Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Accepted, Morphy Defense Deferred
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Nxc3 Nc6 5. Nf3 e6 6. Bc4 a6 7. O-O b5 8. Bb3 Bc5
The Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Accepted, Morphy Defense Deferred is a chess opening classified as ECO B21, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Nxc3 Nc6 5. Nf3 e6 6. Bc4 a6 7. O-O b5 8. Bb3 Bc5. It is a line of the Sicilian Defense. White is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 3 times by this move order. White won 100%, 0% were drawn and Black won 0%. The most popular continuation is 9. Qe2 (67% of games).
Engine evaluation: −0.16 (Stockfish, depth 30; best line 9. e5 f5 10. Ng5 Bb7 11. Bxe6 dxe6)
- ECO
- B21
- Moves
- 16 plies
- FEN
r1bqk1nr/3p1ppp/p1n1p3/1pb5/4P3/1BN2N2/PP3PPP/R1BQ1RK1 w kq - 2 9- PGN
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Nxc3 Nc6 5. Nf3 e6 6. Bc4 a6 7. O-O b5 8. Bb3 Bc5
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 1500-1999 | 3 | |
| All | 3 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 9. Qe2 | 2 (67%) | |
| 9. Ng5 | 1 (33%) |
Master games
5 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 20%, draw 20%, Black 60%). The strongest:
- GM Juan Carlos Obregon Rivero (2476) – FM Mateu Boci (2268) 1-0 · Titled Tue 13th May Late · 2025-05-13
- CM Ali Elier (2140) – IM Simon Lamaze (2471) 1/2-1/2 · Titled Tue 3rd Dec Early · 2024-12-03
- FM Juan Camilo Arango Arenas (2230) – FM Mateu Boci (2258) 0-1 · Titled Tue 8th Apr Late · 2025-04-08
- Frank Dreke (2025) – Joachim Rauscher (1866) 0-1 · 11th Lichtenberger Sommer 2012 · 2012-08-26
- Lee Bullock (1572) – Pascal Verneuil (2159) 0-1 · Gibraltar Masters 2018 · 2018-01-24
Highest-rated Lichess games
- ditt0 (1822) – MikhailAllin (1847) 1-0 · 2026-09-07 · 300 + 0s
- Snewana (1794) – Danuka1991 (1359) 1-0 · 2026-09-03 · 300 + 0s
- AlfonsoMont (1560) – hjhoon0309 (1579) 1-0 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Accepted, Paulsen Formation 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Nxc3 Nc6 5. Nf3 e6 6. Bc4 a6
More Sicilian Defense lines (all)
- Sicilian Defense (1. e4 c5) B20
- Sicilian Defense: Amazon Attack B20
- Sicilian Defense: Big Clamp Formation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Bowdler Attack B20
- Sicilian Defense: Brick Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Czerniak Attack B20
- Sicilian Defense: Czerniak Attack, Queen Fianchetto Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Euwe Attack, Prins Gambit B20
- Sicilian Defense: Gloria Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Grob Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: Keres Variation B20
- Sicilian Defense: King David's Opening B20
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.