Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
576,831 games: White 42.5% / Draw 4.3% / Black 53.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 310,786311K | ||
| 95,26895K | ||
| 84,19284K | ||
| 67,27367K | ||
| 10,49810K | ||
| 5,8985,898 | ||
| 954954 | ||
| 598598 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 20, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.35 White is slightly better
Best play: 6. Bf1 Nxd5 7. Bxb5 Bb7 8. Qh5 g6 9. Qf3 Qd7 10. Nc3 Ndb4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for Black: Black scores 55% under 1400, 49% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 88K | |
| 1400–1799 | 311K | |
| 1800–2199 | 341K | |
| 2200 and up | 45K | |
| Masters, over the board | 242 |
Master games
- Gukesh, D. – Carlsen, M.
- Lu Shanglei – Wang Hao
- Naiditsch, A. – Carlsen, M.
- Sindarov, J. – Chigaev, M.
- Vallejo Pons, F. – Naiditsch, A.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation (ECO C57, Open Games) is a variation of the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Knight Attack, Normal Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. exd5 b5 (5 moves).
In 576,831 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 42.5%, Black 53.1% and 4.3% were drawn. White's most played move here is 6. Bxb5, in 54% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation, Kurkin Gambit.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation
6. Bf1 scores best for White: 55.1%, with White winning 52.9% and Black 42.8% of 95K games. The most played answer, 6. Bxb5, scores lowest: 40.6% in 311K games. Stockfish's first choice is also 6. Bf1.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
The Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation dipped to 0.018% of Lichess games in 2022 and has recovered since: 0.025% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.024% | 8,694 |
| 2017 | 0.025% | 13,535 |
| 2018 | 0.024% | 18,759 |
| 2019 | 0.021% | 25,898 |
| 2020 | 0.02% | 59,897 |
| 2021 | 0.02% | 77,825 |
| 2022 | 0.018% | 68,176 |
| 2023 | 0.023% | 85,182 |
| 2024 | 0.024% | 85,922 |
| 2025 | 0.025% | 87,062 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.03% | 32,622 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (1)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Italian Game: Two Knights Defense, Ulvestad Variation (C57)”. Lichess data as of 20 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/italian-game-two-knights-defense-ulvestad-variation