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| Water-feature in the municipal botanic garden |
Sicilian Accelerated Dragon
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Nb3!?
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| 7.Nb3!? is sixth-most popular in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database, but scores a higher percentage than the more common moves, including the mainline 7.Bc4 |
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The move is also liked by Stockfish18 and Dragon1, although they come to marginally prefer 7.Bc4. The idea of the text is to prevent ...d5, while also avoiding an exchange of pieces.
7...0-0 8.Be2 a5 9.a4 d5!?
But it seems Black's thematic move in the Accelerated Dragon is possible anyway, albeit as a sacrifice. More usual are 9...d6 and especially 9...Nb4!?
10.exd5 Nb4
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| How should White proceed? |
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11.0-0!?
Getting on with development, rather than trying to hold on to the pawn. The main line in Mega26 runs 11.Bf3 Bf5 12.Rc1 Rc8 13.0-0, when Xavier Montheard (2220) - Claude Adrian (2335), Clichy (France) 1998, continued 13...Rxc3!? 14.bxc3 Na2 15.c4!? (15.Ra1 Nxc3 and 16...Nfxd5 gives Black good compensation for the exchange, according to the engines) Nxc1 16.Qxc1, with the upper hand for White, according to the engines, although the game was drawn.
11...Nfxd5 12.Nxd5 Nxd5
This is an improvement on Ted van Eck (2033) - Spanton (2017), Oberjoch (Bavaria) 2017, which saw 12...Qxd5? 13.c3 Qxd1 14.Rad1 Nc6, when several moves give White a positionally won game, according to the engines, including 15.Rd5 and 15.Bb6, but not after the game's 15.Nd4?, when 15...Nxd4 16.Bxd4 Be6 more-or-less equalised (0-1, 66 moves).
13.Bd4 Bxd4!?
The most common continuation in Mega26 is 13...e5?!, but 14.Bc5 Re8 15.Bb5 almost certainly favours White.
14.Nxd4
This seems to be a novelty. The engines marginally prefer the known 14.Qxd4.
14...e5 15.Nb5 Bf5 16.Bd3!?
The engines reckon the text or 16.Bg4 is best, but White has to be careful, eg 16.Bf3 e4 17.Be2 Nf4 is good for Black, as 18.Bg4?? loses to 18...Qg5.
16...Bxd3 17.Qxd3 Nb4 18.Qe2 Qf6
Perhaps 18...Qe7 is marginally better.
19.Rad1
VH offered a draw.
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| How would you assess the position? |
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Black has the only pawn on the two centre files, but White has a farside pawn-majority that might prove useful in an ending. The engines reckon chances are equal.
19...Rfd8!?
Wrong rook? The engines are unsure.
20.c3 Nc6
On 20...Nd5, the engines suggest 21.g3!? White can also temporarily sacrifice the exchange with 21.Rxd5, recovering the material after 21...Rxd5 22.Nc7 etc.
21.g3!?
Preventing the possibility of ...Qh4 or ...Qf4 (both moves target a4), as well as ruling out a back-rank mate by Black.
21...Qe7!?
Preparing ...f5 and ...e4, with hopes of transferring the black knight to f3 or d3.
22.Rxd8+ Rxd8 23.Rd1 Kg7 24.Na3!?
While the b5 outpost looks good, the white knight will be more active on c4.
24...f5!?
But this is possibly more loosening than effective.
25.Nc4 e4 26.Kg2 Rd7!?
Hoping to win the open file with ...Qd8.
27.Nb6 Rd8 28.Nc4 Rd7 ½–½
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