[Event "American Continental 8th"]
[Site "Mar del Plata"]
[Date "2012.10.20"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag"]
[Black "Bruzon Batista, Lazaro"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C08"]
[WhiteElo "2503"]
[BlackElo "2717"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2012.10.12"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "ARG"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2013"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.11.22"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.11.22"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nd2 a6 4. Ngf3 c5 5. exd5 exd5 6. Be2 c4 7. O-O Bd6 8. a4
Ne7 9. c3 Nbc6 10. b3 cxb3 11. Nxb3 O-O 12. Bd3 h6 13. Rb1 Ng6 14. Re1 Qf6 15.
Nc5 Na5 16. Nb3 Nc6 17. Nc5 Rb8 18. Bc2 b6 19. Nd3 Bf5 20. Nb2 Rfe8 21. Rxe8+
Rxe8 22. Bxf5 Qxf5 23. Nd3 Bc7 24. Rb2 Re4 25. g3 Qg4 26. Rd2 Qe6 27. Nde1 Na5
28. Ng2 Nc4 29. Ra2 Qg4 30. Ra1 f5 31. Kf1 f4 32. Ra2 Re6 33. Qd3 Rf6 34. Nge1
Ne7 35. Re2 fxg3 36. fxg3 Nf5 37. Kg1 Qh5 38. Ne5 Nfd6 39. g4 Qh4 40. Ng2 Rf1+
41. Kxf1 1-0

[Event "Maraba op 1st"]
[Site "Maraba"]
[Date "2014.05.31"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Leitao, Rafael Duailibe"]
[Black "Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D97"]
[WhiteElo "2645"]
[BlackElo "2562"]
[PlyCount "146"]
[EventDate "2014.05.30"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. d4 Bg7 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 Nc6 8.
Be2 e5 9. d5 Nd4 10. Nxd4 exd4 11. Qxd4 c6 12. d6 Re8 13. Qd3 b5 14. f3 Re6 15.
Be3 Rxd6 16. Qc2 Nh5 17. f4 Bd4 18. Bxd4 Rxd4 19. Bxh5 gxh5 20. Qf2 Bg4 21. a3
c5 22. O-O b4 23. axb4 cxb4 24. Nd5 Rxe4 25. Ne3 Qd4 26. Rae1 Rae8 27. Nxg4
Qxf2+ 28. Kxf2 Rxf4+ 29. Kg1 Rxe1 30. Nh6+ Kg7 31. Rxe1 Kxh6 32. Ra1 Rc4 33.
Rxa7 Rc1+ 34. Kf2 Rc2+ 35. Kg3 Kg6 36. Rb7 Rxb2 37. h3 f6 38. Kh4 Rxg2 39. Rxb4
Re2 40. Ra4 Re3 41. Rb4 h6 42. Ra4 Kf5 43. Ra5+ Kg6 44. Ra4 Rb3 45. Rc4 Ra3 46.
