Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit
The Smith-Morra Gambit (1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3) is a gambit against the Sicilian Defense. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
27,218,291 games: White 48.8% / Draw 4.3% / Black 46.9%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 23,277,16623.3M | ||
| French Defense: Franco-Sicilian Defense | 1,363,8011.4M | |
| 1,326,5601.3M | ||
| 748,321748K | ||
| 162,568163K | ||
| 78,40178K | ||
| 75,04175K | ||
| 52,32052K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 8, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.05 The position is about equal
Best play: 2... cxd4 3. Nf3 e5 4. c3 Nc6 5. cxd4 exd4 6. Nxd4 Nf6 7. Nc3
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 49% under 1400, 51% at 2200 and up and 46% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 9.1M | |
| 1400–1799 | 16.8M | |
| 1800–2199 | 15.8M | |
| 2200 and up | 2.1M | |
| Masters, over the board | 3,568 |
Master games
- Nepomniachtchi, I. – Karjakin, S.
- Nakamura, H. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Van Foreest, J. – Vachier Lagrave, M.
- Aravindh, C. V. – Dubov, D.
- Aravindh, C. V. – Grischuk, A.
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 Smith-Morra Gambit (1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3) is a gambit against the Sicilian Defense. White gives up a pawn to get fast development, open lines and pressure against f7.
Origins
The gambit is named after the Frenchman Pierre Morra (1900–1969), who published a booklet and several articles about it around 1950, and Ken Smith (1930–1999) of the Dallas Chess Club, who wrote nine books and 49 articles about it. International Master Marc Esserman is one of its leading modern advocates. Hikaru Nakamura played it against Fabiano Caruana at the Chessable Masters in April 2023.
The idea
After 3...dxc3 4.Nxc3, White has a piece developed and a pawn in the centre. The plan is simple: put the bishop on c4 aiming at f7, the knight on f3, castle, and bring the rooks to c1 and d1. Black has an extra pawn and a central pawn majority, but must first get through a minefield of traps in the opening.
Main lines
- Accepted 3...dxc3 4.Nxc3, where Black chooses a setup: ...Nc6 with ...d6 and ...e6 (the Scheveningen formation), ...e6 and ...a6 (the Paulsen formation), and others.
- Declining: 3...Nf6, which transposes to an Alapin Sicilian after 4.e5 Nd5; 3...d3, the Push Variation, giving the pawn back; and 3...d5.
Strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
- Avoids Open Sicilian theory. White gets the same kind of position almost every game.
- Fast development and clear attacking plans: Bc4, O-O, Qe2, Rd1 and pressure on the d-file.
- Many traps, which is dangerous for unprepared opponents in fast games.
Weaknesses
- Objectively, Black can accept the pawn and defend. With precise play White's compensation is not always enough.
- Black can decline with 3...Nf6 or 3...d3 and reach a normal game.
- If the attack fails, White is a pawn down in the endgame.
Who should play it
The Smith-Morra suits attacking 1.e4 players who want active piece play against the Sicilian without learning the Najdorf, Dragon and Sveshnikov lines. It works best against opponents who grab the pawn and then develop carelessly. It is least effective against well-prepared defenders or players who decline it.
The numbers
On Lichess the Smith-Morra is balanced: below 1800 Black wins slightly more often (49% against 47–48%). From 1800 up White edges ahead, 48–49% against 46%. There are few master games (about 3,600), and in them White wins 26%, Black 34% and 39% are drawn. The gambit is popular at club level and played only occasionally by masters.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit
The most played answer, 2…cxd4, also scores best for Black: 49.5%, with Black winning 47.3% and White 48.4% of 23.3M games. Of the main answers, 2…e6 scores lowest: 48.5%. Stockfish's first choice is also 2…cxd4.
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: Smith-Morra Gambit holds steady at about 1.0% of Lichess games a year since 2016.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1.1% | 376,093 |
| 2017 | 1.1% | 578,123 |
| 2018 | 1.1% | 845,091 |
| 2019 | 1.1% | 1,377,099 |
| 2020 | 1.1% | 3,094,123 |
| 2021 | 1.1% | 4,125,543 |
| 2022 | 1.1% | 3,953,415 |
| 2023 | 1.0% | 3,945,855 |
| 2024 | 1.0% | 3,711,161 |
| 2025 | 1.0% | 3,622,129 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 1.1% | 1,151,742 |
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 (4)
Transpositions
All 29 named lines that continue from here
No line matches.
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Coles Sicilian Gambit 5 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Halasz Gambit 3 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Morphy Gambit 3 moves
- B21 Smith-Morra Gambit 3 moves
- B21 Andreaschek Gambit 4 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Accepted 3 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Alapin Formation 3 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Center Formation 3 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Push Variation 3 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Scandinavian Formation 3 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Wing Formation 3 moves
- B21 Chicago Defense 7 moves
- B21 Classical Formation 7 moves
- B21 Danish Variation 4 moves
- B21 Fianchetto Defense 5 moves
- B21 Finegold Defense 8 moves
- B21 Kan Formation 5 moves
- B21 Morphy Defense 6 moves
- B21 Paulsen Formation 6 moves
- B21 Pin Defense 6 moves
- B21 Scheveningen Formation 6 moves
- B21 Siberian Variation 6 moves
- B21 Sozin Formation 8 moves
- B21 Taimanov Formation 6 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Declined, Dubois Variation 4 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Accepted, Chicago Defense 9 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Accepted, Larsen Defense 8 moves
- B21 Sicilian Defense: Smith-Morra Gambit Accepted, Morphy Defense Deferred 8 moves
- B21 Siberian Trap 8 moves
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Smith–Morra Gambit, version of 6 March 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: Smith-Morra Gambit (B21)”. Lichess data as of 8 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/sicilian-defense-smith-morra-gambit