More Retirements Announced
The complexion of next year's Championship Tour will be very different as the retirements keep on coming.
First was Adriano de Souza who last year announced one more lap, then last month Julian Wilson said he wanted to spend more time with his young family, last week saw Jeremy Flores call time on a stellar career, and today it's Mikey Wright's turn.
During the Corona Open broadcast, the younger Wright - aged 24 - said he was walking away to concentrate on his freesurfing. Wright carried an injury through much of the 2018 and 2019 seasons, and was forced into a surf off against Leonardo Fioravanti to get the second of two injury wildcards for the 2020 season (Kelly Slater received the first). Wright lost the surf off, yet still surfed most events owing to his first alternate status.
Wright, who won his Round One heat in Mexico, said this would be his last event.
Wright has made a number of short films such as 'Rock', 'Root', and 'Rage', and Swellnet looks forward to more monsyllabic blasts from Mikey.
Meanwhile, Kelly Slater turns fifty next February when he'll embark on yet another tour of duty.
Comments
More time to focus on his hair do and gourmet barista tatts for mikey. "Retiring" from what was hardly a pro tour career anyhow short of a handful of wildcards courtesy of the wsl trying to harden up their image (and failing).
old mate shreds tour is not for him
The pro tour is not up mikeys alley.. loves the free surfing .. good on him all the best
Why would you not want to get possible pumping chopes with only a couple out?
Vaccine ruled him out too?
something like that LD.
you wouldn't pass up that opportunity for a pay day and perfect waves unless there was a good reason.
Good chance. Being under 40 he wouldn’t have been eligible when he left Aus
Great Surfer and loved watching his clips, but just couldnt get to the next level.
Even the big ones (Pipe, Margs etc). Talent isnt always enough in any sport.
Look at some of the NRL players that came and went.
Its a brutal business / career choice professional sport
Just been mulling over Mike's retirement, plus the other guys also heading off to pasture, plus latest COVID news and wondering where all this is going. It's gonna be a struggle for any international sport to maintain with travel being as hard as it currently is.
In one sense, the Woz was fortunate that they'd begun to implement the Regional Qualifying Series - introduced to reduce travel costs, not to counter Covid but it works for that too - except even in regions like Australasia there are difficult hurdles to clear.
Australia's RQS is supposed to run from now to next April (to decide the ten surfers for next year's Challenger Series), but there are currently no contests announced. Not saying there won't be but staging second-tier surf contests must seems like a low priority right now - if it's even possible. And then if they do get held how many surfers from outside the host state can enter it? Leave alone surfers from New Zealand who are considered within our region.
All that has to be resolved - contests planned, state borders opened, international borders too (to NZ at least), and enough contests run for fair ranking - by April. It's not impossible, but pretty damn hard.
Also, Mikey Wright is a high profile surfer, but how many lesser surfers will pack it in as the life of the travelling pro just doesn't seem as appealing as it did two years ago?
it'll depend on sponsorship money, even moreso now.
And according to ELO, the Olympics was going to provide a bounty of non endemic sponsorship for QS surfers to enable them to pursue their dreams.
That sounds more like wishing and hoping to me, rather than any strategy based on reality.
We will see.
That is clearly blind hope. The Olympics will provide a small fraction to a small few of the "promise" and "potential" they were all likely sold and spruked...
Spot on Stu
A lifetime spent angling towards becoming a touring pro surfer is suddenly looking a bit like completing an apprenticeship in repairing Beta VHS players.
thats' really funny
Oh no, Beta
I think the regional QS looks doable for most crew.
But now there is a second International funnel, the Challenger series, which will need full financial support, before getting to the CT proper.
I think that extra hurdle: QS on steroids, or CT-Lite, whichever way you want to look at it, will be a significant hurdle for aspirants.
Crazy to imagine surfers competing only within their zones. Could there be some kind of showdown of the best in each region every two years?
In an ironic twist, perhaps the only way surfers will meet on the international stage will be through the Olympics!
