Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense, Zaitsev Hybrid
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Statistics from Lichess
121,830 games: White 46.8% / Draw 6.8% / Black 46.4%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 87,27987K | ||
| 10,43910K | ||
| 9,7639,763 | ||
| 4,1714,171 | ||
| 2,6382,638 | ||
| 2,3752,375 | ||
| 1,8491,849 | ||
| 1,6381,638 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 28, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.33 White is slightly better
Best play: 11. Nbd2 Bb7 12. Bc2 Re8 13. Nf1 Bf8 14. Ng3 a5 15. Be3 h6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense, Zaitsev Hybrid (ECO C95, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Be7 6. Re1 b5 7. Bb3 d6 8. c3 O-O 9. h3 Nb8 10. d4 Nbd7 (10 moves).
In 121,830 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 46.8%, Black 46.4% and 6.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 11. Nbd2, in 72% of those games.
It branches into 2 named variations; the most played are Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense and Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense.
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How to play against the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense, Zaitsev Hybrid
The most played answer, 11. Nbd2, also scores best for White: 50.7%, with White winning 47.3% and Black 45.8% of 87K games. Of the main answers, 11. Bg5 scores lowest: 48.4%. Stockfish's first choice is also 11. Nbd2.
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
Variations (2)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Closed, Breyer Defense, Zaitsev Hybrid (C95)”. Lichess data as of 28 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-closed-breyer-defense-zaitsev-hybrid