The Margaret River Pro, the fifth and final stop before the Mid-season Cut on the World Surf League (WSL) 2022 Championship Tour (CT), has seen a massive day in 10-to-12 foot surf to set up for tomorrow’s Finals day. The competition of the men’s Round of 32 saw eight more surfers confirmed above the Mid-season Cut line, with 10 falling below, and two still on the bubble. The stage is now set for an exciting Finals Day with more solid surf and favorable offshore winds expected. Competition will start tomorrow at 7:05 a.m. AWST.
After the first five events of the 2022 CT season, the new Mid-season Cut reduces the CT fields to the Top 22 men and Top 10 women. All surfers who make the cut continue on the CT in an effort to make the WSL Final 5 and compete in the Rip Curl WSL Finals, as well as automatically requalify for the 2023 CT. Those who do not make the cut will need to compete on the 2022 Challenger Series in order to qualify for the 2023 CT.
Following today’s results at the Margaret River Pro, the men’s field has confirmed eight more surfers, with one men’s spot to still be determined when competition resumes.
With their heat wins today Kolohe Andino (USA), Samuel Pupo (BRA), Jordy Smith (ZAF), and Nat Young (USA) have guaranteed their spots on tour beyond the Mid-season Cut along with Connor O’Leary (AUS) who hangs on despite being eliminated in the Round of 32.
Men’s CT: Made the Cut
Kolohe Andino (USA)
Samuel Pupo (BRA)
Jordy Smith (ZAF)
Nat Young (USA)
Connor O’Leary (AUS)
Jake Marshall (USA)
Jackson Baker (AUS)
Jadson Andre (BRA)
After today, the below surfers found themselves under the cut and will now shift their focus to the Challenger Series for the remainder of 2022.
Men’s CT: Missed the Cut
Morgan Cibilic (AUS)
Imaikalani deVault (HAW)
Conner Coffin (USA)
Joao Chianca (BRA)
Ezekiel Lau (HAW)
Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA)
Frederico Morais (PRT)
Ryan Callinan (AUS)
Lucca Mesinas (PER)
Deivid Silva (BRA)
Men’s CT: On the Bubble
Owen Wright (AUS)
Matthew McGillivray (ZAF) – If McGillivray wins his next heat, he will make the cut. If he loses, Wright makes the cut.
For a number of competitors, the Mid-season Cut line wasn’t something to worry about in the Round of 32 given their position on the 2022 rankings, and today that was reflected in their performances. Nat Young (USA), Jack Robinson (AUS), Jordy Smith (ZAF) and Ethan Ewing (AUS) all reveled in the chunky conditions, each posting at least one excellent score in their matchups with Ewing posting two, for the highest heat total of the entire event. Ewing’s 17.93 (out of a possible 20) two-wave total came from his incredibly smooth and powerful frontside-rail gauges which was too much for Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA).
“That felt really good,” Ewing said. “I was watching the waves for a while and it’s definitely not easy out there. There is a lot of wind up the face and a lot of wash through sets, so I felt lucky to get those two that were clean and smooth. It felt good. My shaper made me an amazing batch of boards for Hawaii and they were too good to leave over there so I have them here with me as it can get a lot like Hawaii here and they’ve worked amazingly. I feel so sorry for the guys and girls on the cut line coming into this event. There is so much pressure on them all and watching them full short is pretty hard. I’m so glad I got some hard work done early in the year and now I can focus more on the Top 5 and not making the cut. Everyone is saying tomorrow is the best day in the waiting period, so I can’t wait to get back out there for Finals Day.”
Heat 4 was a must-win situation for Conner Coffin who needed a result against American Griffin Colapinto to stay on the CT for 2022. However, Colapinto’s excellent wave selection was able to secure him a spot in the Round of 16, and ended Coffin’s bid for the 2022 Championship.
