Promising young yachtie Adam Minoprio has been invited to compete in the Auckland Match Racing Cup after his top-four finish in last week's New Zealand match racing championships.
Minoprio, 21, reached the semifinals of the grade-three event where he was beaten by BMW Oracle Racing skipper Chris Dickson2-0. As a result of his performance he has been invited to compete in the Auckland regatta - a grade-one event.
Organisers have confirmed five of the 10 skippers for the event to be staged on the Waitemata Harbour from January 25-28.
Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Dean Barker will be back to defend his title in what is likely to be his last match racing regatta before next year's America's Cup.
"It is hard because we are obviously trying to learn as much as we can about [new boats] NZL92 against NZL84," Barker said.
"We have got a period, now we are flying the boats [to Valencia], through till mid-February where we are going to be testing and training out of the Gulf, and it is important that we have a really good understanding of the boats when we get to Valencia.
"The Auckland Cup is one we want to do well in. It could very well be the last opportunity we get to do any serious match racing before the America's Cup starts."
Joining Barker and Minoprio in the Auckland Cup are Great Britain's Ian Williams, Frenchman Mathieu Richard and Russian Eugeniy Neugodnikov.
Last year's event attracted America's Cup sailors Dickson and Bertrand Pace (both from Oracle) and Ed Baird of Alinghi, however all three have declined their invitations to compete in next year's event. Oracle will be busy two-boat testing on the Hauraki Gulf.
Organisers are waiting to hear back from Luna Rossa helmsman James Spithill and France's world No 1 Sebastien Col.