Rb4 Rd3 47. Ra4 Rc3 48. Rb4 Rd3 49. Ra4 Rd6 50. Rb4 Rd5 51. Ra4 Rg5 52. Rf4 Re5
53. Ra4 Rc5 54. Rb4 Rd5 55. Ra4 Rd2 56. Rb4 Re2 57. Ra4 Rc2 58. Rb4 Ra2 59. Rc4
Rf2 60. Ra4 Re2 61. Rb4 Re3 62. Ra4 Kf5 63. Ra5+ Kf4 64. Rxh5 f5 65. Rxh6 Re8
66. Kh5 Ke3 67. Ra6 Kf3 68. h4 f4 69. Ra3+ Kg2 70. Ra2+ Kg3 71. Kg5 Re5+ 72.
Kg6 Kxh4 73. Kf6 Rc5 0-1

[Event "Cappelle op 31st"]
[Site "Cappelle la Grande"]
[Date "2015.03.04"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag"]
[Black "Fier, Alexandr"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E63"]
[WhiteElo "2556"]
[BlackElo "2612"]
[Annotator "RR"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2015.02.28"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2016"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.10.08"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nf3 d6 4. g3 Nf6 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O Nc6 7. Nc3 Rb8 8. b3
a6 9. Nd5 Nh5 10. Bb2 e6 11. Nc3 (11. Ne3 f5 12. Qd2 Ne7 13. Rac1 Bh6) 11... b5
12. Rb1 Ne7 (12... f5 13. e3 Nf6 14. Qe2 b4 15. Na4 Bd7 16. Rfd1 Ne7 17. Ne1
Qe8 18. Qc2 g5 19. Nd3 a5 20. Re1 Bc6 21. Bxc6 Qxc6 22. Rbc1 Qe8 23. Qe2 Ng6
24. f3 h5 25. e4 fxe4 26. fxe4 g4 27. Rf1 Nh7 28. h4 Qe7 29. e5 Rxf1+ 30. Rxf1
Rf8 31. Qe4 Rxf1+ 32. Kxf1 Nhf8 33. Kg2 Qf7 34. exd6 cxd6 35. c5 d5 36. Qe2 Ne7
37. Nf4 Bh6 38. Bc1 Nc6 39. Qf2 Qf5 40. Be3 Bxf4 41. Qxf4 Qxf4 42. Bxf4 {
Fridman,D (2659)-Mamedyarov,S (2765) Khanty-Mansiysk 2011 0-1}) 13. e4 $146 (
13. Qd3 Qd7 14. d5 exd5 15. cxd5 b4 16. Nd1 Nf6 17. e4 Qb5 18. Qc2 Bd7 19. Qxc7
Ne8 20. Qc2 Rc8 21. Qd2 Nf6 22. Nd4 Qa5 23. Ne3 Ng4 24. Nc4 Qc5 25. Rbc1 Bh6
26. f4 Bb5 27. Rfe1 Bxc4 28. Rxc4 Qa5 29. Rxb4 Ne5 30. a3 Rc7 31. Qe2 Nd7 32.
Ra4 Qc5 33. b4 {1-0 (33) Blomqvist,E (2438)-Rapport,R (2545) Helsingor 2011})
13... b4 14. Na4 Nf6 15. e5 Nd7 (15... dxe5 16. dxe5 Nd7 17. Qe2 $14 {[%cal
Gf1d1]}) 16. Re1 Bb7 17. Rc1 d5 18. cxd5 Bxd5 19. Nd2 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Nb6 {
Malgré le contrôle de la case "d5", les Noirs n'ont toujours pas égalisé}
21. Nc5 a5 22. Nde4 $1 Ra8 23. a4 $1 Qd5 24. Qf3 $1 {Les pièces Blanches sont
trés actives} Nf5 25. Rcd1 Rad8 26. Kg1 Kh8 27. g4 $36 Ne7 28. Rd3 Nd7 29. Qf4
Nxc5 30. Nxc5 Nc6 31. Red1 f6 $1 32. Qf3 Nxe5 $2 (32... fxe5 $8 33. Qxd5 exd5
34. Ne6 e4 $13) 33. Qxd5 Rxd5 34. dxe5 Rxc5 35. exf6 $40 Bh6 (35... Bxf6 36.
Rd8 $1 {[%csl Rf6,Rf8,Rh8] La pointe}) 36. h4 Bf4 37. g5 $138 (37. Rd8 $18 {
[%csl Rf8,Rh8][%cal Gf6f7]}) 37... Bd6 38. Rxd6 $1 cxd6 39. Rxd6 h6 40. f4 Rd5
$4 {Le dernier coup avant le contrôle de temps est une grosse gaffe alors que
la position n'était pas si claire} (40... hxg5 $8 41. hxg5 Kg8 $13) 41. Rxd5
exd5 42. f5 Rd8 43. f7+ Kh7 44. h5 d4 45. Bxd4 hxg5 46. fxg6+ Kh6 47. g7 1-0

[Event "BRA-ch 82nd"]
[Site "Rio de Janeiro"]
[Date "2016.01.13"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag"]
[Black "Leitao, Rafael Duailibe"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B90"]
[WhiteElo "2555"]
[BlackElo "2633"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,K"]
[PlyCount "129"]
[EventDate "2016.01.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{This was the most important game of the 82nd Brazilian Championship for me.
Rafael Leitao is a 7-time national title winner, and he was the favourite for
this tournament as well. We played early in the 6th round (from a total of 11),
but it was a crucial point in the tournament.} 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4.
Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 {The Najdorf variation of the Sicilian, his pet defence
against 1.e4.} 6. Be3 e5 7. Nb3 Be6 8. f3 Nbd7 {A provocative move order,
White could play g4 now.} (8... h5 {is the most popular and critical
alternative nowadays - Black stops g4 and White usually plays a quick Nd5,
when a positional struggle takes place, with both sides castling queenside, as
in many recent games:} 9. Nd5 Bxd5 10. exd5 Nbd7 11. Qd2 g6 12. Be2 (12. O-O-O
$5 {This move is also interesting - Topalov had a great win with it:} Nb6 13.