“That was the most brutal matchup I could have ever imagined,” said Colapinto. “Conner is probably the last person I wanted to draw, just because we’re such good friends and he’s been on tour three years before I got on and everywhere I would go I would hit him up for questions about where to go and he would always give me advice on what to do. I was just super bummed that I had to match up with him there because I know he’s on the cut line but we both have our own goals and I’ve got to put that to the side once we’re in the water and I think he might have got cut on that heat so hopefully he can go to Snapper and win that.”
Nat Young (USA) was set to defend his position on the CT tour in Heat 10 against rookie Jake Marshall (USA) in the large choppy conditions at Margaret RIver. Leading the rankings for the whole heat, Young was a standout surfer of the day, competing with confidence and drive to earn him a combination score of 16.10 (out of a possible 20).
“I just kind of winged it out there,” said Young. “I mean, it’s really fun, I enjoy kind of challenging myself in these unruly conditions when it’s just kind of you verse the ocean and I lucked into that wave, not right at the start but early on and kind of just carried that momentum through so it was a fun heat, I was stoked. [Margeret River] is similar waves to at home for sure, there’s a wave that we kind of surf when it’s similar to this so it has similarities so I enjoy coming to watch in Australia it’s definitely one of the most beautiful places we get to come, so I’m lucky I’ve done well here and I’m hoping to do good this time around too.”
Heat 5 was filled with drama and tense moments for former World No. 1 Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) and Matthew McGillivray (ZAF). Igarashi took control at the start of the heat, leading most of the way until McGillivray charged home with his last wave scoring 6.83 (out of a possible 10) from one massive upwards snap. This performance boosted McGillivray’s ranking from 32 to 25, a much-needed lift ahead of the Mid-season Cut.
The Australian lineup of rookie Callum Robson and Morgan Cibilic took to the water in Heat 3 at the Main Break with offshore winds. Coming off the back of a second place finish at Bells Beach, Robson was early to pick his first waves, leading by 11.50 (out of a possible 20) just five minutes into the heat. Cibilic worked to fight back but was unable to match Robson’s combination score.
“It sucks when you come up against one of your close mates in such a crucial round,” said Robson, “Nut I was stoked to get through. We both had one wave each and it was a battle, just scrapping for both of us to get those backup scores. I was just hunting for a certain type of wave, I knew where I was on the reef and just trying to look for the kind of ingredients that were in the waves I was looking for and then I copped a few in the head for my troubles, so yeah it’s just a bit of cat and mouse.”
Margaret River Pro Women’s Semifinal Matchups:
HEAT 1: Gabriela Bryan (HAW) vs. Courtney Conlogue (USA)
HEAT 2: Bronte Macaulay (AUS) vs Isabella Nichols (AUS)
Margaret River Pro Men’s Round of 32 Results:
HEAT 1: John John Florence (HAW) 12.16 DEF. Imaikalani deVault (HAW) 9.00
HEAT 2: Kolohe Andino (USA) 14.57 DEF. Jackson Baker (AUS) 9.00
HEAT 3: Callum Robson (AUS) 12.00 DEF. Morgan Cibilic (AUS) 10.70
HEAT 4: Griffin Colapinto (USA) 12.60 DEF. Conner Coffin (USA) 11.66
HEAT 5: Matthew McGillivray (ZAF) 14.43 DEF. Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) 13.17
HEAT 6: Samuel Pupo (BRA) 11.73 DEF. Connor O’Leary (AUS) 10.84
HEAT 7: Italo Ferreira (BRA) 13.53 DEF. Joao Chianca (BRA) 12.84
HEAT 8: Miguel Pupo (BRA) 11.50 DEF. Owen Wright (AUS) 8.93
HEAT 9: Filipe Toledo (BRA) 11.40 DEF. Ryan Callinan (AUS) 9.83
HEAT 10: Nat Young (USA) 16.10 DEF. Jake Marshall (USA) 10.17
