The Games of Boris Spassky – Part VI – Fischer-Spassky 1992 Game 5

The 1992 Fischer-Spassky match was a race to ten wins; if tied at 9, the match would be abandoned as “undecided”.  After four games both players had one win; Fischer opted for “Spanish Torture”, improving on move 18 in a position where he strayed badly in game 3.  Spassky defended an inferior position well, and a series of slips by Fischer allowed 25… f5!! which turned the tide towards Black.

The ensuing fireworks produced an extra rook for Spassky, giving him a 2-1 lead in the match; in the postgame press conference he said “I may be an old lion, but don’t put your head in my mouth, or I’ll bite it off.”