Qa5 Bh6 14. Bxh6 Rxh6 15. g3 Kf8 16. Kb1 Kg7 17. Be2 Rh8 18. c4 Rc8 19. Rc1
Nfd7 20. Rhd1 Rc7 21. Qa3 Nc8 22. Nd2 Nf6 23. h3 Re7 24. g4 $1 $36 {1-0 (42)
Topalov,V (2813)-Wojtaszek,R (2734) Skopje 2015}) 12... Bg7 13. O-O b6 (13...
O-O 14. Rac1 b6 15. h3 Re8 16. g4 hxg4 17. hxg4 $13 {Caruana,F (2782)-Gelfand,
B (2777) Tata Steel-A 76th 2014 (1) 1-0 A very well annotated game by Caruana:}
) 14. c4 O-O 15. Rac1 Nh7 (15... Re8 16. Na1 {this is a good positional idea 
(Nc2-Nb4-Nc6, and if Black plays ...a5 to stop it, then Nc2-Na3-Nb5), but the
timing was bad, Black gets direct play in the centre right away.} e4 $1 17. f4
Ng4 18. Bxg4 hxg4 19. Nb3 (19. f5 {is a standard approach, but ...Ne5 followed
by ...b5 looks very active for Black} Ne5 $1 $132) 19... f5 20. Nd4 Nc5 21. Ne6
Rxe6 $5 22. dxe6 Nd3 $44 {Vocaturo,D (2570)-Areshchenko,A (2661) Bundesliga
1516 2015 (1.1) 0-1 and Black has strong compensation for the exchange:}) 16.
Bd3 f5 17. Bb1 Rc8 18. Kh1 a5 19. a4 Nc5 20. Nxc5 bxc5 21. g4 hxg4 22. fxg4 e4
$2 (22... f4 $1 {closing in the g7-bishop is not natural, but here it was
necessary} 23. Bf2 Qg5 {with complex play, White has a strong B on b1, but
there is ...Nf6 coming at some point to try and advance ...e4.} 24. Rg1 Qh6 $1
$13 {threatening ...Ng5}) 23. gxf5 gxf5 24. Rg1 {now White's initiative is
just too strong} Kh8 $2 25. Rxg7 $1 Kxg7 26. Qg2+ Kh8 27. Bd2 $18 {Bologan,V 
(2630)-Wojtaszek,R (2748) EU-chT 20th Reykjavik 2015 (2.1) 1-0 with a
devastating attack:}) 9. Qd2 {I didn't know exactly how he would play against
9.g4 (Black has a wide range of options), so I invited him once more to play ..
.h5.} h5 10. O-O-O $5 {I wanted to try this move that didn't convince me as
being that great, but it was playable and different from the majority of the
games I had seen recently in this variation.} (10. Nd5 {would transpose to all
the lines analysed above after Black's possible 9...h5.}) 10... Be7 11. Kb1 Qc7
12. Nd5 Bxd5 13. exd5 Nb6 14. Qa5 Rc8 15. c3 Nc4 (15... Bd8 {has been played
in 4 games. Here I wanted to keep the position, without taking on b6} 16. g3 $5
$146 (16. Bxb6 {didn't seem appealing to me} Qxb6 17. Qa4+ Kf8 18. Bd3 g6 19.
f4 Kg7 20. Rhf1 Re8 $11 {½-½ (50) Wei,Y (2641)-Zhou,J (2580) Zhongshan 2014,
and Black is doing fine.})) 16. Qxc7 Rxc7 17. Bf2 {At the end I decided to
keep my bishop pair.} (17. Bxc4 {was a possible alternative, to get a quick
initiative on the queenside} Rxc4 18. Na5 Rc7 19. Bb6 Rc8 $5 {having the ...
