1. Killer Classical Sicilian - Chapter 1 - (6.Be3)

The Killer Classical Sicilian course will offer you a complete Black repertoire from the starting position of the Classical Sicilian, 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 d6. Three years in the making, you will be provided with the most trendy lines and their latest developments, certified with powerful cloud engines.

Two advantages of the Classical Sicilian are:

1. The move order, as you can decide to start with 2...d6 or 2...Nc6, depending what kind of Anti-Sicilian you prefer to avoid.
2. You'll mostly get double-edged positions that can lead to great victories and avoid the usual boring draws.

Firstly, we'll cover all attempts for White to get a typical English attack (Be3, f3, Qd2, 0-0-0, etc.) and see that this is not optical against the Classical Sicilian. Particularly 6.Be3 is met with 6...Ng4 as we'll see in Chapter 1, while against 6.f3, covered in Chapter 2, Black will generally push ...a5 at some point and enjoy having saved the ...a6 tempo of the Najdorf.

Secondly we'll study the mainstream theory: the Rauzer Variation, 6.Bg5. In chapter 3 we'll study sidelines and particularly interesting fresh Qd3!? ideas of White. However, I do believe that Black gets a good positions against all of these dangerous weapons, if he knows what he's doing, which will be the case after studying the course! In Chapter 4, we'll study the main lines of the Rauzer (6.Bg5 e6 7.Qd2), again with fresh ideas of Black that were brought by young talented and dynamic players.

In Chapter 5 we'll study the Sozin variation, 6.Bc4, which is no longer a dangerous weapon against the Sicilian in general. Due to the arrival of strong chess engines, the times of beautiful Velimirovich attacks has gone and 6...Qb6 is a healthy and simple solution in this particular case.

In Chapter 6 we'll study the so-called Classical system, 6.Be2, which is a bit too "classical" against the "Classical Sicilian" to be dangerous! Just like against 6.f3 systems, we do not fear a hole on d5 and do go for 6...e5, unlike against 6.Bg5 or 6.Bc4. Black is doing alright there, so he is against all other 6th moves (6.g3, 6.h4!?, 6.f4) that will be covered in the last and seventh chapter.

All-in-all, a full repertoire to play for a win with the Black pieces and avoid any forced draw! Do try to beat your opponent even with the Black pieces, and enjoy the newest trendy lines presented in my course!

- GM Romain Edouard

August 2022