Joshua (2100) asks:

As you probably guessed from our first simultaneous game, I have played the Budapest quite a bit (though I am beginning to doubt its effectiveness). One main line goes 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Nf3 Bc5 5.e3 Nc6 6.Be2 0-0 7.0-0 Ngxe5 8.Nxe5 Nxe5 9.a3 a5 10.b3 Re8 11.Bb2 Ra6!?, fully intending to follow up with …Rh6, …d6, …Qh4, …Bxh3 (after White plays h3), etc. This (type of) position has always bothered me, for although I have scored a bunch of really quick wins (against weak opponents, admittedly), it always seemed that Black's only “justification” for this attack was the lack of anything else for him to do – White's grip on d5 is a real problem. Is Black's position just bad/desperate, or is there something else going on here?

Silman replies:

Ah, once again I'm shamed by my lack of the latest theoretical knowledge. Just a few years ago the move 3…Ng4 was thought to be quite playable while 3…Ne4 was considered a used up fossil. Now I wake up from my slumber and see that 3…Ng4 is out of vogue while 3…Ne4 has roared back into prominence. And the beat goes on.

I would also like to say that 4.Nf3 was never a favorite of mine. I always thought that 4.Bf4 was better (I won several nice games with it), and the success of that Bishop move is largely responsible for Black's migration to 3…Ne4.

None of this has anything to do with your question, of course. What you're asking is, unfortunately for my lazy nature, actually far harder to answer than one might imagine.  The first thing I have to do is address your move order: 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Nf3 Bc5 5.e3 Nc6 6.Be2 0-0 7.0-0 Ngxe5 8.Nxe5 Nxe5 9.a3 a5 10.b3 Re8 11.Bb2 Ra6. The problem with this is that White rarely tosses in a2-a3 since it usually amounts to a loss of tempo. Why? Because Black has to play …a7-a5 anyway in order to employ that …Ra8-a6 maneuver, so why shove White's pawn to a3 when it's far from clear if White can't put that tempo to better use. Thus, the position you give after 11…Ra6 is considered to be fully acceptable for Black.

However, let's be a bit kinder to White and play a more accurate series of moves:

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Nf3 Bc5 5.e3 Nc6 6.Be2 0–0 7.0–0 Ngxe5 8.Nc3 Re8 9.b3 a5 10.Nxe5 (another common order, leading to the same position with an extra move tossed in, is 10.Bb2 Nxf3+ 11.Bxf3 Ne5 12.Be2 Ra6) 10…Nxe5 11.Bb2 Ra6 and now one important try for an advantage is 12.Na4

A SERIOUS TRY FOR ADVANTAGE

Naturally, White has several other moves like 12.Ne4, 12.Nd5, and 12.Qd5. Hundreds of pages can be devoted to their study but, since I have no wish to write a whole book, we'll stick with 12.Na4.

After White's Knight leaps to the rim, Black's best is:

12…Bf8

The insane 12…Qh4?? was tried in Flear - Bardel, Val Thorens Open 1989. The English grandmaster showed Black the error of his ways after 13.Nxc5 Rh6 14.h3 d6 15.f4 Bxh3 16.Qe1!.

The move Black would like to play, 12…Ba7!?, has a bad reputation, but perhaps a second look is called for. White has then tried:

A) 13.c5!? Rh6 14.Qd4 Rg6 15.f4 Nc6 16.Qc3 Qh4, Priehoda – Bartsch, Germany 1996, and now 17.Bd3 is more pleasant for White.

B) 13.Bd4 is the usual “cure,” but instead of the often-quoted game Dinstuhl - Schoengart, Berlin 1996, which went 13…Bxd4 14.exd4 Ng6 16.Qd2 Rf6 (Black should probably try 16…Rfe6 though White retains a little something with 17.Bg4 R6e7 18.Qxa5 Re4 18.Bf3 Rxd4 19.Rfe1) 17.Rfe1 b6 18.Nc3 with a White plus, Black needs to take a serious look at 13…Rd6!?

