Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach 2025: Finals Day
Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach 2025: Finals Day
Bells Finals Day wrapped in challenging onshore but overhead surf with Australian winners for both Men's and Women's draws while not a single male Brazilian surfer featured on Finals Day for the second year in a row.
Jack Robinson is already in the pantheon of mainstream Australian sporting stars and that is only enhanced after todays win. He's now joined by female winner Isabella Nichols who absolutely blitzed all opponents today in a very dominant performance.
Jack (WSL/Sloane)
It was a game of two halves, with a morning of windy, sideshore pumping Bells (compared by Luana Silva to stormy Sunset Beach) until the tide killed it, and an afternoon of tricky, lully, onshore Bells with sets maddeningly scarce at time and clean faces at a premium.
You could make an argument for the men we didn't see the best surfers of the event in the Finals, nor the best surfing on Finals Day from the XY's.
You couldn't say the same thing for the women. Riding a magic DHD, with a longer rail line which winner Nichols claimed had helped slow her surfing down and make the turns bigger, and forced her to catch the sets, she laid down a masterclass through Finals Day, completely overshadowing opponents Tyler Wright and then Luana Silva in the Final. They weren't competitive heats. Nichols attacked the lip on the opening manouevre, faded deep bottom turns, carved back into the Bowl and then smashed the oncoming closeout. Beautiful, classic lines.
Isabella (WSL/Sloane)
Dare I say it, the Final would have been more competitive if Sally Fitzgibbon had snuck through her close loss yesterday and made it to Finals Day. Luana Silva looked underpowered and outclassed in the Final. She didn't have the quality or the amplitude of turns that Nichols had. She did ride the bigger waves to get past Brisa Hennesey in their morning Semi-Final but the quality of surfing just wasn't there to properly challenge for the Bell.
In the other women's Semi with Tyler and Isabella, the surf rapidly became tide-affected and the waves slowed right down. Tyler had a shocker, getting caught behind on a good one then getting bucked off on the takeoff for a total heat score of 2.50. Izzy got the only decent wave in the heat and shredded it for a high-6. A non-competitive heat.
Jack's title run was much tighter. His Quarter-Final opponent Jake Marshall did the bigger turns but could not convert on the end section. His highest scoring ride, an 8.17, was not textbook Bells surfing. It was incredibly busy and like a lot of Jack's rides featured a turn that looked overcooked, burying the rail so the board bogged and lost forwards momentum. Judges did not care. They paid the turn, they were not turned off by the 'busyness' and it ended up the highest scoring ride of the heat. In the end Jake needed a 9.44, which seemed excessive, and his Final ride on the hooter which looked the best of the heat, fell short. It was a very tight heat decided by a little over a point.
Jack (WSL/Sloane)
Jack's Semi-Final against a rampaging Griffin Colapinto, who had dispatched Sammy Pupo with a four-wave display, two rides going excellent, was even tighter. In an earlier presser, Jack had brushed away the 2-0 losing record to Griff, including the loss at Fiji last year with a cryptic: “He knows. It's good”. He brushed everything away on Finals Day - nothing was going to disturb that famous composure. If your life depended on someone surfing a wave to a heat win, you'd choose Jack Robinson to surf it. The initial advangtage went to Jack when he suckered Griff into a too-deep wave. Griff answered with a super technical high-risk wave which judges were cool on, only offering a 6.33. A crucial exchange followed with both surfers getting rides close to right on the excellent threshhold - Griff got the nod with an 8.00 to Jack's 7.50.
Griff basically had control of the heat. He buckled a board, made the switch, and was out the back with ten minutes remaining. Jack needed a 6.84.
Griffin (WSL/Sloane)
A critical event then unfolded, with some missing information. Jack caught a set wave with priority and pulled through the back. That should have handed over priority to Griff with nine minutes remaining. The camera cut to Griff paddling back out and Jack regaining P despite the mistake. With priority on his side he caught the next good wave with five minutes remaining and blitzed it for a 7.17 and a win by less than half-a-point over Colapinto.
