Robert Ris' Fast and Furious: Nepo beats Carlsen in the Classical French

by Robert Ris
1/2/2025 – In his new Fast & Furious episode, Robert Ris analyses a fascinating variation in the Classical Variation of the French Defence. The line was used by Gukesh at the World Championship match in Singapore, and was also seen in game 4 of the final match between Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi at the World Blitz Championship in New York. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.
This video course offers you a complete, clear repertoire for Black against the moves 1.Nf3 and 1.c4. The recommended variations are easy to learn and not difficult to remember, but also pose White serious challenges.

In the final match of the World Blitz Championship, Ian Nepomniachtchi made a very impressive comeback by winning two consecutive games on demand against Magnus Carlsen. Their fourth game was particularly interesting, as it featured a popular line against the Classical Variation of the French Defence. White opted for 5.Nce2 and 7.a3!?.

This concept was played by Gukesh Dommaraju in Game 13 of the World Championship match against Ding Liren and Carlsen has played it a couple of times since. In this episode, we present an in-depth look at the ideas for both sides in this fascinating variation - which is expected to be seen more often in the near future!

Exercise: Can you find the best continuation for Black?

M. Carlsen - I. Nepomniachtchi, World Blitz Championship 2024
Black to move

Feel free to move the pieces on the live diagram!

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Robert is an International Master who mostly spends his time training and coaching talented youngsters. On the PlayChess server The Fast and the Furious is a popular show where he explains sharp opening lines for a wider audience. He is also a well-known ChessBase author who produced numerous DVDs and regularly contributes to ChessBase Magazine as well. Since 2015 he is the organizer of the Dutch Rapid Championships in his home town Amstelveen. He has started a YouTube channel with chess analysis as well.

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