Karpov vs Kasparov 1985, Game 16 — the Octopus Knight

The 1985 World Championship rematch was held in Moscow from September to November. Kasparov, having played five months in the abortive 1984 match against Karpov, was the challenger again, this time under a “first to 12.5” format with no infinite extension. Game 16 was the turning point in the match.

Kasparov played a Sicilian Defense, Taimanov Variation. Karpov responded with the classical 5.Nb5 and a complicated piece manoeuvre. By move 16, Kasparov had planted a knight on d3 — the square that became known as the “Octopus” square. The knight sat there for the rest of the game, restricting White’s pieces and controlling key squares on both wings.

The decisive moment came on move 34. Karpov played 34.Qxd3, capturing the octopus knight. Kasparov replied with 34…Nf2+ — a discovered attack on the queen. After 35.Rxf2 Bxd3, Black has recovered material with overwhelming positional compensation. The game finishes with Kasparov’s pieces dominating the white king from move 36 onward; Karpov resigns on move 40.

The Octopus knight

The knight on d3 was not a tactical resource — it was a structural one. For 17 moves it stood on the third rank, supported by no pawn, attackable only by major pieces, controlling f2, e1, c1, and b2. White’s pieces could not coordinate around it. The “octopus” name — supposedly coined by Kasparov himself in his post-game press conference — has stuck for 40 years.

The win brought the match score to 8.5–8 in Kasparov’s favour. Two more wins in the final games gave Kasparov the world title at the age of 22 years and 210 days, the youngest in history (a record that stood until Gukesh Dommaraju broke it in 2024).

Game record

This game between Anatoly Karpov and Garry Kasparov was played at the World Chess Championship (II) in Moscow in 1985. The opening was the Sicilian Defense, Taimanov Variation (ECO B44). The game lasted 40 moves, ending with Black winning. It is part of the late-Soviet and Cold-War chess era.