Rb8 trick in case White takes on b7} (19... Rd7 $5 {to play ...Bd8} 20. Rhe1
Bd8 21. Nc4 Bxb6 22. Nxb6 Rc7 23. f4 $5 e4 24. Rd4 $14 {followed by a4, Kc2, a5
}) 20. Rhe1 Nd7 21. Bg1 $14 {I couldn't evaluate this well, but probably White
has something; a further queenside expansion is possible here (Black has to
waste another tempo to defend on b7).}) 17... Bd8 18. Bd3 O-O {Here and in the
next 3 moves, I had the chance to play the very interesting Nc5, a move that I
didn't even consider.} 19. Rhe1 (19. Nc5 $1 {Now if the black knight moves, I
can play Ne4, improving my position a lot.} Nxb2 {has to be played} (19... Na5
$2 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. fxe4 $16) (19... dxc5 $2 20. Bxc4 b5 21. Bb3 c4 22. Bc2 $16
{d6 and Rhe1 will be played, White has an overwhelming position. It is
interesting to note that if Black had time to place his bishop on d6, he would
have a fine position.}) 20. Kxb2 dxc5 21. Bf5 $1 g6 22. d6 Rc6 23. Bh3 $44 {
with strong compensation for the pawn.}) 19... g6 20. h3 (20. Nc5 $1 Nxb2 21.
Kxb2 dxc5 {now I don't have Bf5, but e5 is hanging} 22. Rxe5 Ne8 {is very
logical, to play ...Bf6 and ...Nd6} (22... Be7 23. Rxe7 $1 Rxe7 24. Bxc5 Nxd5
25. Be4 b6 26. Bxe7 Nxe7 27. Rd6 $16) 23. g4 $1 {This is the drawback of the
h5 line, it creates a possible contact on the kingside, that could be
dangerous even without queens.} (23. d6 $5 Nxd6 24. Rxc5 $14) 23... Bf6 24.
Ree1 hxg4 25. fxg4 Nd6 26. h4 b5 27. Kc2 $16 {and White retains better chances.
}) 20... Kg7 21. g3 {I had not seen Nc5 at all, meanwhile I was thinking about
how to push my kingside pawns, at the end I decided to play with f4, trying to
build some pressure on his centre.} (21. Nc5 $1 Nxb2 22. Kxb2 dxc5 23. Rxe5 Ne8
(23... Be7 $2 {here it is even worse} 24. Rxe7 Rxe7 25. Bxc5 Nxd5 26. Be4 b6
27. Bd4+ $1 Nf6 28. g4 $1 g5 29. Bc2 {close to winning, now White has the idea
of f4! followed by g5} hxg4 30. f4 $1 gxf4 31. hxg4 $18) 24. d6 Nxd6 25. Rxc5
$14) 21... Nd7 22. f4 b5 (22... f5 $1 23. fxe5 dxe5 $13 {and Black could very
well obtain a better position with a strong centre. During the game I thought
he wouldn't be able to maintain it, since my d6-pawn would advance at some
point, doing some damage, but it was a very superficial evaluation.} (23...
Ncxe5 $2 24. Nd4 $16)) 23. f5 {I wasn't sure about this move, but it just
bothered me a lot that he could play f5-e4 at any moment. Thus, I decided to
give him a strong passed pawn on e5, but at least I created a target (g6) for
my d3-bishop. The computer doesn't like it, because Black is able to quickly
exchange the dark-squared bishops (with ...Rb7!) and I could run into a worse
position} (23. Bxc4 Rxc4 (23... bxc4 24. Nd2 f5 25. fxe5 Nxe5 26. Kc2 Bf6 27.
Bd4 Rb8 $13 {looks balanced, but I would prefer Black here}) 24. Nd2 Rc8 25.
Ne4 Be7 26. fxe5 Nxe5 27. Bd4 f6 $13) 23... Nf6 24. Bc2 Rc8 (24... Rb7 $1 {
winning a tempo (he played Rc8-Rb8), now Black has a solid advantage after ...
Bb6} 25. Nd2 Nxd2+ 26. Rxd2 Bb6 27. Bxb6 Rxb6 $15) 25. Nd2 Nxd2+ 26. Rxd2 Rb8
27. Be3 Bb6 28. Bg5 Bd8 29. Be3 Bb6 30. Bg5 Bd8 31. Rf1 $5 {In mutual time
trouble, I wanted to keep play alive.} Nh7 (31... Ne4 32. Bxe4 Bxg5 33. Rdf2 h4
$1 {would be a draw} 34. fxg6 fxg6 35. Rxf8 Rxf8 36. Rxf8 Kxf8 37. gxh4 Bxh4
38. Bxg6 $11) 32. Be3 Bb6 33. Bxb6 Rxb6 34. Rdf2 $6 (34. fxg6 $1 fxg6 35. Rxf8
Nxf8 36. b4 $13 {this was the kind of position I was aiming for when I played
31.Rf1 - my bishop is not that good, but I have an eye on g6 and his queenside
is always somewhat vulnerable (if I get to play a4 in good conditions).}) 34...