AN IMPORTANT BLACK IMPROVEMENT

Here's a quick analysis of what might occur: 14.Nc3 Ng6 (14…Bb8 15.Nd5 b6 16.Qc2 Nc6 17.Bc3 is nice for White thanks to the silly looking Bishop on b8; 14…Nc6 gives White a very small but comfortable edge after 15.Nb5 Nxd4 16.exd4 Ra6 17.Nxa7) leads to some odd positions that appear to be okay for the second player: 15.Nb5 Bxd4 16.Nxd6 Bxa1 17.Nxe8 Be5! (Bad is 17…Bc3 18.Qc1 Bb4 19.c5 trapping Black's dark-squared Bishop.) 18.f4 Bc3 19.Qd3 (19.Qc1 Bb4 20.f5 Nf8 21.Nxg7 Kxg7 22.f6+ Kh8 appears to favor Black) 19…Bb4 20.Qe4 d5 (20…Ne7!? 21.Nxg7 Kxg7 22.Bd3 f5 23.Qe5+ Kf7 24.Bxf5 d6 25.Be6+ Bxe6 26.Qh5+ Kg8 27.Qg5+ is a draw) 21.cxd5 (Not as good is 21.Rd1 Bd7 22.Rxd5 Qxe8 23.Qxe8+ Bxe8 24.Rd8 Kf8) 21…f5 22.Qc4! Qxe8 23.d6+ with equality. The legendary Danish grandmaster Bent Larsen was fond of saying, “Long analysis, wrong analysis.” So, don't hesitate to share the holes you find in all of this with other readers!

13.f4 Nc6 14.Qd2 Ra8 15.Bf3 d6 16.Rad1 Bd7 17.Nc3 Qb8 18.Kh1

EVERYTHING HAS GONE WHITE'S WAY

This position, from Lukacs - Conquest, Budapest 1987, is extremely pleasant for White.

Sounds like 12.Na4 is a great choice, doesn't it? But…there's always a “but.” After 12…Bf8 13.f4 Black can improve with

13…Rd6!

Now Susan Polgar - De la Villa Garcia, NY1989 continued

14.Qc2 Nc6 15.Rf3 Rh6 (15…Rde6 16.Bd3 h6 17.Qc3 is in White's favor) 16.Rd1 d6 (16…Nb4!?. Note that Black doesn't want to fall for 16…Qh4 17.Rh3 Qe7 18.Rxh6 Qxe3+ 19.Kh1 gxh6 20.Rd3) 17.Nc3 Qh4 18.h3 Rg6 19.Kf1 Rg3! 20.Bc1 Bxh3! 21.Rxg3 Qxg3 22.gxh3 Qxh3+ 23.Ke1 Nb4! 24.Qb2 Be7 and Black's attack eventually crashed through.

But … (there's that “but” again!) we simply must look for White improvements. In this case White's 19^th move (19.Kf1) should be replaced by 19.Nd5! Rg3 (19…Nb4!? is probably Black's best.) 20.Rxg3 Qxg3 21.Bf3! and White stands a bit better since 21…Bxh3 can be met by 22.Qf2!.

Does all this mean that 12.Na4 favors White? No, the final verdict is still far, far away. But it does show that the positions after 11…Ra6 are ripe for further exploration. Perhaps White has a small theoretical advantage, but play is sharp and the side most used to the resulting positions will usually do very well.

Since I'm now in a small “Budapest Gambit frenzy,” I'll share two other White tries that deserve attention. Both occur after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Nf3 Bc5 5.e3 Nc6 6.Nc3 0–0 (Black must use extreme care since 6…Ngxe5 fails badly to 7.Nxe5 Nxe5 8.f4 Nc6 9.Bd3 0-0 10.Qh5 f5 11.Bxf5 with a won game for White, Razuvaev-Bardel, Geneva 1995) 7.Be2 Ngxe5 8.Nxe5 Nxe5 9.0-0 Re8 and now White doesn't bother with b3 and Bb2 at all: A) 10.Kh1, B) 10.f4!?.

A MYSTERIOUS KING MOVE?

This move might seem odd at first, but when it's explained that White will usually follow with f2-f4 then everything seems clear – getting the King off the a7-g1 diagonal makes perfect sense.

10…d6

An obvious move, but important since it not only frees the c8-h3 diagonal for Black's light-squared Bishop, but it also allows the e5-Knight to retreat to d7 if White plays f2-f4.

11.Na4!?

FISHING FOR BLACK'S DARK-SQUARED BISHOP

Okay, what in hell does this have to do with 10.Kh1? The fact is, White used to play 11.f4 in this position and did very well theoretically after 11…Nc6. However, once Black realized that 11…Nd7 was superior (heading for f6 where the Knight guards the King and eyes the e4-square) then much of the fun was taken out of this line.

White plays Na4 at this point because the c5-Bishop can no longer retreat to f8! Thus Kh1 forced …d6 which in turn allowed White to successfully hunt the dark-squared Bishop down with Na4.

11…b6!

