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Sicilian Defense · As White · updated October 2026

Play against the Sicilian like Fabiano Caruana

A repertoire against the Sicilian built from 171 of Fabiano Caruana's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Fabiano Caruana chose most often. Where Fabiano Caruana has fewer than 3 games, the course takes the other top-50 players' most played move, then Stockfish's. Learn a line on the board, then each position comes back in a short daily review until it sticks.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by Fabiano Caruana or Chess.com.

  • Fabiano Caruana was #13 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,271) and scored 77% against opponents averaging 2,970 in these games.
  • You play Fabiano Caruana's own move in 28 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#13

Chess.com

Rating

3,271

Games

171

in this opening

Score

77%

in these games

Opponents

2,970

average rating

More about Fabiano Caruana

Use arrow keys to navigate the board. Press Enter to select a piece, then use arrow keys and Enter to move. Press Escape to cancel a move.
Line 1 after 21 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 7% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3 Be6 9.f4 exf4 10.Bxf4 Nc6 11.Qd2 d5 12.exd5

  2. Line 2 · 6% at top level

    2.Nf3 g6 3.c4

  3. Line 3 · 6% at top level

    2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 a6 5.Bd3

  4. Line 4 · 6% at top level

    2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 e6 4.Bxc6 bxc6 5.d3

  5. Line 5 · 6% at top level

    2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7 6.Be3 a6 7.a3 b5 8.Nxc6 Qxc6 9.Bd3 Bb7 10.O-O

  6. Line 6 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.d3

  7. Line 7 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g6 4.O-O Bg7 5.Re1 e5 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.a4 Qe7 8.Na3 Nf6 9.Nc4

  8. Line 8 · 5% at top level

    2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Ndb5 Bb4 7.a3 Bxc3+ 8.Nxc3 d5 9.Bd3

  9. Line 9 · 4% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bg5 Bd7 7.Qd2

  10. Line 10 · 4% at top level

    2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bg5 e6 7.Qd2

Ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. Learned lines join your daily review.

Fabiano Caruana's main line against the Sicilian, move by move

The most common line at top level: 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3 Be6 9.f4 exf4 10.Bxf4 Nc6 11.Qd2 d5 12.exd5.

  1. 2.Nf3 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 2.Nf3 in 124 games, scoring 74%.
  2. 2…d6 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 2…d6. At top level, this comes up about 39% of the time.
  3. 3.d4 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 3.d4 in 29 games, scoring 72%.
  4. 3…cxd4 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 3…cxd4.
  5. 4.Nxd4 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 4.Nxd4 in 29 games, scoring 72%.
  6. 4…Nf6 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 4…Nf6. At top level, this comes up about 33% of the time.
  7. 5.Nc3 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 5.Nc3 in 24 games, scoring 83%.
  8. 5…a6 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 5…a6. At top level, this comes up about 18% of the time.
  9. 6.Be2 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 6.Be2 in 6 games, scoring 58%.
  10. 6…e5 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 6…e5.
  11. 7.Nb3 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 7.Nb3 in 6 games, scoring 58%.
  12. 7…Be7 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 7…Be7.
  13. 8.Be3 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 8.Be3 in 5 games, scoring 60%.
  14. 8…Be6 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 8…Be6. At top level, this comes up about 14% of the time.
  15. 9.f4 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 9.f4 in 4 games, scoring 50%.
  16. 9…exf4 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 9…exf4. At top level, this comes up about 11% of the time.
  17. 10.Bxf4 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 10.Bxf4 in 3 games, scoring 33%.
  18. 10…Nc6 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 10…Nc6.
  19. 11.Qd2 Your move · Fabiano Caruana's games Fabiano Caruana played 11.Qd2 in 3 games, scoring 33%.
  20. 11…d5 Reply · Fabiano Caruana's games A common reply here is 11…d5. At top level, this comes up about 7% of the time.
  21. 12.exd5 Your move · Stockfish The games give no move to follow here, so this is Stockfish's choice.

Questions about this course

How does Fabiano Caruana play against the Sicilian?
After 1.e4 c5, Fabiano Caruana's most common line is 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2 e5 7.Nb3 Be7 8.Be3 Be6 9.f4 exf4 10.Bxf4 Nc6 11.Qd2 d5 12.exd5. At top level it comes up about 7% of the time.
Is this Fabiano Caruana's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Fabiano Caruana's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this Sicilian course based on?
171 of Fabiano Caruana's Chess.com blitz games in the Sicilian Defense as White, against opponents with an average rating of 2,970. Fabiano Caruana scored 77% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
10 lines covering 40 positions, ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. The first 5 lines need no account; saving your progress with an email unlocks the rest, free.
Who is Fabiano Caruana?
GM Fabiano Caruana was ranked number 13 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,271 when this course was built.