That heat had an abundance of waves. The heat before, the first one after the break, with Morgan Ciblic and Kanoa Igarashi, was starved to the point of absurdity. Everything looked perfectly aligned for Cibilic as Igarashi started with three wipeouts and all Morgan had to do was wait for a set wave to crush him. So he waited. Nothing came. He waited some more and nothing happened. Grass grew and paint dried while Morgs waited for a set wave that never came. When he did eventually catch one it was a shitty mid-ranger that offered nothing except a few skipped turns.
“Can't argue with the ocean,” he said later. "It's pretty brutal." Igarashi through.
Kanoa (WSL/Sloane)
Igarashi threw more at the Bowl during the Final. He lit the lip and drifted the fins and stitched together a bunchy of janky, jerky rides, pinballing off sections here and there. Again, Robinson was forced into a come-from-behind scenario as Kanoa stitched a tidy total out of the pretty garbage conditions. Ten minutes to go. Robinson behind, needing a 7.50. Holding priority, sets approaching.
Jack let's the first wave pass. Paddles deeper and catches the second. The first turn is weak but he nails the second and third carves then puts the end section six feet under. It's the score. The shaman nails the clutch moment, yet again.
Kanoa's last and only win came in 2019. In the last four years Jack has won eight CT events. Of the ten CT Finals he's been in, he's won eight. There's no post-Kelly surfer with that Final's record.
Jack (WSL/Miers)
It wasn't always the prettiest or the most historic rail surfing we saw this long, sometimes torturous week, but Jack would exchange those accolades for the more long-lasting one that comes with ringing the Bell and getting his name put on the step.
One week now to regroup and hit the Goldy, where the Burleigh sandbar will dish out challenges all of its own. This will not be a Snapper Rocks perfection-fest. Ocean reads will count and no-one does that better than Jack Robinson. He could nail the entire Aussie treble.
// STEVE SHEARER
Comments
terrible waves to finish a comp in, but still… that was definitely Bells.
so frustrating for Morgs (and anyone that wanted to see enough set waves to provide a competitive heat).
stoked for the winners, especially Nichols. has she benefited and improved from a year off the main tour or should she never been off in the first place?
+1 nick ..stroked two Aussies won bells
I remember, years ago, Coco Ho saying her quick nimble turns were not being appreciated by the judges so her handlers had put her on longer boards so she had to work harder to turn and might move some more spray.
Great comp, and congratulations to Izza and Robbo. He's a fierce competitor, but not my fave to watch in point surf. Izzy was great!
Hope Burleigh and Margs don't disappoint.
Thanks, FR.
IslandBay. Hi mate , hope you’re well.
Well in this case I disagree , my opinion only, Jack is certainly a very good point break surfer.
See any footage of the Alfred cyclone swell at Kirra recently just as an example ?
I find it curious how one, two or more sets of eyes can deduce different opinions, human nature I suppose. AW
Supreme tube-rider, no doubt.
I think IB was referring to Jack's very, very busy style which includes lots and lots of extraneous movement, pumping between turns etc etc.
it's the antithesis of a quiet point break style.
Saw my first noisy pitta of the season this morning AW- hope you are well.
@islandBay, @Freeride76., @Zenagain. Hi lads
Fair replies fellas, good comments all round.
Steve. How nice, as you intimated a couple of years ago. Noisy Pittas can certainly crank it up, relentless really.
No wonder they are so aptly named. All the best . AW
Of course he is. World class surfer all around, no argument.
I reckon in hollow reef surf, he's outstanding. A savant. Point waves, he seems to have a little too much time on has hands and starts fidgeting a bit. His surfing gets a bit twitchy.
Total nitpicking, I know, but that's what we do.
Cheers, AW
He turns pretty well so I reckon we could cut him some slack.
