Caro-Kann Defense: Martian Gambit
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng5 Bg6 6. N1f3 h6 7. Ne6
The Caro-Kann Defense: Martian Gambit is a chess opening classified as ECO B18, reached after 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng5 Bg6 6. N1f3 h6 7. Ne6. It is a line of the Caro-Kann Defense. Black is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 58 times by this move order. White won 72%, 0% were drawn and Black won 28%. The most popular continuation is 7… fxe6 (86% of games).
Engine evaluation: −0.91 (Stockfish, depth 40; best line 7… fxe6 8. Bd3 Bxd3 9. Qxd3 Qa5+ 10. Bd2)
- ECO
- B18
- Moves
- 13 plies
- FEN
rn1qkbnr/pp2ppp1/2p1N1bp/8/3P4/5N2/PPP2PPP/R1BQKB1R b KQkq - 1 7- PGN
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng5 Bg6 6. N1f3 h6 7. Ne6
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 4 | |
| 1500-1999 | 43 | |
| 2000+ | 11 | |
| All | 58 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 7… fxe6 | 50 (86%) | |
| 7… Qa5+ | 3 (5%) | |
| 7… Qd6 | 1 (2%) | |
| 7… Qc8 | 1 (2%) | |
| 7… Qd5 | 1 (2%) | |
| 7… f6 | 1 (2%) | |
| 7… Qb6 | 1 (2%) |
Master games
4 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 75%, draw 0%, Black 25%). The strongest:
- CM Volen Dyulgerov (2181) – FM Artin Ashraf (2470) 0-1 · Titled Tue 7th Oct 2025 · 2025-10-07
- FM Havard Haug (2354) – FM Vincent Blom (2230) 1-0 · Titled Tue 10th Jun Late · 2025-06-10
- IM Boris Itkis (2250) – CM Daniel Titichoca Daza (2112) 1-0 · Titled Tue 19th Aug Early · 2025-08-19
- Serge Savoia (1774) – Pietro Sambo (1465) 1-0 · 22nd HIT Open 2017 · 2017-02-01
Search all games of the Caro-Kann Defense: Martian Gambit and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- sosforlove (2364) – usuariodexadrez (2382) 1-0 · 2026-09-02 · 180 + 0s
- jirenfull (2302) – Gkaripofski (2309) 1-0 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 0s
- H3chiz3n (2279) – vinjakjezivot (2165) 1-0 · 2026-09-07 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation (4. Nxe4 Bf5) 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5
More Caro-Kann Defense lines (all)
- Caro-Kann Defense (1. e4 c6) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense (1… c6 2. Nc3) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense (2. Nc3 d5) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack (1… c6 2. c4) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack (2. c4 d5) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Modern Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Open Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Pseudo-Scandinavian B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Van Weersel Attack B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Apocalypse Attack B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Breyer Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Breyer Variation, Stein Attack B10
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.