Incroyable! 13 year old Maurizzi Secures Second GM Norm
... by finishing clear second to Matthieu Cornette in Barcelona, with 6.5/9
One of the most popular and controversial questions raised by adult chess improvers is the ever-incendiary inquiry, “would it be possible for an adult chess player, rated 16-1800, to become a GM within ten years if…?” The ratings and the specifics differ, but the gist of the question is always the same: Could I, or someone like me, become GM as an adult, given that I’m good at “X,” and I’m willing to work hard? The glib answer is, “no.” The more nuanced response is, “well, nothing is impossible, but it’s never happened before and lots of players more talented and diligent than you have devoted their entire life to achieving that goal and failed.” In 2012, FIDE estimated that over 600 million people around the world play chess. Exactly 1,721 of them have achieved the title of “Grandmaster.”
(I’m tired of the thumbnail being a chess diagram, so here’s a photo of my dog, looking incredulously at you because you said “Grandmaster,” which is one of the four words she knows, along with “Treat,” “Walk” and “Food”)
There are other issues with the concept. Not least of which is the simple fact that most Grandmasters (or International Masters, for that matter) exhibited natural abilities that propelled them to, or beyond the rating category of 1600-1800 without (seemingly) much effort, or study. For the current and former world champions, one frequently hears apocryphal tales of children solving complicated chess problems and studies before their parents had properly introduced them to the game. The implication is always the same: there’s something that the best of the best are “born with,” and if you had it, the world would have discovered you by now.
Carol Dweck’s work to understand the process of learning, and the difference between a “fixed mindset,” and a “growth mindset,” have cast some of these tales in a different light. To the school of psychologists brought up on Carol Dweck’s theories and writings, what looks like preternatural, innate ability is actually just a young human brain uniquely dedicated to the task of solving chess problems and practicing them - oft-times while it’s supposed to be doing something else, like math homework, in Bobby Fischer’s case. Ms. Dweck’s work is not without its critics, but it’s extremely popular, in no small part because it would seem to offer adult improvers a bit of hope, as well as a paradox. The basic tenets of the “growth mindset” as it relates to improvement in any field would suggest that, if you believe you can achieve your goal (ok this is a drastic oversimplification, but just go with me for a minute here), then you can. But then the paradox: if the only reason you play is to achieve the goal, you probably lack the intrinsic motivation to continue when the going gets tough.
An interesting debate, to be sure. But the focus of this column is not actually whether or not your author will ever be able to enter “Titled Tuesday” on chess.com. Rather it’s a corollary to the debate about dedicated adult achievement. In this column, I endeavor to offer a brief historical survey of chess players who have attained the title of Grandmaster before the age of 15, and suggest that this feat alone is almost enough to earn a spot in the world championship cycle at some point within the next decade.
The youngest grandmaster in history, to this day, is Sergey Karjakin, who became a grandmaster in 2003 at the age of 12 years and 7 months old. Sergey has, indeed, challenged for the world championship, losing his match with Magnus in 2016. Of course, at some point Magnus surpassed Karjakin, after becoming the second-youngest GM in history roughly a year after Sergey, at the tender age of 13 years, 4 months, and 27 days. The youngest GM in American history is Sam Sevian, who received his title in 2014, when he was 13 years, 10 months, and 27 days old. Fischer, Nakamura, Caruana, and Robson were all over a year behind his pace. Still, from that list, Fischer became world champion, Caruana has played a match for the title, and Robson and Nakamura sit comfortably within the top 100 players in the world, today. (So does Sevian, for that matter).
In recent years it would seem that the advent of the internet, powerful chess engines, and a burgeoning chess boom in India (as well, the rest of Asia) following Viswanathan Anand’s reign as world champion have made the appearance of such chess prodigies commonplace. Still, only 37 players in the history of the game have attained the GM title by their fifteenth birthday. Among them: Anish Giri, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Daniil Dubov, Alireza Firouzja, Hou Yifan, Wesley So, Peter Leko, and the list goes on and on. It’s a sure bet if you don’t know a name on this list (linky) yet, you will soon.
To that list, I would submit to you, dear reader - a new name for consideration among the global elite: Marc Andria Maurizzi, who achieved his second GM norm in the last few weeks, leaving him 1 norm and 39 rating points shy of the GM title, an honor that would make him the youngest GM in French history, ahead of Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, who was 14 years, 4 months and 6 days old when he received the title, and Etienne Bacrot, who was even younger - 14 years, 2 months, and 0 days. Whether it can be accomplished or not remains an open question. Maurizzi has until May 16th, 2021 to earn the title while he is still 13 years old, and he has until July 16th of this year to best Bacrot. But I think the chess world can rest assured, his future is bright.