Nf6 35. fxg6 fxg6 36. Be4 Rbb8 37. Bg2 {Now I am slightly worse again.} b4 $5 {
A brave decision, opening the game right away. It turned out to be good, but
Black had to continue precisely.} (37... Rbe8 $5 {I was expecting this,
followed by ...e4 and ...Re5, limiting my g2-bishop and creating direct play
in the centre.} 38. Kc2 e4 39. Re2 Re5 $15) 38. cxb4 Rxb4 39. Rc1 Nd7 (39...
Rd4 $1 {could be trouble for White:} 40. Rc7+ $1 (40. Rc6 e4 41. Re2 h4 $1 {
getting the f4-square for the knight (after ...Nxd5)} (41... Nxd5 42. Bxe4 Nb4
43. Rc1 Re8 44. Rce1 d5 45. Bc2 Nxc2 46. Kxc2 $11) 42. gxh4 Nxd5 43. Re1 Re8
44. Rxa6 Nf4 $17) 40... Rf7 (40... Kh6 $6 41. Rc6 $1 $132) 41. Rxf7+ Kxf7 42.
Kc2 h4 43. gxh4 Rxh4 44. Kc3 $15 {and White wants to play b4-a4. Black still
retains a small edge because of his better placed pieces.}) 40. Rxf8 Kxf8 41.
Rc6 Rb6 $2 (41... Ke7 $1 $13) 42. h4 (42. Be4 $1 {I was happy to have found
the 42.h4, 43.Bh3 idea, but Be4 targetting g6 is a lot stronger, because there
is no simple way to defend it.} Ke7 (42... g5 $2 43. Bf5 $18) (42... Kf7 43.
Rc7 Ke7 44. Bxg6 Kd8 45. Ra7 $16 {naturally, there is still play, but it's a
much better version of what happened in the game}) 43. Bxg6 Rb5 44. Rxa6 Rxd5
45. Kc2 $16) 42... Ke7 43. Bh3 $6 (43. Rc7 $1 {keeping the black king passive
for now} Kd8 44. Ra7 Nc5 45. Rg7 Rb4 46. Rxg6 Ke7 47. Kc2 $14) 43... Rb7 $1 44.
Rxa6 Nc5 45. Ra8 Rb4 $1 {Black has a lot of counterplay, the position remains
totally unclear.} 46. Bg2 e4 (46... Nd3 $1 {suddenly Black gets a strong
initiative, and could even play for a win} 47. b3 Rg4 {now White doesn't have
Ra3 any more, holding the kingside} 48. Ra7+ Kf6 49. Rd7 Rxg3 50. Be4 $1 {
sacrificing the bishop in order to try and take all the black pawns} Nc5 51.
Rxd6+ Ke7 52. Rxg6 Nxe4 53. Re6+ Kd7 54. Rxe5 Nf6 {holds on to the last pawn,
but White should make a draw} 55. Rf5 Ke7 56. Re5+ Kf7 57. d6 $1 {sacrificing
this one to advance on the queenside} Rd3 58. Kb2 Rxd6 59. a4 $11) 47. Kc2 Rd4
48. Ra3 Kf6 $1 49. Re3 Ke5 $132 50. a3 Rc4+ (50... Kxd5 $5) (50... Nd7 $5 {
with the idea of ...Nf6 and ...Nxd5, removing the blockade on e3} 51. b4 Nf6
52. Re1 Nxd5 53. Bf1 $13 {with an unclear endgame.}) 51. Rc3 Rd4 $2 (51...
Rxc3+ $1 52. Kxc3 Na4+ 53. Kb3 Nb6 $1 (53... Nc5+ 54. Kc4 (54. Kc2 Na4 55. b3
Nb6 56. a4 Nxd5 57. a5 Nc7 58. Bf1 d5 59. a6 $16) 54... Na4 55. b4 Nb6+ 56. Kb3
Kd4 $13) 54. a4 Nxd5 55. a5 Nc7 56. Bf1 $13) 52. Re3 $2 {Missing a great
opportunity, that I found a couple of moves later.} (52. b4 $1 {as happened in
the game (54.b4).}) 52... Rc4+ 53. Rc3 Rd4 $2 54. b4 $1 Nd3 (54... Nd7 $5 {
had to be played} 55. Rc7 $1 {a great move, avoiding Black taking on d5 with
his knight (after ...Nf6)} Nf6 56. Re7+ $1 Kxd5 57. Bf1 $16 {with better
chances for White, the black knight is now weird on f6, the king has lost its
strong post on e5 and the rook also has nowhere to go.}) 55. Bf1 Ne1+ (55...
