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Final position — White delivers mate

Sicilian Defence

Sicilian Defence: Mate in 6 (Larsen–Unknown)

White wins in 6 moves by checkmate. (Larsen - Unknown, Eindhoven 1982)

The moves

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 f6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 e5 5.Nf5 Ne7 6.Nd6#
1.e4c5
2.Nf3f6
3.d4cxd4
4.Nxd4e5
5.Nf5Ne7
6.Nd6#

How the Sicilian Defence: Mate in 6 (Larsen–Unknown) works

The Sicilian Defence: Mate in 6 (Larsen–Unknown) is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Sicilian Defence. In this line White delivers checkmate on move 6, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from Black.

The full sequence runs 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 f6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 e5 5.Nf5 Ne7 6.Nd6#. Each move looks reasonable, which is exactly why the trap is so effective over the board — Black walks into it while trying to play "normal" developing moves.

This pattern is well known from master and correspondence play (Larsen - Unknown, Eindhoven 1982). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as White or sidestep it as Black.

Practice this trap move-by-move

Open the Sicilian Defence: Mate in 6 (Larsen–Unknown) in the Trapsterapp to play it out on a live board, drill it in practice mode, and learn how to avoid it when it's set for you — along with the full library of chess traps and gambits, fully offline.

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