In this week’s “Game of the Week,” Maurizzi gives Spanish GM Orelvis Perez Mitjans a lesson on the white side of a Benko, en route to achieving his second norm:
Game of the Week #23:
Maurizzi - Perez Mitjans, 1-0, Barcelona, February 16th, 2021
d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. e3 (diagram)
Confession time: writing this newsletter is part of my own adult chess improvement journey, and in recent months this variation has become my favorite way to frustrate Benko Gambit practitioners, so it seemed an obvious choice for this week’s game of the week. But truly, Maurizzi simply demolishes a GM with a hefty FIDE rating of 2419, and doesn’t even make it look hard. The simple idea of this variation, which is sometimes referred to as a “half accepted” Benko Gambit, is to maintain control over the b5 square. In comparison to 5. bxa6, which allows black to develop his queenside immediately with … Qa5 and … Bxa6, white has left the black a6 pawn where it is, claiming that it gets in the way of black’s pieces. If (when) the exchange axb5 is made, white will hope to cement a piece (or a passed pawn) on the b5 square, significantly dulling the black player’s counterplay along the open queenside files. In exchange for all these strategic pluses, Maurizzi has delayed his own development. The c1 bishop is positively forlorn at the prospect of the e-pawn landing on e3, and the d5 pawn is feeling a little loose, having launched up the board on move 3, it now is left to wonder when (or if) support might arrive.
… g6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 d6 8. a4 0-0 9. Ra3!? (diagram)
Ra3 looks a bit odd, at first glance. White’s bishops are still undeveloped, and the king is stuck in the center for now. The pawn on e3 is still “in the way,” on the e3 square, while it really “wants” to be on e4. In contrast, black is already castled, the dark square bishop has arrived at its forever home (g7), and it’s time to clarify things in the center and on the queenside. But this move is really the final piece of white’s plan to maintain an iron grip over the b5 square. On a1, the rook was undefended and the a4 pawn could’ve become pinned. Furthermore, on a1, the rook could have become exposed to tactics along the long diagonal, once the g7 bishop comes to life. On a3, in contrast, the rook is defended and off the long diagonal. White is now free to capture on b5 with his bishop, knight, or pawn, and can play the move e4 without worrying about tactics involving Nxe4 and opening the long diagonal for the bishop. In some utopian future position, the a3 rook might even dream of swinging over to the kingside, along the third rank, causing all sorts of trouble in the black king’s castled position.
… Nbd7 10. e4 (finally) axb5 11. Bxb5 Ba6 (diagram)
Here, the move that seems to be most in keeping with white’s strategy thus far in the game would be 12. Bxa6. Of course, white loses a tempo playing Bxb5 and then Bxa6 before castling, but after 12. Bxa6 Rxa6 13. 0-0 only white can lay claim to b5. The c3 knight would be happy to land on such a square, and while black will have “typical” Benko counterplay, modern engines simply prefer white. Black has some partial compensation for the pawn, but no more. Maurizzi seems to want to steer the game into more unusual channels, however. He prefers 12. 0-0, allowing black to capture on b5 and alter the queenside pawn structure.
0-0 Bxb5 13. axb5 Ng4?! (diagram)
That white can comfortably allow the a-file to come open is one benefit of the move 9. Ra3. But 13. … Ng4 is simply a mistake from Maurizzi’s opponent. 13. … Rxa3 14. bxa3 Qa5 was imperative, after which black has everything he wanted out of the opening - a protected passed pawn on c5, targets on the white queenside and along the long diagonal. Objectively, the game is probably equal - after all, in an ideal world, white’s queenside pawns might become dangerous. But this is a game of chess. By dallying for a single move with 13. … Ng4, black allows white to seize control of the open a-file, and create a winning advantage. Of course, the second player is not allowed time to make anything of the threat behind … Ng4: 14. … Rxa3 and 15. … Bxc3. It may be worth mentioning, however, that the diagram position has been reached 3 times before according to my database, and each time white played the meek 14. Qb3?!, with roughly equal chances - maybe a slight edge. No idea whether the improvement on move 14 is something that Maurizzi had prepared or not, but it is a clearly and obviously better try for white:
Rxa8! Qxa8 15. Bg5! Qd8 16. Qa4?! (diagram)
Black should probably have preferred 15. … Re8 to 15. … Qd8, which simply abandons the open a-file. And it’s difficult to fault Maurizzi for seizing it immediately - but in such positions white really would prefer to lead with the rook along the open file. The ideal place for the queen is e2, where it supports the maneuver Nf3-d2-c4, and clears the first rank for Rf1-a1. 16. Nd2 Nge5 17. Qe2 Nb6 18. Ra1 is the line given by Komodo 10 (and Stockfish 13), which seems to be a slight improvement for white. As things stand, it’s still very difficult to offer the black player advice about this position.
… h6 17. Bd2 Qc7 18. h3 Nge5 19. Nxe5 Nxe5 20. Ra1 Rb8 21. Ra3 g5 (diagram)
Here, Maurizzi goes slightly astray again, in a very good position. The simple observation worth making here is that the rook belongs on the open a-file, and white should look to infiltrate along the a-file with the rook, not the queen. 22. Qb3 suggests itself, after which white enjoys a comfortable advantage. Instead, Maurizzi tried 22. Rb3?! which allows black to create some immediate difficulty by way of 22. … Qd8.
