Men's CT Qualifiers Decided

Stu Nettle picture
Stu Nettle (stunet)
Form Guide

With the conclusion of the Haleiwa Challenger, the Top 12 of the Men's Challenger Series has been decided and with it the roster for next year's Championship Tour.

As was hinted in a column last week, 2022 will be the year of the dark horse with 9 of the 12 qualifiers being pure rookies - i.e not requalifying after a period of relegation. The 12 surfers are:

Ezekiel Lau | HAW
Jake Marshall | USA
Imaikalani deVault | HAW
Nat Young | USA
Connor O'Leary | AUS
Liam O'Brien | AUS
Callum Robson | AUS
Lucca Mesinas | PER
Joao Chianca | BRA
Jackson Baker | AUS
Carlos Munoz | CRI
Samuel Pupo | BRA

Carlos Munoz is the first Costa Rican surfer to ever qualify for the CT (erm, except for Brisa Hennessy, who my unpaid proofreaders tell me qualified three years ago), while Lucca Mesinas is the first male Peruvian on the CT - Sofia Mulanovich was the first Peruvian on the CT, and first Peruvian World Champion.

Australia has four qualifiers, three of them new: O'Brien, Robson, and Baker, who snuck in when Kiwi Billy Stairmand fell out of the race.

"I'm shocked...I'm over the moon. The last week as been a lot of number crunching," said Baker as he was officially promoted.

In total, it means Australia will field eight surfers in the 2022 Men's CT, and perhaps nine if Owen Wright gets an injury wildcard.

Comments

wax-on-danielson's picture
wax-on-danielson's picture
wax-on-danielson Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 11:58am

I wonder if this years CT will be as shit as last year when there was 3 Aussie beach breaks, a wave pool and a world title decided at a sloppy Cali pointbreak with a format that put everything in favour of the top rated surfer.

david de Figueiredo's picture
david de Figueiredo's picture
david de Figueiredo Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 7:27am

Ouch!

soggydog's picture
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soggydog Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 10:22am

You forgot the Margs contest, which was epic.

jetson.rover's picture
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jetson.rover Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 4:05pm

All depends on how the state governments carry on over yet another new covid variant and all the never ending covid hysteria.
And the WSL have been extremely tight lipped on their own athlete vax status protocols i've noticed.
Forget Bells if that state dictator sticks to his word of not allowing any un(covid)vaxxed sports people in as i don't believe all the WSL surfers would have got it.
Wouldn't be surprised if it's only a minority did hence the complete silence on the issue
Could probably ditto that for the Margs event in WA too with a premier like they have.
The WSL are no doubt waiting as long as possible to see what happens,and will adjust accordingly near the time.
Well that's every region not just Australia anyway,but yeah i'd be prepared for the same kind of Aussie leg as last year as it looks like we're in for a 3rd year of all the same old covid carry on of the last two.

everest's picture
everest's picture
everest Wednesday, 8 Dec 2021 at 10:03am

How would they get on planes unvaxxed?

jetson.rover's picture
jetson.rover's picture
jetson.rover Wednesday, 8 Dec 2021 at 10:39am

Exemptions.
Special class visas for certain professions ,which would likely include sporting events in Australia.
Not all airlines enforce no vax no fly rules.
Many countries don't have no jab no entry rules,just negative covid tests.
There's ways around it if one jumps through some hoops.
Professional athletes would use agents to deal with it all.
Question is will they be up for 2 weeks in hotel quarantine again.
If it's a flat no vax no entry rule without question,i'd expect many surfers wouldn't come and the contests themselves would be seriously in jeopardy of not running.
There'll be secretive deals between the WSL and the state governments of where the contests are held i'm sure.
NSW will be open and welcoming i'm sure.
Probably QLD too.
Victoria and WA might be another matter based on their current hardline stances.

haggis's picture
haggis's picture
haggis Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 7:43pm

I didn’t think anyone watched it anymore

JimJones's picture
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JimJones Wednesday, 15 Dec 2021 at 5:36pm

Pretty sure Lowers isn't a "sloppy pointbreak." You most likely wouldn't get a wave out there kook.

wax-on-danielson's picture
wax-on-danielson's picture
wax-on-danielson Wednesday, 15 Dec 2021 at 7:51pm

Haha yeah I wouldn’t shred it like you big shred dog. But I would say by tour standards compared to Chopes, Pipe, Margarets, cloudbreak, even good snapper and the spots they want to run like g-land then yeah it’s a pretty sloppy pointbreak. But yeah your right i wouldn’t get waves out there cause I wouldn’t bother going out in the first place and hassling with a bunch of SoCal surf star wannabes or kooks like you.

