The WSL’s eighth CT stop had a significant impact on the rankings after both Cole Houshmand and Erin Brooks secured their third career event wins. The Fiji Pro wrapped up in solid conditions at Cloudbreak, with a perfect 10-point ride that ultimately wasn’t enough for Gabriel Medina to break his cold streak of lost finals. In a more dramatic and unfortunate situation, Brooks was crowned champion after Isabella Nichols was forced to withdraw from the event due to injury before their decisive heat could hit the water. It was also an event that saw seven 9+ point waves and two perfect 10s on the men’s side, along with Erin Brooks’ perfect 10 in Round 1.
Cloudbreak met expectations on finals day, and Medina came to play. Three 9+ point rides before his perfect 10 in the Fiji final helped the Brazilian make up serious ground on rankings leader Italo Ferreira. Even with an epic barrel against Houshmand, it was USA’s day to celebrate, as the Californian came in clutch with a different approach and strategy, earning a high 8 on a non-barrel wave. Cole climbed ten spots on the rankings while Medina now sits in fourth, less than seven thousand points behind Ferreira.
After what looked like a major setback with his opening-round defeat at Teahupoʻo, Medina has bounced back to remain a world title contender. With two finals appearances already this season, he’s firmly in the mix. Fiji also boosted Cole Houshmand’s chances of remaining among the elite, after he had previously managed to add more than 1,000 points (17th place, first-round knockout) only once, in New Zealand. He now heads to Trestles, hoping home soil will help him keep building momentum. A brilliant mix of power surfing and speed through the smaller barrels proved to be exactly what Cole needed to defeat his rival.
Erin Brooks – who didn’t even have to surf on Finals Day to win the event – a phrase which may never have been written in surf news before – has now won back-to-back events and, all of a sudden, gone from relegation talks to Top 5 contention. Tube-proven, it’s fair to say the Canadian can be a force to be reckoned with at Pipe.
Speaking of bouncing back in style, how about the new world No. 1 on the women’s side? Five-time WSL champion Carissa Moore is back on top after stepping away for two seasons. Her absence followed a result at Trestles in which Caroline Marks defeated the Hawaiian great – a defeat that had a direct impact on Moore’s decision to step away from competition in 2023. In her time away, the new generation proved its strength, with Caitlin Simmers and Molly Picklum each claiming world titles. Consecutive opening-round defeats for Gabriela Bryan also helped pave the way for Moore to snatch the top spot.
With both the men’s and women’s leaders separated from second place by just over 2,000 points, the WSL is set for one of its tightest world title races ever. Leo Fioravanti had a chance to reclaim the Yellow Jersey from Italo, but, needing to win the event to overtake him, fell short in the semifinals. Meanwhile, Carissa and Gabriela have set up an all-Hawaiian battle that will continue to unfold next week at Trestles.
