After <39...fxe6> (Rybka 3)

click for larger view

White diverts the queen to a square where the manoever WILL win the queen.

Having seen the puzzle before, I didn't have much difficulty with it. So, I decided to look this time to see where Black blundered. The problem was with 38...Qd8?? Instead, the defense 38...Qd7!? 39. Rb6 Qc7 40. Rxb8+ Qxb8 41.Bd7 Qd6 offers practical drawing chances in a slightly inferior position against Fischer (which was quite often a losing proposition).

The tension point is the white rook being attacked by a pawn and pinned to our Q by black's Q. Is there any way to unpin it?

Yes! by interposing the bishop at d7, <40.Bd7!>. It's a decoy move that one might dismiss since the bishop is unguarded -- but the point is that *black's queen* will be unguarded if it captures the bishop, allowing a winning discovered check: <40...Qxd7? 41.Rxg6+ hxg6 42.Qxd7>.

Since the black Q can't take our bishop, it must move to avoid being captured by the bishop while guarding against Rxe7 -- that leaves <40...Qd8> (or 40...Qf8).

White is about to lose the exchange. There does not seem to be a direct way to attack the black King so I'm trying to get out a piece ahead here.

40.a7 xe6 is winning after 41.xe6 fxe6 42.xb8 but after 40...fxe6 41.xb8 xb8 42.xe6+ f8 it's not clear.

40.c5 xc5 41.Re8+ is also good for White, but after 40...xc5 41.c6 a7 42.c8+ xc8 43.xc8+ g7 44.xc4 it's also not decided yet.

Amongst other moves I did look at 40.xg6+ and dismissed it, and I also checked 40.xd7 and figured I would only lose a piece after 40...xd7. I was not smart enough to combine these two ideas.

At first, I was looking at the seemingly dangerous position of the Black King and was trying to figure out how the white Rook could go to the 8TH rank, while the e5-pawn disapears, the white Bishop lands to d4 AND the 8TH rank becomes clear of black pieces. But it looks like it is hard to find a variation to achieve everything. Although the presence of the g6-pawn and g5-pawn sugests that a mating net exists, I just do not see how to exploit it. Thus, 40.Rxe7 and 41.Rxe5 (reversible) always provokes 40. ...Qxg4 and then, how to bring the Bishop to d4 AND the Rook on the 8TH rank AND evicting the black one from that same rank ? It seems like a mate threat is not part of the solution here.

But White is still a whole piece up. We must find how to save the Rook AND the Queen.

Again 40.Rxe7. When 40. ...Qxg4 41.Bd7 shows that the Black Queen does not have many options, here. It can escape, but this variation shows that the d7-square might have its point.

40.Bd7. I think this is it, as 40. ...Qxd7 41.Rxg6+ hxg6 42.Qxd7 and White is +5. Or 40. ...fxe6 41.Bxe6+ Kg7 (41. ...Qxe6 42.Qxe6+ Kg7 43.Qxc4 is +6) 42.Bxc8 Rxc8 is again +5.

Thus, 40.Bd7 Qc7 (40. ...Qd8 41.Rxe5 is +4) 41.Rc8 and White is still a piece up.

White to move (40.?) "Medium/Easy"

White is up a piece, but Black has a nasty-looking pin on the e6 rook, about to win the rook and go ahead an exchange. Fischer has seen farther than his opponent, and has a bishop ready to come to the rescue!

40. Bd7!