Caissa Codex
C80

Ruy Lopez: Open, Karpov Gambit

Chess diagram: Ruy Lopez: Open, Karpov Gambit after 11. Ng5

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Statistics from Lichess

821 games: White 49.3% / Draw 7.3% / Black 43.4%

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Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026

Engine evaluation

0.00 The position is about equal

Best play: 11... Qxg5 12. Qf3 O-O-O 13. Bxe6+ fxe6 14. Qxc6 Qxe5 15. a4 dxc3 16. Nf3

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

Ruy Lopez: Open, Karpov Gambit (ECO C80, Open Games) is a gambit in the Ruy Lopez: Open, Bernstein Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O Nxe4 6. d4 b5 7. Bb3 d5 8. dxe5 Be6 9. Nbd2 Nc5 10. c3 d4 11. Ng5 (11 moves).

In 821 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.3%, Black 43.4% and 7.3% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 11…Qxg5, in 82% of those games.

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Other lines from the same position

Instead of 9…Nc5 10. c3 d4 11. Ng5, the position after Ruy Lopez: Open, Bernstein Variation also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Open, Karpov Gambit (C80)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-open-karpov-gambit

https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-open-karpov-gambit