Gabriel Medina
Love him or hate him, you can’t really deny the fact that Gabs is one of the most formidable competitors to come along in years. He never looked like losing Fiji. Even when Slater was posting near-perfect heat scores, even when JJF was threatening to come into his own, Gabs was taking care of business on his side of the draw and he was doing it whether there were waves on offer or not. And that’s so much a part of his sorcery—his ability to make things happen for himself, to take the tiniest opportunity and turn it into the kind of decisive moment that alters the course of a heat. Watching him stalk the line-up when he’s in the zone is mesmerising, and it’s got to wreak havoc on the mindset of his opponents, who all know by now how good he is in any type of condition.
And that’s the other aspect of his brilliance—his seemingly faultless versatility. From impeccable tube-riding to highlight-reel aerials, the kid has little weakness. There are more stylish surfers on tour but it matters little to the judges when Gabs is in the midst of a frenzy, destroying wave after wave with the kind of energy that seems unique only to him and maybe one or two of his countrymen. Add to this a love of winning that borders on the obsessive, coupled with the deeply-comforting knowledge that he’s ruled the world before, and you’ve got a contender for this year’s title that’s hard to look beyond.
In saying that, the kid’s not unbeatable. His hot head and propensity to give away interferences have gotten him in trouble before. But realistically, if this season’s other contenders want to get past the 2014 world champ then they’re going to have to find a way to do what he does so often—get in his head, rattle his cage. It’s the only way.
Matt Wilkinson
A runner-up finish in Fiji was huge for Matty Wilko. It proved to the world, as well as himself, that the unlikely series of events that went down at the start of the season were no fluke. It also proved that his much speculated-about forehand does in fact exist, and it’s pretty bloody handy. It might not be as adept in the barrel as Gabby’s or as clean on the face as Ace’s, but that’s kind of the beauty of Wilko. There’s something wonderfully raw about his surfing, something that brings to mind the heavy-footed, wild-swinging approaches of some of the goofy-footers he no doubt grew up watching in the 90s and early 2000s. And that’s what makes it so easy to get behind his run this year—that halcyon quality that exists not only in his surfing but in his character as well.
But there are some hurdles to overcome, it’s true. Wilko’s one of those competitors that builds confidence as he goes, so the danger for him often lies in the early heats. We didn’t know that before this year because the poor bastard rarely made it out of Round 2, but it’s quickly become apparent. That’s why he made the final at Fiji despite looking so shaky in his early match-ups, that’s why he bombed in Rio. No doubt he and his coach are working on it though. Which brings us to one of the smallest yet undeniably instrumental factors in Wilko’s potential title-stealing year—Micro. Say what you want about the guy’s own competitive achievements, but the miracles he’s worked on Wilko’s career are beyond reproach. It’s clear the two share something special, a dynamic that has allowed Wilko to grow immensely as a competitor without compromising too many of the things we’ve loved about the guy since he first came on tour and started losing so readily—that likeable larrikin nature, the monster backhand. If the two can continue to develop this bond and defy the critics and all that past history then there’s no reason why Wilko can’t take the sizeable lead he’s got and run with it all the way to the finish.
And if you thought his surfing and personality had throwback qualities, can you imagine the party he’s going to throw if he can pull this stunt off and become world champion?
One for the ages, surely.
With Gabby biting at their heels, Micro and Wilko have their work cut out for them. Photo: WSL/Sloane
