ncd5 Bh6 16.c3 favoured White in Hikaru Nakamura (2708) - Alexei Shirov (2723), Corus (Wijk aan Zee) 2010 (1-0, 41 moves).
14.Bd3 Rc8
Stockfish12 reckons 14...Ne7!? is strong for Black, but Komodo11.01 is unimpressed. One sharp line runs 15.Qf3 d5!? (the point) 16.Nxe5 d4 17.Bc4 Qc7 18.Nxf7 Bxc4 19.Nxh8 0-0-0 with an unclear position that Stockfish12 reckons is winning for Black, but Komodo11.01 rates as almost equal.
15.Bxf5 Rxc4
White has a slight edge after 15...Bxf5 16.Ne3, according to the engines.
16.Bxe6 fxe6 17.Qe2 Rd4 18.0-0
White was slightly better in Fischer - Taimanov, Candidates' Quarter-Final Game 6 (Vancouver) 1971 (1-0, 43 moves).
Black drives the white knight back with 7...a6
8.N5c3 Nf6
This is the main move.
8...Be6 9.a4 (9.Nd5!?) Nge7 10.Nd5 Bxd5 11.exd5 Qa5+ 12.Nc3 Nb8 13.Bd3 was better for White in Fischer - John Blackstone, Simul (San Francisco) 1964 (1-0, 26 moves).
8...b5?! 9.Nd5 was much better for White in Fischer - Jeff Sullivan, Simul (Chicago) 1964 (but ½–½, 48 moves).
9.Na3!?
Other moves are more popular, including 9.Bg5!? and 9.Bc4.
9...Ng4!? 10.Nc4 Nxe3 11.Nxe3
Black has won the bishop-pair, but White's control of d5 is probably more important.
11...Be7 12.Bc4 0-0 13.0-0 Bg5 14.Nf5!? Bxf5 15.exf5 Nd4 16.Qd3
White had a tiny edge, according to the engines, in Fischer - Osvaldo Bazán, Bueons Aires 1960 (but ½–½, 35 moves).
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