Sicilian Defense: Classical Variation, Sozin Attack
The Sozin Attack is 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bc4, a sharp line against the Classical Variation of the Sicilian Defense. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
1,015,630 games: White 48.3% / Draw 4.8% / Black 47.0%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Sicilian Defense: Sozin Attack, Leonhardt Variation | 311,646312K | |
| 264,573265K | ||
| 105,065105K | ||
| Sicilian Defense: Classical Variation, Anti-Sozin Variation | 100,882101K | |
| 96,30796K | ||
| 66,23366K | ||
| 24,40324K | ||
| 18,59619K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 8, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.18 The position is about equal
Best play: 6... e6 7. Be3 a6 8. Bb3 Na5 9. f4 Qc7 10. f5 Nxb3 11. cxb3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: White scores 50% under 1400, 52% at 2200 and up and 50% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 87K | |
| 1400–1799 | 463K | |
| 1800–2199 | 560K | |
| 2200 and up | 160K | |
| Masters, over the board | 8,387 |
Master games
- Giri, A. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Ivanchuk, V. – Kramnik, V.
- Aronian, L. – Grischuk, A.
- Kasparov, G. – Kramnik, V.
- Kasparov, G. – Anand, V.
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
Description
The Sozin Attack is 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bc4, a sharp line against the Classical Variation of the Sicilian Defense. The bishop goes to an aggressive square on c4. The line is named after the Russian master Veniamin Sozin.
The idea
Black usually answers 6...e6 to limit the range of White's bishop. White can then build pressure against the e6-pawn by pushing the f-pawn, f4 and f5. The resulting lines are razor-sharp and highly theoretical.
Main lines
After 6...e6 White chooses which side to castle:
- 7.Bb3 a6 8.O-O, castling kingside, is the Fischer-Sozin Attack, named after Bobby Fischer and Sozin, who originated it in the 1930s.
- 7.Be3 Be7 (or 7...a6) 8.Qe2 and 9.O-O-O, castling queenside, is the Velimirović Attack.
Instead of 6...e6 Black can play Benko's move, 6...Qb6, which forces White to decide what to do with the knight on d4. It typically leads to more positional play than the Sozin and Velimirović main lines.
The numbers
On Lichess White wins 48.3% of the 1 million games and Black 47.0%. Under 1400 Black is slightly ahead, 48.5% against 48.0%; from 2200 up White leads 48.4% to 45.3%. Masters over the board split the results almost exactly: in 8,387 games White won 32.9%, Black 33.7%, and 33.4% were drawn.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Classical Variation, Sozin Attack
6…Qb6 (Sicilian Defense: Classical Variation, Anti-Sozin Variation) scores best for Black: 52.7%, with Black winning 50.2% and White 44.8% of 101K games. The most played, 6…e6, scores 50.2% in 312K games, and 6…a6 scores lowest: 46.0%. Stockfish's first choice is 6…e6.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black'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 Sicilian Defense: Classical Variation, Sozin Attack has lost ground since 2016: 0.032% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.043% (its peak: 0.051% in 2019).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.043% | 15,470 |
| 2017 | 0.048% | 26,476 |
| 2018 | 0.05% | 39,540 |
| 2019 | 0.051% | 63,777 |
| 2020 | 0.05% | 145,196 |
| 2021 | 0.045% | 174,109 |
| 2022 | 0.038% | 141,712 |
| 2023 | 0.034% | 129,711 |
| 2024 | 0.033% | 117,808 |
| 2025 | 0.032% | 110,857 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.032% | 35,317 |
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)
Transpositions
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Sicilian Defence, version of 27 October 2026, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Results: Lichess opening explorer, figures collected from September to November 2026.
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Classical Variation, Sozin Attack (B57)”. Lichess data as of 8 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-classical-variation-sozin-attack