Waging in. Bells isn’t a point in the same sense as other points - for argument’s sake - like Snapper, North point, Tea Tree. If you look at how Mick and Julian - two great point break surfers (IMO) surfed bells - there’s heaps of tic tacking, two stage bottom turns that they wouldn’t do on points normally. I don’t rate that either; in Mick or Julian or anyone. But surely and especially in this instance, that comes from the wave not Jack. Also thought the SAM Pupo turn was wild
Great results , 2 deserving gracious winners.
Even Freeride,s still the banging on about Sal? She won a couple of easy heats and got knocked out (again) . Back to the shameless shakka advertising gig for Australia's darling.
so sick to see morgs on a tear in a CT event
I watched the final many times afterwards. I struggle with the scoring. Kanoa's high scorer was linked together very very well with 7 good turns and 1 small cuttie. I'd give Kanoa's 1st wave a 5.0 max and Jack's 1st wave a 5.5. Kanoa's 2nd wave 7.5 at least and Jack's 2nd wave 7.0 max. I'd give the win to Kanoa by upping his best wave to 7.7.
I give you O points for that comment as it makes no sense . Anyone that read it is now dumber..
Lol, BarbB has been on the glass again
Excellent PT interview video here, with some choice photos and footage.
?si=48Crey9CJ4hkByv6In a perfect world it would be Caity v Molly and Jack v EE in the finals.
Kanoa is that guy who is clearly not on the same level as the top few but always wins heats.
I love Jacks pedal to the metal approach, accelerating through his full power carves, even if he does almost come unstuck.
Kanoa gets halfway through a turn and then lets the wave do the rest of the work. Bit soft imo.
Perfect world would be EE vs Jordy in 6-8ft clean bells bowl.
I like your women’s heat but Gabby a bit stiff to miss. Might have her over pickles on current form.
Jacks pedal to the metal approach, accelerating through his full power cutbacks.
Great contest and great write-ups throughout.
Great result for Izzy, she surfed real well and her bell well earned.
Jack was ice cold and held his nerve for a well earned win.
I have to disagree though, even though Ethan/Jordy/Morgs were tearing it up, Kanoa surfed well through the whole event and his spot in the final wasn't a fluke. If another set had have come through yesterday, Kanoa very well could have been ringing that bell.
In the end though- Jack and Izzy prevailed and are worthy winners.
Can't disagree with any of that.
It looked like Kanoa safety surfed his first scoring wave and I think that was the difference. You could see him holding back on each of his turns on the outside. Jack’s winning wave wasn’t high risk but they were classic Bells lines and he did put everything into those turns. I think that’s what the judges paid in the end.
EE must be kicking himself, hopefully it fires him up for a big result at Burleigh. Let’s see Morgs get a wildcard too!
Callum Robson has a wildcard for Burleigh
And it’s looking like it could be 6-8ft and offshore in the last part of the waiting period
And it’s looking like it could be 6-8ft and offshore in the last part of the waiting period
Does it hold that it is only sand after all?
Probably not start to finish but hopefully there will be a section somewhere along the point that holds it.
Recent discussion about the lack of Victorian CT surfers had some visual evidence submitted. I know there's the cold, and I know the distance from population centres, but a large part of the answer comes down to mathematics - far fewer waves break on the Surf Coast, especially compared to any coast exposed to trade swell.
Was mentioned a few times on the webcast what a quintessential Bells afternoon it was. Put a crowd of 30 on it. How many are catching waves?
I know Robbo moved young but learned at Trigg Point, where I guarantee less waves break. I’ve done a couple of trips to the Surf Coast, and if you’re willing to move around the line up/ surf Centres you can feel like a pig in shit with 50 guys out.
Winki has got to be one of the most forgiving high performance waves in the country, gives you plenty of speed to try whatever you want, but the lip won’t take your head off. There’s also so many high quality waves down the coast. Maybe as simple as bad luck for the Vicco crew? The younger generation seems really exciting and surely we’ll get one of the on the CT.
