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Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation (B71)
1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 g6 6 f4

Number of games in database: 521
Years covered: 1936 to 2025
Overall record:
   White wins 44.7%
   Black wins 31.3%
   Draws 24.0%

Popularity graph, by decade

Explore this opening  |  Search for sacrifices in this opening.
PRACTITIONERS
With the White Pieces With the Black Pieces
Brian Eley  6 games
Joaquim Durao  6 games
Herman Pilnik  4 games
Jonathan Mestel  6 games
Mikhail Golubev  6 games
Andrew Whiteley  6 games
NOTABLE GAMES [what is this?]
White Wins Black Wins
Tal vs Lisitsin, 1956
Korchnoi vs Spassky, 1948
R Nezhmetdinov vs P Ermolin, 1946
N Illijin vs M Cebalo, 1999
Ljubojevic vs Miles, 1980
Nunn vs Miles, 1982
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 page 1 of 21; games 1-25 of 521  PGN Download
Game  ResultMoves YearEvent/LocaleOpening
1. V Tomovic vs I Koenig  0-1401936Yugoslav ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
2. Levenfish vs I Rabinovich 1-0451939USSR ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
3. M Czerniak vs J Pelikan  1-0571945Buenos Aires chB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
4. M Finkelstein vs R Konkel  1-040194546th US OpenB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
5. R Nezhmetdinov vs P Ermolin 1-0151946Kazan ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
6. Koblents vs M Robs  1-0291946Ch LatviaB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
7. M Kamyshov vs M Bonch-Osmolovsky  1-0401946Moscow ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
8. Bronstein vs Averbakh 1-0411946Moscow ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
9. Petrosian vs Sarkisian  1-0411946Armenian ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
10. A Pytlakowski vs J Gadalinski  ½-½811946Polish ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
11. G Gresser vs M Karff  0-1641946United States Championship (Women)B71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
12. V Lyublinsky vs Aronin  1-0331947Moscow ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
13. P Dubinin vs P Yasvoin  1-0311947RSFSR ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
14. J Randviir vs Simagin  1-0561947ParnuB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
15. Boleslavsky vs C Kottnauer  ½-½531947MoscowB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
16. Bolbochan vs H Rossetto ½-½711948ARG-ch MatchB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
17. Korchnoi vs Spassky 1-0121948LeningradB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
18. O Penrose vs A Truscott  1-0261948BCF-PremierB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
19. Averbakh vs Lisitsin 0-1391948USSR ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
20. Pilnik vs Kashdan 1-0281948New York 1948/49B71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
21. N Borisenkov vs G Zhuravlev  ½-½161949Ch Russia (farmers) play-offB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
22. P Schmidt vs B H Wood  1-0481949Hastings 1948/49B71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
23. Korchnoi vs Spassky 0-1511949Leningrad Junior ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
24. F Benko vs Eliskases  0-1541949Mar del PlataB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
25. C Joachim vs A Dake  0-1241949Pacific Northwest ChampionshipB71 Sicilian, Dragon, Levenfish Variation
 page 1 of 21; games 1-25 of 521  PGN Download
  REFINE SEARCH:   White wins (1-0) | Black wins (0-1) | Draws (1/2-1/2)  

Kibitzer's Corner
Jul-14-04  RonB52734: Has this opening been refuted? Or just fallen out of favor?
Jul-14-04  SicilianDragon: Mostly fallen out of favor because black can easily equalize with both 6...Nc6 and 6...Ndb7. However, there are still a few unsuspecting persons who fall for it and play 6...Bg7?
Jul-14-04  RonB52734: <SicilianDragon> Thanks for the reply. I see an example of the problem with 6...Bg7? in the game J L Alvarez vs C Hounie Fleurquin, 1961 which you have kibitzed as well.
Jul-14-04  SicilianDragon: This is certainly a trappy variation, but poses no threat against experienced opposition.
Jul-14-04  Helloween: This is one of the most rarely played openings that actually has its own ECO code. 6...Bg7? is of course bad, and both 6...Nc6 and 6...Nbd7 give Black a good position as mentioned earlier. My personal preference, 6...a6, also gives Black a strong position, as preventing Bb5+ is very important. Bronstein vs Tukmakov, 1971 shows 6...a6 in action.
Jul-19-04  RonB52734: This variation was mentioned fairly prominently in a novel, written several decades ago (the 1980s?), about a woman world champion, "The Queen's Gambit."
Jul-19-04  Jesuitic Calvinist: Ron, I remember the novel "Queen's Gambit" by Tevis(?) from 1983, I think. I recall the parts about sex and dope-smoking, but not f4 against the Dragon. This selective chess reading perhaps explains why I did not pursue chess more seriously in my youth.
Aug-07-04  RonB52734: Lol. It does not, however, explain your nickname!
Oct-04-04  tacticsjokerxxx: <SicilianDragon>