Not allowing White the luxury of a central pawn majority. This occurred in Xia Yu - Gamsa, Beijing 1996 after: 11…Qh4 12.Nxc5 dxc5 (Now White just has to keep Black's activity down, trade pieces, and his superior structure will eventually become a major factor.) 13.b3 b6 14.Bb2 Bb7 15.Bxe5 Rxe5 16.Bf3 Bxf3 17.Qxf3 Qe4 18.Rfd1 Qxf3 19.gxf3 Kf8 20.Rd3 Rae8 21.Rad1 g6 22.f4 Re4 23.Rd5 c6 24.Rd7 R8e7 25.Kg2 b5 26.Kf3 Rxd7 27.Rxd7 Re7 28.Rd8+ Re8 29.Rxe8+ Kxe8 30.f5 Ke7 31.fxg6 hxg6 32.Kg4 Ke6 33.Kg5 Ke5 34.f3 a6 35.a3 a5 36.a4 b4 37.h4 Ke6 38.f4 Ke7 39.f5, 1–0.

12.Bd2 a5 13.Nxc5 bxc5

Black has managed to retain his position's dynamism – his d6-pawn keeps the White center pawns at bay, and the half-open b-file gives him play in that sector.

14.f4 Nd7 15.Bf3, Beliavsky - Mohr, Portoroz 1997. And now Stohl recommends 15…Ra7! with an unclear position (this translates to, “I don't know what's going on.”). Personally I would prefer to be White, and this line still possesses many unanswered questions.

B) 10.f4!?

DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR!

This move surprised me since I didn't find any mention of it in the various books on the Budapest Gambit. White doesn't want to waste a tempo on Kh1 and is quite happy to sacrifice the e-pawn in many lines. His intentions are clear: start an immediate attack against the Black King!

Since …Nd7 is no longer an option, Black is forced to play with B.1) 10…Ng6 or B.2) 10…Nc6.

This move walks head first into a vicious attack.

11.Bd3

Also tempting is 11.f5 Ne5 12.f6.

11…Bxe3+?

Black is begging for the guillotine.

12.Bxe3 Rxe3 13.Nd5

13.Be4 traps the Rook is might be just winning, but the text also has its good points.

13…Re8 14.f5 Ne7 15.f6 Nxd5 16.cxd5, Vidarte Morales - D Neil, Badalona 1993.

A diagram is all you need to fully appreciate Black's unavoidable suffering.

BLACK TO MOVE AND SUFFER

B.2) 10…Nc6

Black's only hope for salvation.

11.Bd3 d6

Anyone care to chop on e3? No? Well, it shows you are sane since 11…Bxe3+? 12.Bxe3 Rxe3 is pure suicide: 13.Be4 (also screaming to be played is 13.Nd5 Re8 14.Qh5 h6 15.Rae1 when Black is in terrible trouble) 13…Qe7 14.Qd2 Qc5 15.Qf2 when Black is toast since 15…d6 16.Bxc6 bxc6 17.b4 Qb6 18.c5 is game over.

12.Ne4

I like this move, though 12.Qh5 is the other major option. I'll leave it to the reader to assess the mutual chances after 12…g6 13.Qh6 Bxe3+ 14.Bxe3 Rxe3.

12…Bb6

Perhaps 12…Qh4!? should be tried.

13.Qh5

A VERY DANGEROUS POSITION

13…g6

Black should probably try either 13…h6 or 13…Qe7 here, but White's attacking chances would constantly pose a serious threat to Black's health.

14.Qh6 f5 15.Ng5 Qe7?

Black had to play 15...Qd7, though White then could choose from 16.Bd2 with the idea of 17.Rae1, which seems quite promising, or the less subtle 16.c5!? Bxc5 17.Bc4+ d5 and now 18.Rd1 looks strong for White, while 18.Bxd5+ Qxd5 19.Qxh7+ Kf8 is nothing more than a draw by perpetual check.

16.c5 Bxc5 17.Bc4+ Kh8 18.b4

18.Bf7 also does the job.

18…Bxe3+ 19.Bxe3 Qxe3+ 20.Kh1 Qe7 21.Rae1, 1–0. Fabrego - Palmada, Catalunya 1995.

Brutal stuff!

To sum up, the lines with …Ra6 are playable for Black (at most a slight plus for White), who enjoys active pieces and good tactical chances. The plan for White where he avoids b3 followed by Bb2 and instead goes for his own kingside attack by f2-f4 is very dangerous, but lots of home preparation should allow you to survive the assault (somehow).

The real problem with the Budapest is 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 Ng4 4.Bf4. If that doesn't scare you, stick with 3…Ng4. If you're losing faith, then perhaps you should ride the new Budapest wave with 3…Ne4.