Nxb4+ 56. axb4 Rxb4 57. Rc4 $1 $18 {and Bg2, winning the e4-pawn and the game.}
) 56. Kc1 Rxd5 (56... Nd3+ {similar to the game, reaches a lost rook endgame}
57. Bxd3 exd3 58. Kd2 Rxd5 59. Rxd3 Rb5 60. Kc3 d5 61. a4 Rb8 62. b5 $18) 57.
b5 $6 {This allows a study-like defence with 57...Kd4!} (57. Bc4 $1 {a very
important nuance, forcing the black rook to place itself on a horrible square.
The rest is forced:} Rd4 58. b5 d5 {the only way to try and catch the pawn} 59.
Be2 Ra4 60. b6 Ra8 61. b7 Rb8 62. Ba6 Nd3+ 63. Kd2 Kd4 64. Rc8 $18) 57... Nd3+
$2 (57... Kd4 $1 58. b6 Rf5 $3 {posing real difficulties for White} (58... Kxc3
$2 59. b7 Rf5 60. b8=Q Rxf1 61. Qb4+ Kd3 62. Qb5+ $18) 59. Rc4+ $1 (59. b7 $2
Rxf1 60. b8=Q Nd3+ $1 61. Kc2 (61. Kd2 e3+ $1 62. Ke2 Rf2+ 63. Kd1 Rd2#) 61...
Rc1+ 62. Kd2 (62. Kb3 Rb1+ $19) 62... e3+ 63. Ke2 Re1+ 64. Kf3 Rf1+ 65. Kg2
Rf2+ 66. Kh3 Kxc3 $19 {winning the endgame with ...Kd2 and ...e2.}) 59... Ke3
60. b7 Rxf1 61. Rxe4+ $1 (61. b8=Q $4 Nd3+ $19 {and Black wins the queen with
Rc1+ and Rb1+}) 61... Kxe4 62. b8=Q $16 {with a long endgame to come, Black
still has real chances to save the game.}) 58. Bxd3 {the rest is simple} exd3
59. Rb3 Kd4 60. Kd2 {The safest, now Rb4+ followed by b6 is unavoidable.} Rf5
61. Rb4+ Kc5 62. b6 $1 {And White is winning.} Rf2+ (62... Rf8 63. b7 Rb8 64.
Kxd3 {would be a simple win} Kc6 65. Kd4 Rxb7 66. Rxb7 Kxb7 67. Kd5 $18) 63.
Kxd3 Rf3+ 64. Ke4 Rxa3 65. b7 $1 {After this game, I began a round-by-round
battle to maintain my lead against the IM (now GM) Evandro Barbosa, as he kept
scoring win after win and was chasing me until the last round. At the end, I
finished with 10/11, scoring my first 2700+ performance ever, and bringing
home my 2nd Brazilian Championship title, a very meaningful achievement for me!
} 1-0

[Event "Brazil Foz do Iguacu op"]
[Site "Foz do Iguacu"]
[Date "2018.05.19"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Mekhitarian, Krikor Sevag"]
[Black "Leitao, Rafael Duailibe"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B15"]
[WhiteElo "2545"]
[BlackElo "2619"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,K"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2018.05.16"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 185"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Nxf6+ exf6 {This line was played
for the first time by the one and only Horatio Caro! One of the players after
whom is named the Caro-Kann Defense. In 1898, he used it against the great
Harry Pillsbury. Later, Saviely Tartakower used this line many times. I think
it's an interesting choice, but Black has to be careful - his pawn structure
is damaged, and he usually has to count on his piece activity to achieve good
positions.} (5... gxf6 {was introduced some years later, by Nimzowitsch, in
1907. He used it on many occasions. I think ...gxf6 is actually dubious if
White plays precisely. For example:} 6. c3 $1 Bf5 7. Nf3 e6 8. g3 Qd5 {[%cal
Rd5c4]} 9. Bg2 Qc4 10. Nh4 $1 $16) 6. c3 (6. Nf3 Bd6 7. Bd3 Bg4 8. h3 Bh5 9. g4
Bg6 10. Nh4 Nd7 11. Nf5 Bxf5 12. Bxf5 g6 13. Qe2+ Qe7 $1 14. Bxd7+ Kxd7 $11 {
1-0 (30) Pillsbury,H-Caro,H Vienna 1898 with a very comfortable position for
Black. In the end White won the game, but not because of the opening.}) 6...
Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. Qc2 Re8+ 9. Ne2 h6 (9... h5 $1 {is the fashionable move here
nowadays} 10. O-O (10. Bd2 Nd7 11. O-O-O Nf8 12. h3 Ng6 {a typical idea, that
could've happened in the present game.} 13. Ng3 $6 Nf4 $1 $15 {0-1 (58)
Andriasian,Z (2585)-Vidit,S (2718) chess.com INT 2018}) 10... h4 11. h3 {
looks logical.} Nd7 12. c4 (12. Bd2 Nf8 13. Rae1 Bc7 14. b3 g6 15. Kh1 Qd6 16.
Bf4 Rxe2 17. Bxd6 Rxc2 18. Bxc7 Rd2 19. Re8 Kg7 20. Bd6 Ne6 21. Bb1 $14 {
1-0 (28) Sjugirov,S (2663)-Bai,J (2579) Qinhuangdao 2018}) 12... Nf8 13. Be3
Bc7 14. Rad1 $14 {½-½ (56) Kanmazalp,O (2473)-Motylev,A (2669) Batumi 2018})
(9... g6 $6 {is considered to be bad, as far as I know} 10. h4 Be6 11. h5 f5
12. Be3 Qf6 13. O-O-O Nd7 14. c4 $5 (14. Nf4 $1 $16) 14... b5 {Trying some
counterplay} 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. c5 Bc7 17. Rh6 Qg7 18. Rh4 Bd5 $2 19. Nc3 $1
Bxg2 20. Bxf5 $18 {1-0 (40) Savchenko,B (2602)-Maghsoodloo,P (2590) Khomeyn
2017}) 10. O-O Qc7 11. Ng3 Nd7 (11... c5 12. d5 $1 $14 {followed by c4.}) 12.
Bd2 Nf8 13. Rfe1 Be6 {Here I thought for a long time. None of candidates moves
were making sense, so at the end of the day, you have to use your strategic
advantages in your favour:} 14. c4 $1 {[%csl Ra2,Ra7,Rb2,Rb7,Rc4,Rc6,Rd4] I
have to push the pawn majority at some point!} Rad8 {Black is playing
logically, and the position remains balanced.} (14... c5 $2 15. d5 $16) 15. Bc3
h5 $5 {A nice idea. Black wants to win some ground on the queenside. In the
other hand, my knight will find a better square on either d2 or e3 soon.} (
15... Ng6 $5 {sacrificing a pawn to achieve a very solid endgame:} 16. Bxg6
fxg6 17. Qxg6 Qf7 $1 18. Qxf7+ Bxf7 19. b3 $14 b5 {trying to establish a
blockade on d5, since White will be forced either to take on b5 or play c5} 20.
Rxe8+ Rxe8 21. Nf5 Bc7 22. c5 $14 {The knight may come to e3 controlling d5,
or even go to d6.}) 16. b3 h4 17. Nf1 Bc8 (17... h3 $2 {is simply bad, because
I will play g3 followed by Ne3.} 18. g3 $16 {[%cal Rf1e3]}) 18. Rxe8 Rxe8 19.
h3 Ne6 20. Re1 $1 {Winning an important tempo.} Rd8 21. Ne3 $2 (21. Nd2 $1 Ng5
(21... Nf4 22. Nf3 $1 Nxd3 23. Qxd3 $16) 22. Ne4 {The exchange of pieces
should always favour White.} Bh2+ 23. Kh1 Bf4 24. Nxg5 Bxg5 25. Bh7+ Kh8 26.
Bf5 $14) 21... Ng5 $2 (21... Nxd4 $1 {was the critical move. We both thought
this was winning for White, and missed the difficult resource Black still had:}
22. Bxd4 Bh2+ 23. Kh1 Rxd4 24. Nd5 {looked good enough, since there is a mate
threat on e8, and after ...Qd8, White plays Ne7+ and Nxc8. But that's why you
always have to go until the end of the variation to be sure:} Qd8 $1 25. Ne7+
Kf8 26. Kxh2 Be6 $3 {a very strong move. Now the knight and the bishop are
attacked.} (26... Rxd3 27. Nxc8 $18) 27. Ng6+ fxg6 28. Bxg6 Bf7 $11) 22. Bf5 $1
(22. Nf5 {it wasn't good enough to get the bishop pair here:} Bxf5 23. Bxf5 g6
$1 24. Bg4 f5 $11 {and Black is doing just fine.}) 22... Re8 (22... g6 $2 23.
