Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Yugoslav Attack, Panov Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
206,862 games: White 51.6% / Draw 5.3% / Black 43.1%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 42,62743K | ||
| 37,88638K | ||
| 31,71232K | ||
| 15,04815K | ||
| 14,24814K | ||
| 14,07214K | ||
| 13,20613K | ||
| 10,50811K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.38 White is slightly better
Best play: 9... Be6 10. O-O-O Nxd4 11. Bxd4 Qa5 12. Kb1 Rfc8 13. a3 Rab8 14. h4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 1,175 | |
| 1400–1799 | 28K | |
| 1800–2199 | 126K | |
| 2200 and up | 58K | |
| Masters, over the board | 1,201 |
Master games
- Karjakin, S. – Nakamura, H.
- Grischuk, A. – Nakamura, H.
- Anand, V. – Kasparov, G.
- Ponomariov, R. – Radjabov, T.
- Aronian, L. – Abdusattorov, N.
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
Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Yugoslav Attack, Panov Variation (ECO B76, Semi-Open Games) is a variation of the Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Yugoslav Attack, reached after 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. g4 (9 moves).
In 206,862 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.6%, Black 43.1% and 5.3% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 9…Nxd4, in 21% of those games.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Yugoslav Attack, Panov Variation
9…Bxg4 scores best for Black: 56.8%, with Black winning 54.7% and White 41.2% of 15K games. The most played, 9…Nxd4, scores 47.5% in 43K games, and 9…a6 scores lowest: 37.5%. Stockfish's first choice is 9…Be6.
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: Dragon Variation, Yugoslav Attack, Panov Variation has lost ground since 2016: 0.0064% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.0092% (its peak: 0.011% in 2018).
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.0092% | 3,295 |
| 2017 | 0.011% | 5,818 |
| 2018 | 0.011% | 8,779 |
| 2019 | 0.0098% | 12,206 |
| 2020 | 0.011% | 30,960 |
| 2021 | 0.0084% | 32,818 |
| 2022 | 0.0075% | 28,007 |
| 2023 | 0.0073% | 27,637 |
| 2024 | 0.007% | 25,145 |
| 2025 | 0.0064% | 22,351 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0062% | 6,785 |
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
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Yugoslav Attack, Panov Variation (B76)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-dragon-variation-yugoslav-attack-panov-variation