Sicilian Defense: Hyperaccelerated Dragon
The Hyperaccelerated Dragon (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6) is a Sicilian Defense in which Black plays ...g6 at once, before committing the knight to c6 or the pawn to d6. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
10,253,935 games: White 46.4% / Draw 5.3% / Black 48.3%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 5,691,3045.7M | ||
| 1,504,6371.5M | ||
| 1,480,3291.5M | ||
| 672,447672K | ||
| 207,805208K | ||
| 188,971189K | ||
| 128,717129K | ||
| 74,12174K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 11, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.44 White is slightly better
Best play: 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. c4 Nf6 6. Nc3 d6 7. Be2 Nxd4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 51% under 1400, 49% at 2200 and up and 44% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 1.4M | |
| 1400–1799 | 4.8M | |
| 1800–2199 | 6M | |
| 2200 and up | 1.3M | |
| Masters, over the board | 11K |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- Giri, A. – Carlsen, M.
- Caruana, F. – Nakamura, H.
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 26, 2026
Description
The Hyperaccelerated Dragon (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6) is a Sicilian Defense in which Black plays ...g6 at once, before committing the knight to c6 or the pawn to d6.
The idea
2...g6 prepares ...Bg7 and Dragon-type positions. After 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 the game transposes to the Accelerated Dragon. Black can also avoid the transposition with 3.d4 Bg7, the Pterodactyl, when 4.dxc5 Qa5+ is a typical continuation.
Main lines
- 3.d4, the most common move:
- 3...cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6, transposing to the Accelerated Dragon; White can also recapture with 4.Qxd4;
- 3...Bg7, the Pterodactyl, for example 4.dxc5 Qa5+.
- 3.c3, transposing to a line of the Alapin Variation.
- 3.c4, setting up a Maróczy Bind at once.
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- Flexible: after 3.d4 Black can still choose between the Accelerated Dragon and the Pterodactyl.
Weaknesses
- White can choose the structure, for example with 3.c4 or 3.c3, before Black has developed the knights.
- Black needs to know the Accelerated Dragon and Alapin structures it transposes to.
Who should play it
The Hyperaccelerated Dragon suits Black players who like Dragon-type fianchetto positions and want to reach the Accelerated Dragon by a different move order.
The numbers
On Lichess Black does better below 2200: 49.0% against 47.7% under 1400, 49.4% against 46.8% at 1400–1799 and 48.4% against 46.3% at 1800–2199. From 2200 up White is slightly ahead, 46.7% against 45.4%. In about 10,900 master games White won 37.1%, Black 24.3%, and 38.6% were drawn.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Hyperaccelerated Dragon
3. c3 scores best for White: 49.9%, with White winning 47.1% and Black 47.3% of 1.5M games. The most played, 3. d4, scores 49.3% in 5.7M games, and 3. Nc3 scores lowest: 47.7%. Stockfish's first choice is 3. d4.
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 Sicilian Defense: Hyperaccelerated Dragon peaked in 2018 at 0.52% of Lichess games and has slipped since: 0.35% in 2025.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.37% | 130,429 |
| 2017 | 0.44% | 243,007 |
| 2018 | 0.52% | 411,433 |
| 2019 | 0.5% | 624,425 |
| 2020 | 0.48% | 1,415,607 |
| 2021 | 0.43% | 1,681,584 |
| 2022 | 0.37% | 1,403,443 |
| 2023 | 0.35% | 1,312,614 |
| 2024 | 0.35% | 1,261,404 |
| 2025 | 0.35% | 1,226,503 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.36% | 395,154 |
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 (3)
All 14 named lines that continue from here
- B27 Pterodactyl Defense: Western, Pterodactyl 4 moves
- B27 Sicilian Defense: Acton Extension 3 moves
- B27 Hyperaccelerated Dragon 3 moves
- B74 Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Classical Variation, Bernard Defense 13 moves
- B27 Sicilian Defense: Frederico Variation 3 moves
- B27 Sicilian Defense: Hyperaccelerated Pterodactyl 3 moves
- B27 Modern Defense: Pterodactyl Variation 4 moves
- B27 Pterodactyl Defense: Western, Rhamphorhynchus 4 moves
- B27 Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Anhanguera 5 moves
- B27 Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Benoni Gambit 5 moves
- B27 Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Rhamphorhynchus 5 moves
- B27 Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Unpin 5 moves
- B27 Pterodactyl Defense: Sicilian, Pteranodon 6 moves
- B27 Sicilian Defense: Hyperaccelerated Pterodactyl, Exchange Variation 6 moves
Sources
- 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: Hyperaccelerated Dragon (B27)”. Lichess data as of 11 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-hyperaccelerated-dragon