That would take it back to being like the 1968 World Surfing Championship format in Puerto Rico.
Probably likes surfing, fishing and hunting more than living with and fitting into the WSL Covid BS.
Good luck to him.
If thats the case why did he try to so hard to make it into the WSL
Its not like he didnt have any exposure to the WSL thru his family
C'Mon - what a bunch of Hippy BS.
Its a shame he didnt make it because hes a great power surfer, but the point is, he didnt make it.
Mmm….not so sure I reckon he is the black sheep in that family. I remember his old man saying Owen was the one who wanted it the most. I reckon the whole structure of the WSL is wrong. They need to rethink the entire world surfing contest thing as it has never made money and never will. At the moment I am not sure what the point of the whole thing is.
The point was it used be best surfers in the best waves (aka the Dream Tour)
Somewhere its lost its way.... Trestles as the decider
Also the Big 3 realised that in the age of on line purchases they can sell just as much product with 5 pros on the books instead of 15.
Tell me on this site who would rather watch a Dane Reynolds or Noah Deane clip over a WSL event at Pipe , Chopes, J Bay or Goldy in March. C'mon ... get real Hippies. Its professional sport with professional sports people in it.
They way you guys all crap on its kind of like lets watch johnny slow poke run around a park instead of the mens 100m Olympics. If you dont like... dont watch. Simple as. The Olympics dont represent every casual runner in the world and neither does the WSL represent every surfer. Its just one version of a sport.
I would rather watch Noah or Dane clip over the last few contests and Olympics. They take too long, are boring, Joe drones on forever and puts people to sleep and I disagree it is a professional sport. If Dirk pulls the plug the whole thing falls over - one person runs the so called pro sport. This is nothing like the AFL and Dane or Noah do things you can't do in contests due to the structure. Should we really be trying to ape other sports or come up with something of our own which works with the real bits of surfing. Watching guys jump around in 3 foot beachies is NOT the peak of the surfing.
I agree except for the Dane /Noah Bit (The editor is just as important as the surfer in a Noah clip)
"Should we really be trying to ape other sports or come up with something of our own which works with the real bits of surfing". They did that , it was called the Dreamtour and the ethos SPEED/POWER/FLOW.
The WSL of old was good. They have lost their way of late.
Totally agree with all of the above but I am saying let's go further and just have a complete rethink. Most of us don't surf for a sport like we play footy, it is something much different and far more subjective. I read something by Les enfant terrible Chas and he, as always being the provocateur, has a lot to say about the WSL but of interest was what about trying to borrow something from the way art is judged or commented on. Not sure if this has legs but I really think he has something. As radical as Italo, Felippe and Gabe are with their airs, it does get very repetitive if it happens non stop and are completely telegraphed you go OK here we go with the Hail Mary or 2. Dane doesn't do this you never know what he will do. Everybody is surfing the same on the same boards and I reckon we have been programmed to believe this is good surfing. What has happened with this conformity is that it is completely boring and reaches its Zenith and Kelly's tub. Way too predictable like the lead guitar breaks of the 70's-snore fest. I love watching Mason Ho but he would never go well in the current contest format- even the stuff Josh Kerr is doing lately is great and a welcome change from watching Kolohe do 3 to the beach.
The point was it used be best surfers in the best waves (aka the Dream Tour)
Somewhere its lost its way.... Trestles as the decider
Also the Big 3 realised that in the age of on line purchases they can sell just as much product with 5 pros on the books instead of 15.
Tell me on this site who would rather watch a Dane Reynolds or Noah Deane clip over a WSL event at Pipe , Chopes, J Bay or Goldy in March. C'mon ... get real Hippies. Its professional sport with professional sports people in it.
They way you guys all crap on its kind of like lets watch johnny slow poke run around a park instead of the mens 100m Olympics. If you dont like... dont watch. Simple as. The Olympics dont represent every casual runner in the world and neither does the WSL represent every surfer. Its just one version of a sport.
Another great loss to the CT along with Eugine and Parko and many other great characters. Lets hope the remaining Wrights keep on keeping on.
