Matei Garcia took victory by the narrow margin of 1.5 points in the second game of the 2021 championship, securing his third consecutive championship, and winning his third consecutive match-up against James Hutchinson.

Making good on his pre-game promise to play for moyo, Matei took central influence from the earliest moves, giving James solid territory but establishing a massive framework on the lower side of the board that James ultimately proved unable to reduce. The game tightened up in yose but Matei emerged the winner of the gruelling two-and-a-half hour game.