Solitude's picture
Solitude's picture
Solitude Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 12:14pm

Stu who is the 9th? I thought it was 9 if Owen was counted?

Morgan Cibilic, Jack Robinson, Ryan Callinan, Ethan Ewing, Connor O'Leary, Liam O'Brien, Callum Robson, Jackson Baker, Owen Wright (Wildcard)

Am I missing someone? Julian retiring, Ace / Freestone / Mikey dipping out.

stunet's picture
stunet's picture
stunet Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 1:05pm

Who is the 9th?

It was Julian Wilson, 'cept I overlooked the small matter of retirement.

Blowin's picture
Blowin's picture
Blowin Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 12:18pm

Pretty hardcore the manner of Sam Pupo getting pushed through in that heat where he got the score he needed with a couple of crook cutties.

Solitude's picture
Solitude's picture
Solitude Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 1:25pm

Coming soon on WSL.com 'The Preordained'.

Follow the lives of the heavily sponsored tween and watch the pitfalls of being chauffeured around the globe, surfing the worlds best waves with the heavy burden of deciding what kind of acai bowl to have for breakfast.

brownie48's picture
brownie48's picture
brownie48 Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 1:42pm

Yeah way overscored that wave!

kimbo1's picture
kimbo1's picture
kimbo1 Monday, 13 Dec 2021 at 7:02am

Agree , it made the scoring the balance of the heat a complete farce . of course no comment from broadcast team .

simsurf's picture
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simsurf Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 12:53pm

And unless they have an amazing air game they will all be duds

Spuddups's picture
Spuddups's picture
Spuddups Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 1:09pm

It would have been nice to see Billy qualify, but it was not to be.

damota's picture
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damota Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 2:25pm

Just watched that quarter and connor ripped off big time he was attacking the lip,pupo won the semi, But Never Should've Been There

wbat's picture
wbat's picture
wbat Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 2:39pm

I thought Pupo was a bit lucky too.

sacash's picture
sacash's picture
sacash Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 5:18pm

great to see Natty young back

david de Figueiredo's picture
david de Figueiredo's picture
david de Figueiredo Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 7:30am

Agree, lots of intensity! but needs an air game all round!

jasper99's picture
jasper99's picture
jasper99 Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 5:54pm

Pupo very lucky to get through that heat......reckon he'll be gone pretty quick
Baker and Robson could do quite well in first 5 events before the halfway cut, considering the venues on offer.....

bluediamond's picture
bluediamond's picture
bluediamond Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 6:03pm

How's the grunt being added for oz. All full power surfers. Unreal.

Eggman's picture
Eggman's picture
Eggman Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 6:15pm

Indeed. Grunt vs ugly airs and I will take grunt any day...and then there is JJF out on his own on another planet...

bluediamond's picture
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bluediamond Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 6:33pm

haha true true!

Sheep go to heaven's picture
Sheep go to heaven's picture
Sheep go to heaven Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 6:47pm

Ha ! yes , you know who came second at Haleiwa .....

Remigogo's picture
Remigogo's picture
Remigogo Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 6:57pm

I can't wait for 2022.
Brazzo's better be on there game cause the Aussies are coming.

Anyway for all the who ha and results or what ever, the Brazilians aren't that good.

Balbero's picture
Balbero's picture
Balbero Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 7:08pm

JJF is definitely in his own league on his forehand, as Medina is on his backhand.

Troppo's picture
Troppo's picture
Troppo Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 9:36pm

And his forehand haha!!

radiationrules's picture
radiationrules's picture
radiationrules Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 7:21pm

Stu - lovin' the south & central amercian contingent getting in: "Carlos Munoz is the first Costa Rican surfer to ever qualify for the CT, while Lucca Mesinas is the first male Peruvian on the CT - Sofia Mulanovich was the first Peruvian on the CT, and first Peruvian World Champion." - but wasn't Felipe Polmar "the first Peruvian World Champion" ?

Also so bummed Jacob Wilcox didn't make the cut; he's a packet of rolly papers short of Jack Robinson's talent - who seems to be the non-Hawiaan wunderkind - but JW is just as gutsy from what I've seen at water level when taking off deeper than anyone else and just making the section is all that counts. Keep going Jacob - you must be next???

