HUDAYRIYAT ISLAND, Abu Dhabi, UAE (Friday, February 14, 2025) — A massive first day at Stop No. 2 of the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT), the Surf Abu Dhabi Pro, saw 384 waves ridden, 16 surfers advance to the next round, and 20 eliminations in three-foot waves at the Surf Abu Dhabi facility on Hudayriyat Island in Abu Dhabi. The inaugural competition ran the men’s Qualifying Round and the men’s Elimination Round. Throughout the morning, the prevailing north-westerly wind was among the strongest it has been during the operation of Surf Abu Dhabi. Its presence brought significant changes to the waves, challenging many of the competitors but providing points of difference for others.
Rookie Jackson Bunch Punctures Dominance of Top Seeds
Nearly all Qualifying Round heats were won by top-seeded surfers, most of whom have had multiple opportunities to compete in the environment of man-made waves on the CT. However, 2025 Rookie Jackson Bunch (HAW) was able to pierce that dominance and claim his first heat win as a member of the Tour over current World No. 1 Barron Mamiya (HAW) and CT veteran Miguel Pupo (BRA). Mamiya landed the first air of the day, an alley-oop, but the back-to-back Lexus Pipe Pro winner was topped on the very next wave by the same maneuver from Bunch. A lofty, clean execution from Bunch on his fourth and final run sent the 21-year-old from Maui into his first Round of 16 at the CT level.
“I’ve been going left this whole time and kind of doing somewhat of an exact run I just did,” Bunch said. “I had the confidence that I was putting in the work already. And yeah, I mean obviously the wave came together but it’s just getting that timing right and hitting the section at the right time.”
Past Success Leads to Early Advantage for Surf Ranch Standouts
Experience paid off for 2023 Surf Ranch Pro winner Griffin Colapinto (USA), who posted the highest heat total of the Qualifying Round. Colapinto’s fluid point-break surfing, which has also led him to victory in El Salvador, was again on full display as he brought finesse, along with a healthy dose of variety, to pick up solid scores in both directions. The 26-year-old’s 14.57 two-wave heat total included a 7.40 from his first right and 7.17 from his last left.
“I feel like it just gives us all equal opportunity and you got to perform on the right and the left,” Colapinto said. “Ever since I was little, I always put a lot of emphasis on being as well-rounded as possible. So being able to get scored on every aspect of your surfing, that’s why I love it so much, and yeah, I think it helps me. You don’t really want to show your very best stuff at the start, you know, hopefully save it for the Final. That was kind of my strategy.”
Colapinto sent Imaikalani deVault (HAW) and Kauli Vaast (FRA), the wildcard and Paris 2024 Olympic Gold Medalist, into the Night Session right before Tokyo 2020 Olympic Gold Medalist and 2023 Surf Ranch Pro runner-up Italo Ferreira (BRA) did the same to Rookie Joel Vaughan (AUS) and wildcard Bronson Meydi (INA). Meydi, the 2024 World Junior Champion, brought a strong challenge to Ferreira, the 2019 World Champion, after posting a 7.17 on the right for his first wave ever surfed on the CT. Meydi and Ferreira both struggled to finish waves on their backhands, but a 7.40 earned by the Brazilian held as the highest number of the round from the left, and carried him through to the Round of 16.
Two more top-seeded Brazilians with strong past results in the KSWC technology, Yago Dora (BRA) and Filipe Toledo (BRA), were able to advance directly into the Round of 16. A 7.00 for Dora’s opening left gave him the advantage in an extremely tight heat. Just 0.26 separated the two-wave totals of all three surfers, Dora, Samuel Pupo (BRA), and Cole Houshmand (USA).
Toledo opened with the highest single wave score of the day, a 7.83. The speed and variety of the two-time World Champion’s maneuvers set him apart from the rest of the field regardless of the fact that he chose to stick to the face of the wave instead of utilizing his strong aerial arsenal.
Waida and Igarashi Grow Confident Under Pressure
Two-time Olympian Rio Waida (INA) closed out his second season on Tour in 2024 by making his first CT Final and finishing within the top 10 at World No. 9. As the 25-year-old’s confidence grows, so do his results. That confidence led to success today, as Waida’s searing rail and proficiency maintaining its speed on both his forehand and backhand earned him some of the day’s best scores.
“I love moments like this,” Waida said. “Everybody’s got the same opportunity and it’s almost equal. In the ocean, it’s hard because I need experience in the ocean and the guys been on the Tour for 10 years, they have a lot more experience, so they almost, they can beat by experience. But this format, I feel like I can just focus on myself and do my best. I love it, I’m enjoying it, and the strategy, just surf, you know, just focus on myself and do what I do.”
Waida cruised to victory over Ryan Callinan (AUS) and Alejo Muniz (BRA) in the Qualifying Round. Japan’s Connor O’Leary (JPN) and Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) had a tougher route than the Indonesian, but both were also able to avoid the Night Session.
Trailing behind current World No. 2 Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA), who convincingly led throughout the match-up that also included Alan Cleland Jr (MEX), Igarashi needed at least a 6.81 from his final wave. The Olympic Silver Medalist rose to the occasion, drilling down the line to post the highest number of the heat, a 7.57, and leave Fioravanti needing a 6.95 from his last wave. The Italian’s score came close, but Igarashi claimed the win by just 0.21.
“It was pretty nerve-wracking,” Igarashi said. “I was looking at Leo [Fioravanti] and we were looking at each other and we we both knew that it was a really important score. It was just one of those things where it was so tight it could have gone either way. It was so tricky, honestly. I knew what I wanted to do and I had my line but it went completely out the window after my second turn, so I just started kind of freestyling it. Sometimes that goes your way and sometimes it can go completely wrong, so it’s a hard one.”