Rb3?! Qd8 (threatening 23. … Ra8, regaining control of the a-file.) 23. Qa7!?
White intends to meet 23. … Ra8? with 24. b6!
… Nc4 24. Be1 Ra8 (diagram)
And here, white needs something special. Black obviously played 23. … Nc4 so that … Ra8 could not be met with … b6, but it doesn’t actually work, and Maurizzi (correctly) calls his opponents bluff.
b6! (diagram)
A few variations to illustrate the futility of 23. … Nc4 at stopping the b-pawn:
… Rxa7? 26. bxa7 Nb6 27. Rxb6 Qxb6 28. a8=Q+
… Qxb6?? 26. Qxa8+ and 25. … Nxb6?? 26. Qxb6
It was better for black, simply, to leave the rook on b8 and try 24. … Na5 25. Ra3 Nc4, offering a repetition. If white wants to continue, he’ll have to misplace the rook with 26. Ra2.
After 25. b6! as in the game, black has to face the unpleasant reality that he’s probably losing after 25. … Qe8. 26. Qc7 Rc8 27. Qc6! Na5 28. Qxe8+ Rxe8 29. Rb5 Nb7, for example, and black is at least fighting to hold on. But this is an important psychological moment in chess. If it were me, and not a 2400 rated GM playing with the black pieces, I would almost certainly say that blunders abound after your opponent surprises you with a really good move. Especially a move you thought had been firmly prevented. Who knows what Perez Mitjans miscalculated on move 24, but one move later he was obviously out of sorts, and he absolutely threw the game:
… Kh7? 26. Qc7! +- (diagram)
From here on out it’s a matter of technique, and Maurizzi doesn’t disappoint:
… Rc8 27. Qxd8 Rxd8 28. b7 Rb8 29. Rb5 Kg6 30. g4 e6 (the king must run to the b-pawn) 31. Kf1 Kf6 32. Nb1!
Maurizzi takes advantage of the fact the long diagonal is temporarily blocked by the black king to take control of the a3 square, preparing to push the c4 knight with b3 and play Ba5-c7, winning the game.
… Ke7 33. b3 Ne5 34. Ba5 Kd7 (just in time - diagram)
Now that the king is guarding c7, white needs a new way to make progress…
Nd2! (the b1 knight rejoins the fray) Bf6 36. Nc4! (threatening Nb6+) Nxc4 37. bxc4 e5 38. Ke2 Bd8 39. Bd2 (not allowing 39. … Bxa5) Kc7 and the rest of the game is presented without comment. Maurizzi marches his king over to the queenside, and induces a resignation:
Kd3 Kd7 41. Kc2 Bc7 42. Kb3 Rg8 43. Ka4 Bb8 44. Rb6 Bc7 45. Kb5! Rb8 46. Ba5 Bxd8 47. Ka6 Bxb6 48. Kxb6 Ra8 (resigns) 1-0.
… Ra8 is either a little joke, or an input error but that’s the score of the game as I found it online, so whatever. The point, of course, is that black cannot stop 49. Ka7. The white b7 and d5 pawns cut the black king off from c6 and c8, and the white bishop controls c7. Black will be forced to sacrifice his rook for the b-pawn when it promotes, after which white will mop up the black pawns, that are all conveniently situated on the same color complex as his remaining, extra bishop.
This was really a straightforward game, which I find instructive. Maurizzi seemed to have a bit of difficulty finding the best plan in the middlegame, but he was never in danger of being worse or losing control of the game, and he smoothly executed on the basic idea of his opening from the very first moves - control b5, control the open files on the queenside, and then push the passed pawn. I don’t really believe that the theoretical novelty on move 14 is of much importance, but I have to say, strategically, this is a model game for this variation, and for any white player looking to squelch the usual Benko counterplay. Well played Marc Andria Maurizzi, and congratulations on the second GM norm!
One doesn’t have to venture too far out on a limb to suggest that this is not likely the last we’ve heard from him.
Puzzle of the Week #24:
But first, a solution to last week’s puzzle:
Bxb5+! axb5 2. Rxd8+ Bxd8 and white got back into the game. Negreanu had a rook and two bishops for the queen, so the game was not over by a long stretch, but the discovered attack on the black queen with check is the best try for white in the position, and xQc found it.
This week, we ratchet up the puzzle difficulty significantly with a miracle position from one of Maurizzi’s games in Barcelona. In the following position, Maurizzi’s opponent blundered with 1. Bxe6? and allowed Maurizzi to save the game with a miracle drawing tactic. Can you spot it?
After 1. Bxe6? it’s black to move and draw. Once you’ve found that, and knowing what you know now, what is the simplest way for white to win from the diagram position?
Incidentally, this half point saved literally saved the whole GM norm for Maurizzi. Without his opponent’s blunder in this position, he’d have finished only on 6.0/9, just shy of his second norm.
If you think you have a solution to this week’s puzzle, or simply want to share comments, suggestions, questions, or concerns, feel free to shoot me an email: JensenUVA@gmail.com, or get at me on twitter @JensenUVA
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