One that was most sentimental was when I came back in 2005 after having the previous year* pretty much off. I had a heat with Sunny [Garcia] and Sunny has always been a guy I looked up to. He was like the Godfather figure on Tour and we had a heat and you’re always fearful of those because he gets into these moods of where you don’t want to poke the bear. I ended up having a really good heat and I paddled up to him afterwards and he just said, “Welcome back,” and that was something that still to this day has resonated with me I guess. It just felt to have someone of his calibre and his stature say something like that was really special and something that I will remember forever.
– Mick Fanning (as told to Alex Workman)
White lightening in action at Snapper Rocks circa 2005. Photo: Joli*In 2004 Mick suffered a horrific injury whilst freesurfing in Indonesia when he tore his hamstring clean off the bone. He spent six months recovering and in his comeback event at Snapper Rocks claimed victory against Chris Ward in the final. He finished the year ranked 3rd in the world.
Watch some epic throwback footage of the then 2005 Forster’s ASP World Tour below. 2005 Quik Pro highlights run from 5:03 – 7:50.
