Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Center Formation
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 e5
The Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Center Formation is a chess opening classified as ECO B21, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 e5. 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 1,187 times by this move order. White won 49%, 4% were drawn and Black won 47%. The most popular continuation is 4. cxd4 (46% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.07 (Stockfish, depth 50; best line 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. cxd4 exd4 6. Nxd4 Bb4+)
- ECO
- B21
- Moves
- 6 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/pp1p1ppp/8/4p3/3pP3/2P5/PP3PPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 4- PGN
1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 e5
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 192 | |
| 1500-1999 | 722 | |
| 2000+ | 273 | |
| All | 1,187 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 4. cxd4 | 542 (46%) | |
| 4. Nf3 | 494 (42%) | |
| 4. Bc4 | 105 (9%) | |
| 4. f4 | 37 (3%) | |
| 4. Bd3 | 3 (0%) | |
| 4. f3 | 2 (0%) | |
| 4. c4 | 1 (0%) | |
| 4. Bb5 | 1 (0%) |
Master games
138 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 43%, draw 12%, Black 45%). The strongest:
- FM Juan David Becerra (2382) – GM Daniil Dubov (2708) 1-0 · Titled Tue 4th Apr Late · 2023-04-04
- FM Moritz Weishaeutel (2378) – GM Etienne Bacrot (2680) 1-0 · Titled Tue 5th Mar Early · 2024-03-05
- FM Alejandro Domingo Nunez (2340) – GM Daniil Dubov (2708) 0-1 · Titled Tue 14th Mar Early · 2023-03-14
- GM Baadur Jobava (2603) – FM Frederik Svane (2421) 1-0 · Titled Tuesday 30th Mar · 2021-03-30
- GM Boris Savchenko (2552) – FM Frederik Svane (2421) 0-1 · Titled Tuesday 16th Feb · 2021-02-16
Highest-rated Lichess games
- KM2200 (2488) – Maxpe (2612) 0-1 · 2026-09-07 · 180 + 0s
- MiroulLaSurie (2545) – destroylevel (2521) 1-0 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 0s
- jrivelli1993 (2434) – riga2024 (2556) 0-1 · 2026-09-02 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit (2… cxd4 3. c3) 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3
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.