HEAT 11: Caio Ibelli (BRA) 15.00 DEF. Frederico Morais (PRT) 8.50
HEAT 12: Ethan Ewing (AUS) 17.93 DEF. Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) 14.77
HEAT 13: Jadson Andre (BRA) 12.60 DEF. Kelly Slater (USA) 9.24
HEAT 14: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 16.17 DEF. Ezekiel Lau (HAW) 12.67
HEAT 15: Jack Robinson (AUS) 14.83 DEF. Lucca Mesinas (PER) 5.70
HEAT 16: Barron Mamiya (HAW) 11.87 vs. Deivid Silva (BRA) 0.13
Margaret River Pro Men’s Round of 16 Matchups:
HEAT 1: John John Florence (HAW) vs. Kolohe Andino (USA)
HEAT 2: Callum Robson (AUS) vs. Griffin Colapinto (USA)
HEAT 3: Matthew McGillivray (ZAF) vs. Samuel Pupo (BRA)
HEAT 4: Italo Ferreira (BRA) vs. Miguel Pupo (BRA)
HEAT 5: Filipe Toledo (BRA) vs. Nat Young (USA)
HEAT 6: Caio Ibelli (BRA) vs. Ethan Ewing (AUS)
HEAT 7: Jadson Andre (BRA) vs. Jordy Smith (ZAF)
HEAT 8: Jack Robinson (AUS) vs. Barron Mamiya (HAW)
The WSL Acknowledges the Wadandi people as the Traditional Owners of the Margaret River region and thank them for welcoming us to their Boodja (Country). We pay our respects to the Wadandi community and their Elders past and present. The WSL is committed to ongoing learning about local history, culture, and language of Wadandi Boodjar (Saltwater People’s Country). They have asked all of us to walk together softly on county and respect the ocean and waterways. We wish to also extend this Acknowledgement and respect to other First Nations Peoples who join us in person and online.
Watch LIVE:
Finals Day of the Margaret River Pro will be broadcast LIVE tomorrow, starting at 7:05 a.m. AWST, on WorldSurfLeague.com, WSL’s YouTube channel, and the free WSL app. Check local listings for coverage from the WSL’s broadcast partners. For fans watching in Brazil, coverage of the competition’s Quarterfinals and beyond will continue exclusively on WorldSurfLeague.com and SporTV.
COVID-19 Update:
The health and safety of our athletes, staff, and the local community are of the utmost importance and we have been working closely with local authorities to put a robust set of procedures in place to keep everyone safe. In accordance with local guidelines, only fully vaccinated individuals are allowed on-site, including spectators, and on-site masks are required when physical distance cannot be maintained.
The Margaret River Pro is proudly supported by our partners Tourism WA, Shiseido, Red Bull, Oakley, Hydro Flask, Havaianas, Expedia, Pura Vida, Harvey Norman, Bonsoy, Boost Mobile, Oakberry, Dometic Outdoor, Coopers, GWM, Rusty, Bond University, Healthway, and Shire of Augusta-Margaret River.
For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.
About the WSL
Established in 1976, the World Surf League (WSL) is the home of the world’s best surfing. A global sports, media and entertainment company, the WSL oversees international tours and competitions, a studios division creating over 500+ hours of live and on-demand content, and via affiliate WaveCo, the home of the world’s largest high performance, human-made wave. Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, the WSL has regional offices in North America, Latin America, Asia Pacific, and EMEA.The WSL annually crowns the men’s and women’s surfing World Champions. The global Tours and Competition division oversees and operates more than 180 global contests each year across the Championship Tour, the development tiers, including the Challenger, Qualifying and Junior Series, as well as longboard and big wave properties. Launched in 2019, WSL Studios is an independent producer of unscripted television projects, including documentaries and series, which provide unprecedented access to athletes, events, and locations around the world. WSL events and content are distributed on linear television in over 743M+ homes worldwide and across digital and social media platforms around the world, including WorldSurfLeague.com. |