You can get waves because it moves around so much however if it is a slow swell with 50 out in the middle of August forget it (maybe a couple of half waves). Even if you get one your an ice block by then sitting in the middle of the ocean. There are a lot of spots to surf if it is a good swell however the premier breaks are still the stand outs generally. We don't get trade swells (luckily) however the ground swells makes for a lot of fun with heaps of punch on all Vic breaks.
hard to imagine a worse place to cut your teeth than south Australia's mid coast, Jarred Howse and Dion Atkinson stepped up. Melbournite's have nothing to cry about other than their state is broke.
The Mid!
Three Swellnet staff are from SA, and while I'm looking at a photo of an ostensibly flat ocean, they're arguing whether it's half a foot or a whole one.
Bribie boy in the chat- also can distinguish half a foot from a foot.
LOL!
Don't be cruel :-)
hahaha..
It's that half a foot that makes ALL the difference! Haha.
I have a bit of first hand experience here. I spent the first 25 years of my life on the surf coast, then 25 years on Sydney’s Northern Beaches (Manly/DY). The difference is like night and day.
Crew literally live on the beach in Sydney. So kids can surf before and after school. And they do. They don’t have to travel far to school. It’s in their suburb. They are also surfing in a pretty competitive atmosphere. There’s stacks of current and former pros at your local spot. As well as a stack of underground rippers. The level just gets pushed high. Especially at places like NN and Avalon. The water is warm and you can stay out longer. I used a sealed 3x2 in mid-winter comfortably. You’re getting more time in the water.
The level on the surf coast just doesn’t compare. I just don’t think people get the same water time. And that extra competitive push. My surfing improved exponentially by surfing with incredibly skilled surfers. You kinda have to become good to get your share. And getting way more time in the water is the best way to improve.
And I think any aspiring pro from Vicco will probably end up moving North for those reasons.
A Bit off the subject and Congrats to Izzy and Jack but on the rankings posted above why the does Gabby get the yellow jersey over Caity with both having equal ranking points?
That is a weird one. Both have exactly the same scores so can't be broken. I can't find anything in the rule book so maybe it's as simple as Gabby placed higher in the most recent contest?
Probably using the same rules as the tiebreakers for cut/top 5 - countback on event results (still tied), then most heat wins and finally highest average heat score.
Gabby gets the nod with 14 heat wins over Caity's 12.
Thanks Stu and SW makes sense.
So proud to be represented by this generation of Aussie shredders. I'm from the years we mostly went around making c**ts of ourselves, we could faarken Rock'nRoll alright, that's all that mattered at the time but years partying INXS don't count for much when you look back. This generation have a maturity about them, the real Golden Breed I think.
The journeys of these 27 yo crew has been about performing at your best and they've all done so much work on themselves to arrive here today and ring that Bell.
Jack has been thereabouts for a while but there's no ignoring him now.
Isabella Nichols just smashed down the door and her journey has taught her so much, she's on her way to national treasure status like Steph, Sally, Tyler, (& Helen).
Ethan arrived at Bells, we all saw it, then we all saw how dismayed he was when he couldn't keep doing it for us. Ethan wants his own, proper Bell and he's going to surf the s**t out of the place to get it.
Liam o'brien is right there too, Pickles right behind.
It's not how or where they were raised, it's not talent, it's not determination, it's not their family support, the coaching, the training, the years on tour, growing from coastal backwater grommy to microphone wrangling global citizens, not the resilience overcoming broken backs etc, the creative problem solving to learn Slaters secret skills, the competitive nouse, the don't oversurf, don't undersurf, the mind calming Zen..
It's all of it.
There were questions on the threads, has Bells changed? It looks better? Someone asked if an earthquake had shifted the reef?
Possible, but I think what we're seeing is progression. These pros are unpicking the Bowl and stitching a new approach, unlocking its power with flowing momentum and getting right in its face with 100% commitment married to perfectly applied body torque, as Felicity aptly coined it.
?si=G3ms0XnoTw9eO1ntCmon, team Oz
Thanks Steve and Swellnet
Are you after FR's job?