Australians Robinson, Ewing, and O’Brien Through to Tomorrow’s Round of 16
Australian Tour frontrunners Jack Robinson (AUS) and Ethan Ewing (AUS) advanced directly into the Round of 16 after claiming wins in consecutive heats. Locking straight into the beautiful rail work that saw him place in the Semifinals at the 2023 Surf Ranch Pro, Ewing opened with a 7.50, one of the highest scores of the morning. Backing it up with a 6.23 on his first left, Ewing’s 13.73 heat total sent Matthew McGillivray (RSA) and wildcard Mateus Herdy (BRA) into the Night Session.
“I guess it just takes the pressure off of like, in the ocean you’re wondering about positioning and if you’re gonna get a lot of opportunities,” Ewing said. “It’s a good thing about this event, you just know you’re gonna get the wave, but the pressure is definitely there to perform.”
The elation and devastation of losing early at Stop No. 1 despite posting his first-ever Perfect 10-point ride on the CT was washed away for Robinson after the Olympic Silver Medalist started strong at Surf Abu Dhabi. The 2024 World No. 4 earned two advancing scores from his first two waves, both well-executed with no errors, to move directly into the Round of 16. The single heat win today is already a massive improvement on the 27-year-old’s two previous appearances in KSWC technology, where he placed dead last both times.
“I’ve had a fair bit of practice, I feel like, in the pool,” Robinson said. “I’ve come over a couple of times. So it’s good just getting the confidence, and feel good here. Just good to get it done, you know, get a couple keepers, and move through. Because you don’t know, the conditions can change here with the wind. They say it’s a wave pool and it’s the same, but it’s not always the same. It’s a bit windy sometimes.”
Liam O’Brien (AUS) joined the Australian contingent in the last heat of the day, overtaking Joao Chianca (BRA) and Ramzi Boukhiam (MAR) in Heat 12. O’Brien’s final two scores, a 7.00 on the right and a 5.70 on the left to beat out his competition and avoid the night session eliminations.
Four Surfers Survive Night Session Eliminations
Miguel Pupo (BRA), rookie Joel Vaughan (AUS), Deivid Silva (BRA), and event wildcard Mateus Herdy (BRA) also advanced to the men’s Round of 16 after the night’s dreaded Elimination Round dispatched 20 competitors from the draw. The round allowed the 24 men to surf one right and one left, and only counting one single wave score counted in the round’s leaderboard.
The leader of the Elimination Round with a single wave score of 7.77 was Miguel Pupo (BRA). After falling to CT Rookie Jackson Bunch (HAW) in the Qualifying Round, Pupo found himself facing elimination with one final wave to deliver a high enough single score to remain on the leaderboard. Pupo left it all on the line with a grab rail air-reverse, and it earned him the best score of the night session. He’ll move onto the Round of 16 where he’ll face Jordy Smith (RSA).
For highlights from today’s Surf Abu Dhabi Pro, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.
Surf Abu Dhabi Pro Men’s Qualifying Round Results:
HEAT 1: Connor O’Leary (JPN) 10.87 DEF. Jake Marshall (USA) 9.83, Edgard Groggia (BRA) 4.96
HEAT 2: Jackson Bunch (HAW) 13.10 DEF. Miguel Pupo (BRA) 11.30, Barron Mamiya (HAW) 11.06
HEAT 3: Jack Robinson (AUS) 12.96 DEF. George Pittar (AUS) 10.73, Ian Gentil (HAW) 8.17
HEAT 4: Ethan Ewing (AUS) 13.73 DEF. Mateus Herdy (BRA) 12.17, Matthew McGillivray (RSA) 11.10
HEAT 5: Griffin Colapinto (USA) 14.57 DEF. Imaikalani deVault (HAW) 10.27, Kauli Vaast (FRA) 9.03
HEAT 6: Italo Ferreira (BRA) 12.90 DEF. Bronson Meydi (INA) 11.30, Joel Vaughan (AUS) 10.50
HEAT 7: Yago Dora (BRA) 12.20 DEF. Samuel Pupo (BRA) 12.00, Cole Houshmand (USA) 11.94
HEAT 8: Jordy Smith (RSA) 11.77 DEF. Seth Moniz (HAW) 8.97, Deivid Silva (BRA) 8.57
HEAT 9: Rio Waida (INA) 14.34 DEF. Ryan Callinan (AUS) 10.63, Alejo Muniz (BRA) 9.94
HEAT 10: Filipe Toledo (BRA) 14.50 DEF. Ian Gouveia (BRA) 10.03, Marco Mignot (FRA) 8.77
HEAT 11: Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) 13.87 DEF. Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) 13.66, Alan Cleland (MEX) 6.20
HEAT 12: Liam O’Brien (AUS) 12.70 DEF. Ramzi Boukhiam (MAR) 11.87, Joao Chianca (BRA) 10.83
Surf Abu Dhabi Pro Men’s Round of 16 Matchups:
HEAT 1: Ethan Ewing (AUS) vs. Deivid Silva (BRA)
HEAT 2: Jordy Smith (RSA) vs. Miguel Pupo (BRA)
HEAT 3: Griffin Colapinto (USA) vs. Jackson Bunch (HAW)
HEAT 4: Rio Waida (INA) vs. Connor O’Leary (JPN)
HEAT 5: Italo Ferreira (BRA) vs. Mateus Herdy (BRA)
HEAT 6: Filipe Toledo (BRA) vs. Kanoa Igarashi (JPN)
HEAT 7: Jack Robinson (AUS) vs. Liam O’Brien (AUS)