Bxc8 Qxc8 24. Ng4 $18) (22... Bf4 23. Bxc8 Bxe3 24. Bg4 $1 $16) 23. Bxc8 Qxc8
24. Nf5 {Now White enjoys a big positional advantage, and the h4-pawn is about
to fall.} Rxe1+ 25. Bxe1 Qe6 26. Kf1 $1 {The king serves a very good purpose
on f1 and also arrives at the safest square possible.} g6 27. Nxh4 f5 $2 (27...
Nxh3 $1 {scared me for a second, since if he plays any other move, I simply am
a pawn up. And it is very interesting actually, during the game I thought I
had found a refutation, but things aren't that simple:} 28. d5 {could be the
best move here.} (28. Nxg6 {was the move I intended to play.} Qg4 29. f3 Qxg6
30. Qxg6+ fxg6 31. gxh3 $16 {The endgame looks amazing for White, but after
analysing it for some time, I came to the conclusion that it may be drawn:} Kf7
32. d5 (32. Ke2 {looks like a useless try as well:} Ke6 33. Kd3 f5 {when White
is getting nowhere.}) 32... cxd5 33. cxd5 f5 34. Ke2 a6 35. Kd3 Ke7 {and I
have no idea how White is going to penetrate Black's position.}) 28... cxd5 29.
cxd5 Qd7 $1 (29... Qxd5 $6 30. Qc8+ Kg7 31. Qxh3 Qb5+ 32. Kg1 Qe2 33. Nf3 Qxa2
34. Qd7 $18 {has to be winning for White.}) 30. Nxg6 Qg4 31. Nh4 {may be the
only chance. White keeps his extra pawn, but Black is very active:} (31. f3 {
would transpose to the line after 28.Nxg6}) 31... Qxh4 (31... Nf4 32. f3 Nxd5
33. fxg4 Ne3+ 34. Ke2 Nxc2 35. Bf2 $14 {and play continues, but the game
should end in a draw also.}) 32. Qc8+ Kg7 33. Qxh3 Qe4 (33... Qxh3 $4 {
wouldn't make sense here, because White will have two passed pawns now.} 34.
gxh3 $18 {[%csl Rd5,Rh3]}) 34. Qf3 Qb1 $132) 28. Qd3 Be7 29. Nf3 {Now White is
in full control.} Ne4 30. Bd2 (30. g3 $1 {[%cal Rf1g2] was an important move,
improving the king's position.}) 30... Qd6 31. Be3 (31. g3 $1 {[%cal Rf1g2]
with the same idea.}) 31... Bf6 32. Qc2 (32. g3 $1 {[%cal Rf1g2] for the last
time!}) 32... Qe6 33. Bf4 g5 {Black tries counterplay, but ends up opening his
king way too much.} 34. Be5 Bxe5 35. dxe5 $1 (35. Nxe5 $2 Qd6 $1 {[%cal Rd6d4]}
36. Nf3 Qf4 $132 {[%cal Rg5g4] and I'm not sure who I prefer here, Black is
super active, threatening ...g4.}) 35... Qd7 36. g3 $1 {[%cal Rf1g2] finally!}
Kg7 37. Kg2 Kg6 38. Qe2 b6 39. Qe3 {[%csl Rg5] I wanted to keep an eye on the
g5-pawn before playing g4 which will destroy Black's defences around his king.}
Qd1 40. g4 $1 Qb1 41. gxf5+ Kxf5 42. Nd4+ Kxe5 (42... Kg6 43. Nxc6 $18 {
is a simple win for White.}) 43. f3 {Simplifies into a winning endgame, as we
will see:} (43. Nxc6+ $18 {was also good enough.}) 43... Qxa2+ 44. Ne2 Qc2 45.
Qd4+ $1 (45. Qxe4+ $4 {it is never too late to ruin everything. Black is even
winning now!} Qxe4 46. fxe4 Kxe4 $19 {[%csl Re4][%cal Re4d3,Rd3c3] King
activity is such an important factor in endgames, that here even having an
extra knight is not enough to defend the position.}) 45... Kf5 46. Qxe4+ Qxe4
47. Ng3+ $18 {Now White wins easily.} Kf4 48. Nxe4 f5 49. Nd6 a5 50. c5 $1 {
The cleanest.} bxc5 (50... b5 51. Nxb5 cxb5 52. c6 $18 {and White gets there
first.}) 51. Nc4 g4 52. fxg4 fxg4 53. h4 $1 {[%csl Ra5]} 1-0

