Reading Time: 5 minutes
For the second year running, Punta Roca, El Salvador was the steamy setting for a WSL, geographic experiment. It’s been a bold venture into a volatile country where the anti-establishment president is best known for his fondness of experimental currencies and a hard-line stance on gang activity. But what about the waves? Although Punta Roca had its moments, you can’t help but feel that once again it failed to really deliver in the contest window. Like the crypto currency its president favours, it seems to be potentially exciting but not necessarily reliable as a contest site.
Creased by a mixed-up, three-foot wind swell on finals day, Punta Roca gave us peaks over pebbles instead of a reeling right point. It was rippable and contestable, but maybe we’d hoped for a little more. As Tyler Wright took off on the first wave of the semi-final, the most famous stone in pro-surfing reared its head menacingly as she scooted past. “There’s ‘Mumma Rocca’”, commentator Mitchell Salazar bellowed with perfect, Spanish inflection. Maybe the wave pool needs a ‘Mumma Roca’ to mix things up a little, I half wondered as Tyler negotiated the boiling obstacle course of inside rocks before kicking off. Steph Gilmore was right behind on the best wave of the heat, but last year’s event winner failed to find the back-up she needed and had to settle for a semi-final finish. The result at least moved Steph back into the top five and we well-know that all she needs is a look in at Trestles on Finals Day.
Flanked by travelling coach Luke Egan and her family of ‘Marks brothers’, Caroline Marks accounted for Carissa Moore with her precise, backhand lip slaps. However, the result was enough for Risa to retain her golden fleece going into Brazil.
In semi one, Ian Gentil was assigned the tough task of stopping Filipe Toledo on a boulder-lined right point with crumbling lips. Toledo didn’t disappoint, knifing his sashimi-chef fillets on the cleaner faces and channelling a harrier jump-jet when the launch pad sections proved inviting. The lethal combination was enough to put Gentil into a combo situation as the heat wound down, but big-bird Ian gave as good as he got in the aerial dog-fight, pulling a lofty alley-oop and garnishing the wave with sledge-hammer turns for an 8.6. The inspired surfing got him out of combo-land but wasn’t enough to chase down Toledo’s 16.67 ‘excellent range’ total.
In the women’s final, Caroline Marks cut down Tyler Wright with her scything backside hooks. The effervescent commentator Chris Cote couldn’t wait to use a Neil Diamond song line to celebrate the victory. “Good times never felt so good for sweet Caroline Marks.” Indeed they didn’t. It was her first contest win since 2021 and it rocketed her into third position on the rankings. It’s also worth noting that Caroline had defeated both Carissa Moore and Tyler Wright on a cobblestone right point that bore similarities with the right at Trestles, where the finals will be held. Caroline will be a contender in Brazil, a major threat at J-Bay and has done her time in Tahiti. Watch out women! Caroline is coming for you.
The men’s final was a rematch of last year. Toledo, who later explained he was battling a back injury, seemed content to let Griffin have the inside and do his thing up the point. A forty-minute final with a reasonably consistent swell that had started to line up, meant there were always going to be multiple scoring opportunities. Griffin took early risks but struggled to get completions on anything more than a single major move. Meanwhile, Toledo looked ginger and jaded. With around 17 minutes to go Grif, who’d been left to roam, finally dialled in a good wave where he flexed his repertoire and rotated through a vaulted finish for a 7.17.
We might have been watching a precursor to the finals day at Trestles. So it was interesting to see how both surfers dealt with the pressure and the decision-making process. Grif slipped back into a high mistake-rate, falling on finishing moves that might have given him the upper-hand. It was almost as if he felt he didn’t deserve to win back-to-back events.
Meanwhile, Toledo sprung to life seizing on a steeper wave down the point and savaging the lip with four consecutive gouges that brought the central- American crowd to its feet and made the judges bristle. There wasn’t much variety but the ferocity of each turn made the wave worthy of a nine. Needless to say, there were no complaints from the Brazilian contingent for a lack of progression when that score was dropped. Toledo followed quickly with a dynamic 8.33, while Griffin continued to fall off dramatically. Toledo has Brazil and J-Bay to look forward to. He’s won both events multiple times and if he can resolve his back issues he will enter each contest as one of the favourites. Right now he’s only a little over 1000 points behind Griffin on the ratings and well poised to claim the number one ranking before the Finals – even with his bogey event Tahiti looming in the distance. Griffin is almost a certainty to make the final five this year (Something he’s failed to do in recent years) but it’s the big prize he wants. Medina lurks ominously at number five while John John is the biggest disappointment at number seven. Although he’s still number three, one can help but wonder if Joao Chianca’s rising star has lost some of its lustre. Brazil may be is his best chance to keep his top five campaign alive. Whatever transpires, it’s going to be a wild ride through the final three events.
Finals Day Results
Men’s Final
Filipe Toledo – 17.33
Griffin Colapinto – 12.10
Women’s Final
Caroline Marks – 11.60
Tyler Wright – 8.47
Men’s Semi Finals
Heat 1
Filipe Toledo – 16.67
Ian Gentil – 11.10
Heat 2
Griffin Colapinto- 15.50
Liam O’Brien – 9.26
Women’s Semi Finals
Heat 1
Tyler Wright – 12.74
Stephanie Gilmore – 11.10
Heat 2
Caroline Marks – 14.00
Carissa Moore – 11.17