Jimmy Spitt's picture
Jimmy Spitt's picture
Jimmy Spitt Wednesday, 8 Dec 2021 at 4:05pm

I am also really bummed JW is not in.... Just watch him a Gnarloo! Great guy too. Hopefully next year.

jetson.rover's picture
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jetson.rover Friday, 10 Dec 2021 at 1:53am

Brissa Hennessy is the first Costa Riccan surfer male or female to make the tour.
She's been there the last 2 or 3 seasons.

stunet's picture
stunet's picture
stunet Friday, 10 Dec 2021 at 12:02pm

Yep, my mistake. Cheers for the polite correction.

nextswell's picture
nextswell's picture
nextswell Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 9:00pm

JJF is king. Medina and Italo freakish comp surfers but John is all round waterman. No one was going to beat him at Halewia. Won his qualifying heat yesterday in the am, surfs 20ft Waimea in the arvo. Comes back today and smokes everyone again at Halewia.

ringmaster's picture
ringmaster's picture
ringmaster Monday, 6 Dec 2021 at 9:34pm

That's a pretty good summary and I totally agree.

Goes off in 2ft to 30ft.

Nobody else on the CT gets close to those parameters.

conrico's picture
conrico's picture
conrico Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 12:40am

pretty untouchable this comp. Looked on a different level every heat. Can't wait to see him against the best, italo and medina, next year

scottishsponger's picture
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scottishsponger Saturday, 11 Dec 2021 at 9:16am

You look heaps like him. Are you related?

Island Bay's picture
Island Bay's picture
Island Bay Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 3:46am

Very curious to see the new Aussies. Got a soft spot for Jackson Baker's power surfing.

JJF was looking very good, and it's great to see his knee holding up. But before you hand him the next trophy don't forget that he never dominates Medina (very even between the two in whatever surf they dish up), and often makes stupid mistakes against lesser surfers.

Shame about Billy Stairmand.

Spuddups's picture
Spuddups's picture
Spuddups Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 6:53am

I think JJF is a better surfer than Medina and in theory should win every time. What keeps things interesting is that Medina is such a fierce competitor. It's like Damien Hardman vs Tom Carroll back in the day.

Island Bay's picture
Island Bay's picture
Island Bay Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 7:08am

Unfair comparison, I reckon. Medina is as good at Pipe as JJF, and he grew up there literally.

Different surfers, same ability. JJF has the advantage in bigger stuff (haven't seen Medina in proper big waves), Gabe has the competitive edge.

My $0.05

Spuddups's picture
Spuddups's picture
Spuddups Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 7:43am

I'd say Medina is equal to JJF at Pipe in a comp. Free surfing you'd have to give it to JJF, simply since he's gonna be on the best waves. Backdoor's another thing. I reckon JJf trumps Medina there in every respect there.

Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding Thursday, 9 Dec 2021 at 9:25pm

Medina's 10 against coffin a few years back on a backdoor bomb was one of the best waves that I have watched a goofy make out there. I reckon if he lived there and surfed it more than just for comp warm ups he'd be just as unbelievable as the top local crew

From about 4:08 spuddups

Island Bay's picture
Island Bay's picture
Island Bay Friday, 10 Dec 2021 at 5:47am

Geez, that was a good heat, aye. Conner putting huge pressure on with some gems, but Gabriel was so on song that comp.

Got goosebumps watching that Backdoor 10.

Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding Thursday, 9 Dec 2021 at 9:21pm

Agreed island bay

Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding Thursday, 9 Dec 2021 at 9:21pm

Agreed island bay

benjis babe's picture
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benjis babe Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 5:47am

im pretty sure brisa is surfing under the Costa Rica flag.. but still very excited to see Carlos surf.. has been one of my fav for years

Meggs's picture
Meggs's picture
Meggs Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 10:44am

3 from Merewether Surfboard Club: RCal, Morgs via Angourie Boardriders and Jacko
Last time was Luke Egan, Hoyo and the Law

tubeshooter's picture
tubeshooter's picture
tubeshooter Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 6:17pm

Yep , one hell of a club over the years , with some great inter club rivalries.
Lawry was originally a Stocko lad . I won't hold that against him though, top bloke and full on charger.

mpeachy's picture
mpeachy's picture
mpeachy Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 3:45pm

How does the half way cut work?

