Against a rook pawn with the rook in front of it, the black rook attacks the pawn sideways from f6 while the king stays on g7 or h7. The white rook cannot leave a8 without dropping the pawn, and if the white king approaches it gets from the side. The king must stay put: king to f7?king to f7?, king to g6?king to g6? or king to h6?king to h6? lose.
Moves
No moves yet.
About this endgame
When the pawn is a rook pawn and the attacking rook stands in front of it, the defence changes: your rook does not cut off the king, it attacks the pawn from the side. This position is named after Josef Vančura (or Vancura), who studied it in the early 20th century. From f6 the black rook attacks the a6 pawn and ties the white rook to a8 to protect it. If the white king walks towards its pawn, it gets from the side and finds nowhere to hide. What to remember is where each piece goes. Your king stays on g7 or h7, guarding g8 and h8: if it wanders off, the pawn advances to the and the white rook leaves a8 with check, or threatening a , and the pawn queens. Your rook attacks the pawn from the side and, once the pawn reaches the seventh, gets behind it. And do not grab the pawn: the a8 rook would take your rook along the a-file.