Nicely written
Haha, Free's job's pretty safe, he doesn't over write it, doesn't underwrite it, links sections seamlessly with rooster tailed points of exclamation and leaves space for the rest of us to play too.
Mate you're the bestest, surf scribe ever ..hick haha
Nice words StandingLeft- seconded.
Nice comment.
Bugger - freeride beat me to it
Feels like the right people won. All in all for such an average forecast it turned out better than i expected. Day 4 was a treat. You really need that power lower body to toy with it like Jack and EE, they managed to make it look aggressive but also like they were having fun with it at the same time.
gripping and edge of seat just reading this recap, can’t wait to see some of the archives, congratulations Robbo and Izzy xxx
I'm super stoked Izy won. Also love the fact that she's seemingly flown under the radar while continually working so hard to get to where she is. As far as I can see she escaped a lot of the hype that gets pushed around (by the brands?), and instead just concentrated ln what matters - surfing consistently well and learning the ins and out of every wave on tour.
And a lovely down-to-earth personality to boot. Fantastic!
Seconded.
Thirded.
might be a female athlete thing? had the pleasure of talking to Sally Fitz for about 5 minutes on Anzac day. what a delightful human she is
agree as well - she's comes across as natural and classy. Sure her parents get glassy eyed watching her go about the business of being an under scrutiny elite athlete
Have to admit, as a Queenslander I loved the Dad in the Broncos jersey.
Also huge Izzy fan here- especially after she did a massive reo at Sunset which went very under-appreciated due to Pickles era defining one.
Great event and as always at Bells, the cream rose to the top. Well done Jack and stoked for Izzy, big confidence builder. Can't rate Kanoa sorry - he's like an AI version of Griff, so over-coached and fizzy. The online chat was the best of the year too - epic! Go the Aussie Storm!!
Great to see Robbo and Isy get up.
Anyone know the length of Isy’s board? Photo above makes it look like a decent step up.
5’11 - so she said in an interview with Vaughan
Thanks NDC (and Udo for the post below).
Izzys Dims - Finals Board 5'11"
Stoked with the event all round. Great viewing. Thought Jack was a little lucky to get away without another wave coming for Kanoa who wasn't chasing that much. And Izzy seems great, I met her last year on GC and she seemed really nice and friendly. Stoked for her. For a wave that gets a lot of criticism it showed itself as very entertaining. Much enjoyed and thanks for the great write ups FR
Great write ups every day by Steve, always insightful and entertaining. Great result for Australian surfing too. As for Bells, even with an average forecast it delivered the goods. Not epic conditions, but very enjoyable to watch. Clearly it deserves to be part of the tour, everyone wants to ring that bell. Mexican's thoughts on why there's been so few Victorians on the CT makes sense too.
Tony Ray, Glyndon Ringrose, Troy Brooks, Wayne Lynch, Nikki Vandjyk. I would have thought Tully Wylie and Xavier Huxtable aren't too far off WCT pace either, maybe both unlucky to not make the cut, as well as Ellie Harrison and India Robinson. Do more East Coast surfers qualify because the challengers are held in low period windslop more often in which they're more fine tuned to?
Makes you wonder how many other top quality surfers in good waves are out there that can't get onto the world tour due to the conditions they're forced to endure to qualify for the big league.
Nice writeups FR.
Gladdens the heart to see our favourite Bells saying appear in The Guardian's reportage (albeit with the word 'sporting' inserted within. Ahem: "The significance of success at Bells – a remarkable natural sporting amphitheatre, with steep cliffs, a packed beach and frequent large swells from Antarctica – was similarly felt on the men’s side of the draw. Australia’s Jack Robinson downed...” etc.
haha...just needed to add the 'no kooks ever won Bells' quote and it'd be an instant copy and paste classic!! ...errr....all true though..typed through misty eyes.
I hope Jack wins the title this year! I have always been a fan of his surfing, especially his crazy barrel riding as a young kid.