Solitude's picture
Solitude's picture
Solitude Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 4:20pm

I have to say professional surfing would be a damned shade poorer without Hawaii. With even just one event, being Haleiwa, the stories / tension / drama were way better than most of the other events for the year (WSL finals included).

There's something for me about the underdogs, grafters or up and comers achieving their goals in hard fought, anxiety riddled heats. That was what was so exciting about Haleiwa and Sunset at the end of every year. Pipe also rarely failed to produce drama courtesy of a world title, requalification, a well performing wild card, etc.

With that being said I'm glad there are two 'CT events in Hawaii, it'll just take some getting used to seeing them at the start of the year. For those lucky enough to be in the big leagues next year, their tour looks nearly as good as it's been in a long time.

Congratulations to India Robinson also. Be good to see her take apart Bells and Margs.

Spuddups's picture
Spuddups's picture
Spuddups Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 6:17pm

Sunset is pretty much my favourite event. Always has a bit of size, and with four man heats there's always plenty of action. I guess if it's a CT event they'll go down to man on man. Not a fan of that.

nextswell's picture
nextswell's picture
nextswell Tuesday, 7 Dec 2021 at 8:15pm

Halewia comp was tip top. Big, messy at times but some great moments. Everyone watching was stoked. Too much fuckin around on the CT giving people second chances. 4 man heats, get the comp over in under 2 days and utilize the best conditions. JJF was the one to beat in rd 64 and proved true in final. WSL making it all to complicated with current regime.

Spuddups's picture
Spuddups's picture
Spuddups Wednesday, 8 Dec 2021 at 5:48pm

Good call.

evosurfer's picture
evosurfer's picture
evosurfer Wednesday, 8 Dec 2021 at 8:47am

Oleary ripped off as usual nothing has changed there. In my book
JJF and Robbo are the only two that can beat Medina and Italio with
JJF the best all rounder as he proved last year until injury. Noticed
Robbo back on Erics boards again and mistakes started creeping in again.

stunet's picture
stunet's picture
stunet Thursday, 9 Dec 2021 at 10:27am

As expected, Chloe Andino and The Big O have received the two injury wildcards for next year.

Solitude's picture
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Solitude Thursday, 9 Dec 2021 at 10:53am

Fair enough

Roker's picture
Roker's picture
Roker Thursday, 9 Dec 2021 at 6:13pm

I suspect KS won't be the only one keeping a keen eye on what happens with Djokovic and his medical exemption. Any certainty on how this affects the Woz? Fully vaxxed or "a medically approved exemption from Australian authorities", like the tennis? Or can they be unvaxxed and quarantine? Might be a moot point by the time the Woz is due in town anyhow.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-12-09/novak-djokovic-vaccine-medical-ex...

evosurfer's picture
evosurfer's picture
evosurfer Thursday, 9 Dec 2021 at 10:36pm

These entitled pricks come here unvaxed fuck them pissoff and dont
come back I dont care who or what they are that makes me more
than a little angry and if you have had your two vaxes as far as im
concerned do whatever you like go where ever you want ive had
enough of this Chinese planneddemic its about time boarders open
up and we just live with it you die too bad its going to happen one day
anyway.

mpeachy's picture
mpeachy's picture
mpeachy Monday, 13 Dec 2021 at 8:51am

Just glad they got rid of the wave pool event.

Snapper always pumped outside the event window so no big loss.

Sunset is a weird and wobbly wave to watch, but maybe the CT guys will make it look better.

G-Land is probably the most exciting change.

Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding Tuesday, 14 Dec 2021 at 8:33am

anyone know whats going on with the pipe pro? when does that kick off?

mpeachy's picture
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mpeachy Tuesday, 14 Dec 2021 at 9:41am

Jan 29

Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding Tuesday, 14 Dec 2021 at 10:06am

Thanks mate, was wigging on the HIC thing

Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding's picture
Ben Harding Tuesday, 14 Dec 2021 at 10:06am

Thanks mate, was wigging on the HIC thing

mpeachy's picture
mpeachy's picture
mpeachy Tuesday, 14 Dec 2021 at 10:15am

I did the same. I think there's an approval process in Hawaii for events, and the WSL would have already received approval for an event on 8-20 December before changing their schedule so they've just thrown a QS event on those dates instead.

Waves should be better in January, just a pity it's not the world title decider.