6...♘c6 being considered the best move here... (♗g7 being obviosly bad and ♘bd7 doens't look so hot either) what happens after 7.♘xc6 - bxc6 8. e5? I personlly don't think I'd favour that position as black, mostly because i just hate it when i get my queen's knight exchanged for a king's knight, which is why I usually delay the development of my queen's knight a bit, which obviosly doesn't work too well against the levenfish.. but also because the early f4+e5 pawn advance ruins the aesthetic quality of the dragon... hm.. what is one to do... fish vs dragon...

Nov-17-04  ConspTheory06: Yes although 6...Nc6 refutes the levenfish most people who play the dragon want to get ready to castle right away so they play 6...Bg7 alot of the time. I just yesterday played this variation in my High School Match and won beautifully even after he saved the knight with a double knight sac. It went like this: 1. e4 c5
2. Nf3 d6
3. d4 cxd4
4. Nxd4 Nf6
5. Nc3 g6
6. f4 Bg7?
7. e5 dxe5
8. fxe5 Nd5
9. Bb5+ Kd8
10. Qf3 Nxc3
11. 0-0 Qxd4+
12. Be3 Qd5
13. Rad1! Qxd1
14. Qxf7#
After 13. Rad1! Back cannot defend both mate on d8 and f7 if he moves the queen his best variation is 13...Be6 but then after 14. Bc4 he is still lost.
May-08-07  Elixir of Life: <ConspTheory06> What about <7...Nh5>?? Isn't it a better move ?
Dec-22-07  Cactus: Actually, it is a bid surprise to me that 6...Bg7 is getting bashed. It is certainly a good book move; for example, Emms, in his book on the Dragon, seems to think it is black's best responce to the Levenfish. After 7.e5 Nh5 (Elixir was right; this is the best move)
8.Bb5+ (g4? is worse for white after 8...Nxf4 9.Bxf4 dxe5) Bd7 with an equal game. As well, <tacticsjokerxxx> Nbd7 is actually an exellent move, after which black soon gains equality. For example: Ljubojevic-Miles 1.e4 c5
2.Nf3 d6
3.d4 cxd4
4.Nxd4 Nf6
5.Nc3 g6
6.f4 Nbd7
7.Nf3 (still trying for e5)Qc7
8.Bd3 Bg7
9.O-O O-O
Here we have:


click for larger view

Where the game is aboutequal, and black can attack white's e4 pawn by ...a6, ...b5, ...Bb7, ...Nf4, and can certainly defend himself against a white attack.

Dec-22-07  Cactus: Sorry, that wasn't Emms, that was Andrew Martin.
Aug-20-08  zoren: of course Bg7 isn't bad but Nc6 just stops e5's sting almost immediately. the Nh5 move after e5 used to be regarded as disadvantageous for black in the pre-computer days because it seems dangerous, but computers for awhile have proved it is playable.

even during the 21st century, the Nh5 move wasn't really preferred by dragon players, since the character of the struggle shifts, even though it is objectively playable.

Aug-20-08  Cactus: True, but really it's all just playing style. Personally, I play 6...Nbd7
Mar-24-17
Premium Chessgames Member
  WTHarvey: Here's a collection of 29 traps in the B71 Levenfish: http://www.wtharvey.com/b71.html Find the winning moves.

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