Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation
23K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
White expected score · All ratings · All speeds
49.6%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 50.1%.
Measured over 23K games at this level and clock.
Roughly even — the middlegame decides more than this opening choice does.
Outcomes for White
Draw 4.7 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 23K games
- Rank among the families White can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 23K
- Best context
- 57.1% at 2500+ Blitz
- Worst context
- 47.1% at 1800-1999 Blitz
- Average game length
- 35 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 95.3%
- Draws
- 4.7%
Best and worst are the strongest and weakest squares with at least 500 games behind them. The table further down shows every square, including thinner ones.
Where it holds · White score by rating × clock
Green is clearly ahead for White, grey is around even, red is behind. Tap a cell to measure there, and again to clear. It falls away as the rating rises: 57.4% at 0-999, 54.7% at 2500+.
| Rating | UB | Bulle | Blitz | Rapid | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | — | — | |||
| 1000-1199 | — | — | |||
| 1200-1399 | — | — | |||
| 1400-1599 | — | ||||
| 1600-1799 | — | ||||
| 1800-1999 | — | ||||
| 2000-2199 | — | ||||
| 2200-2499 | — | ||||
| 2500+ | — | — |
Expected score matrix by rating bracket and time control
- 0-999 rating, Bullet: 38.9% expected score (30 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 50.0% expected score (12 games)
- 0-999 rating, Rapid: 83.4% expected score (3 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 53.1% expected score (176 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 49.4% expected score (75 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 55.9% expected score (7 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 48.8% expected score (508 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 50.4% expected score (510 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 46.6% expected score (72 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 50.4% expected score (1,046 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 49.6% expected score (1,704 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 47.4% expected score (246 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 37.0% expected score (10 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 49.4% expected score (1,481 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 48.0% expected score (3,367 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 50.7% expected score (665 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 43.7% expected score (38 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 49.8% expected score (1,345 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 47.1% expected score (3,471 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 47.6% expected score (888 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 47.6% expected score (40 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 51.3% expected score (1,033 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 48.7% expected score (1,858 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 48.3% expected score (422 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 64.6% expected score (19 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 50.5% expected score (788 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 52.4% expected score (1,572 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 55.0% expected score (250 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 83.4% expected score (3 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 54.8% expected score (555 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 57.1% expected score (578 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 52.1% expected score (22 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation scores 49.6% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 49.0% and 50.1% — from 23K Lichess games. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
How the figures are made
- Whose games these are
- 23K+ rated games played on Lichess (2023-12 to 2025-11). The games are Lichess’s and free for anyone to use. What is ours is the reading of them. Last rebuilt January 2026.
- Which games we count
- Rated games only — nothing casual.
- Both players within 200 rating points of each other. A mismatch tells you about the gap, not about the opening.
- At least 2 moves played.
- A game is filed under White’s rating.
- Why every number comes with a range
- A number off a few hundred games is a guess. The same number off millions is a fact. The range is what tells them apart, and it is what the lists rank on — so an opening cannot reach the top on a lucky run of forty games. The more games behind a figure, the narrower its range.
- How much we need before we say anything
- An opening page needs 100 games. A gambit needs 50 games at a rating before we will say whether it pays there. The chaos and trap lists need 500 games overall and 250 games at one rating or clock.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate?
Playing the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation, White wins 47.2%, draws 4.7% and loses 48.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.6%. It rests on 23K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation perform best?
The Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation performs best for White at 2500+, with an Expected Score of 55.9% (1.2K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation better in blitz or rapid?
For White, the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation scores about the same in both: an Expected Score of 49.1% in Blitz (13K games) against 49.3% in Rapid (2.6K games).
How sharp is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation?
The Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation has a sharpness score of 95.3 (very decisive), meaning 95.3% of games end decisively. Average game length is 35 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 1000-1199?
At 1000-1199, White wins 50.3%, draws 3.7% and loses 46.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.1%. It rests on 258 Lichess games, which average 27 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, White wins 48.1%, draws 2.4% and loses 49.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.4%. It rests on 1.1K Lichess games, which average 29 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, White wins 47.7%, draws 3.8% and loses 48.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.6%. It rests on 3.0K Lichess games, which average 32 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, White wins 46.6%, draws 4.0% and loses 49.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 48.6%. It rests on 5.6K Lichess games, which average 33 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, White wins 45.3%, draws 4.9% and loses 49.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 47.8%. It rests on 5.7K Lichess games, which average 35 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, White wins 46.7%, draws 5.6% and loses 47.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.5%. It rests on 3.3K Lichess games, which average 36 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, White wins 49.1%, draws 6.1% and loses 44.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 52.2%. It rests on 2.6K Lichess games, which average 39 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, White wins 52.7%, draws 6.4% and loses 40.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.9%. It rests on 1.2K Lichess games, which average 41 moves.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, White wins 48.9%, draws 3.1% and loses 48.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 50.5%. It rests on 7.0K Lichess games.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, White wins 46.5%, draws 5.2% and loses 48.3%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.1%. It rests on 13K Lichess games.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, White wins 46.1%, draws 6.4% and loses 47.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.3%. It rests on 2.6K Lichess games.
What is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation win rate in Classical?
In Classical, White wins 43.5%, draws 12.1% and loses 44.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 49.6%. It rests on 110 Lichess games.
Is the Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation a good opening?
The Sicilian Defense: Richter-Rauzer Variation, Vitolins Variation is about level. Across all ratings, White wins 47.2% of its games and loses 48.1%. It performs best at 2500+. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.