[Event "The American Cup 2025"] [Site "St. Louis"] [Date "2025.03.24"] [Round "8"] [White "Aronian, Levon"] [Black "Caruana, Fabiano"] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteElo "2750"] [BlackElo "2769"] [Annotator "Dell"] [Variant "Standard"] [ECO "A13"] [Opening "English Opening: Agincourt Defense"] [StudyName "2025 American Cup"] [ChapterName "Aronian, Levon - Caruana, Fabiano"] [ChapterURL "https://lichess.org/study/BAeuvodV/4oFeQJhB"] [Orientation "white"] 1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. d4 a6 6. b3 b6 7. Bb2 Bb7 8. cxd5 exd5 9. g3 Bd6 10. Bg2 O-O 11. O-O Re8 12. Rc1 Rc8 13. Rc2 Ne4 14. Ne2 a5 15. Qc1 a4 16. Rd1 axb3 17. axb3 Ra8 18. Nf4 Ndf6 19. Ne5 c5 20. Ned3 cxd4 21. Bxd4 Nd7 22. b4 Qg5 23. Qb2 h5 24. h4 Qh6 25. Rdc1 Ndf6 26. Ne5 Rac8 27. Rxc8 Bxc8 28. Nxd5 Nxd5 29. Bxe4 Nxb4 30. Rc4 { After a rough start, two of the tournament favorites bounced back and faced each other in a crucial eighth-round game. Levon got a pleasant position after the opening, and we got to the critical moment of the game, where Fabi had a chance to keep the game within drawing margins. } 30... Na6?? { This loses on the spot, as White has a clever way to exploit the undefended black pieces. } (30... Qe6! 31. Rxb4 Bxe5 32. Rxb6 Qg4 $14 { with good chances of survival }) 31. Qxb6 { This is still winning, but letting Black make his life slightly harder. } (31. Qb5! { forks the knight and the rook, leading to a simple win. }) 31... Qe6 (31... Bxe5 32. Qxh6 gxh6 33. Bxe5 $18) 32. Rxc8 $18 Rxc8 33. Qxa6 Qh3 34. Bg2 Rc1+ 35. Bf1 Bf8 36. Qe2 Rb1 37. Nd3 Qf5 38. Nf4 g6 39. Qd3 Qxd3 40. Nxd3 Be7 41. Kg2 Bd6 42. Nf4 Rb7 43. Nd5 Kf8 44. e4 Rb8 45. Be3 Re8 46. Bd3 Ra8 47. Bh6+ Kg8 48. Nf6+ Kh8 49. Bc4 Be5 50. Nd7 Bd4 51. Bxf7 Ra7 52. Be6 Ra6 53. Bd5 Ra7 54. Nb8 Ra3 55. Nc6 Bc5 56. Bf4 Kh7 57. Ne5 Rc3 58. Nf3 Rc2 59. Ng5+ Kg7 60. Ne6+ { 1-0 White wins. } 1-0