Wake up on the couch at some stupid hour to the sight of Mikey Wright announcing his retirement. Yeah, nah, gonna chase some swells mate. This'll be me last connest! Grasping the gravitas of the moment, the Woz’s young Johnny on the spot is there to relay the sentiment of the ‘entire world’, whose populace, he assures us, will be mourning Mikey’s departure.
Has the post Olympic exponential increase in non-endemic Woz fans achieved global critical mass so rapidly? Has Mikey made some hitherto unknown contribution to the betterment of humankind? Or must all junior Woz journalistic tyros now follow a mandatory course in gushing and gratuitous hyperbole under the guidance of grovelling guru Joe Turpel?
What about Ace? He's still going again next year?
Surely not, he looks as tired as the format and I like his surfing. I think Dirk needs to pull the plug and we go back to square 1. Just watched Dane’s Chapter 11 and there was better surfing in a couple of clips than just about the whole year of the tour this year. Not good readers.
the latter, I think.
from what , is he going on the dole . thats right , he lost a few heats and spat his dummy ,poor jock . who cares about these fuckers
I hope Mikey has plan b and c ready to go once his quikky contract expires.
Get a trade, go to uni, Full time lifeguard.
You gotta think that being a travelling free surfer is going to be difficult for another 18months if he wants to base himself out of Australia.
Pro surfing and sponsorship is dying a slow death.
These days the wsl looks and feels more and more like a charity and the Olympics hype was more spin from the guy who should have stuck with Oprah...
The big question is, has Mikey made the wright decision to retire so young?
I reckon good on him. As he said, he aimed for the CT from a young age, before he'd matured as a person, and didn't have time to think about it. Now he knows what's required to be a professional athlete, and he's seen it first-hand through his older brother and sister struggling against various demons to maintain their health.
I don't know what the future has in store, or if it will pan out the way he plans, but I imagine Mike's just removed a huge load of anxiety from his life.
No doubt real life will catch up, it does for everyone, but I hope he gets time to enjoy some freedoms between the burden of endless competition and the coming family obligations (as he got engaged recently).
How old is he? Early twenties ?
He’s probably had a fucken ball surfing epic waves extremely well and being feted at every turn. Now he’s pulled the pin on a touring career and left with nothing but a shed load of cash, unbelievable memories , great stories , an enviable reputation, good looks and his youth.
Sounds terrible.
If he hadn’t been ripped off by the accountant he’d be so far ahead financially that it’d be ridiculous. He probably still is. Might even own a house whilst his age peers are still paying off the sprinter vans they’ve all over capitalised.
And….he still rips.
Just watched him pull out the lost 5x5x19 1/4 card for the freesurf expression thingy and put it back and grab another card.( on the webcast).
most contrived being in pro surfing.
no identity other than pro surf me thinks.
did not even qualify through the qs.
"no identity other than pro surf me thinks."
Bit rough. Remember when he was the Weet Bix kid?
I am sorry, i cant recall.
He's just not as tough as his image makes him out to be.
i see him training before heats with brooko.
he is still going to be a pro surfer off tour.
His life can do what he wants.
At 23 he as had better waves already than all on here would get in a lifetime.
HA ! LOL! pro surfing the jokes on them ...
More retirements and COVID restrictions when does the WSL World Championship Tour become hollow? Good luck to those who want to be pro surfers but the whole show is on thin ice from what I can see. Best would be wait until COVID exhausted and have a rebel tour at a handful of spots, i.e. Dream Tour II, surfing was never meant to be a mainstream sport anyway.
More retirements and COVID restrictions when does the WSL World Championship Tour become hollow? I think Stu is on the money. Good luck to those who want to be pro surfers but the whole show is on thin ice from what I can see. Best would be wait until COVID exhausted and have a rebel tour at a handful of spots, i.e. Dream Tour II, surfing was never meant to be a mainstream sport anyway.
Think his brother owen if off now also. That will be an interesting ride home.
youtube pros of the future........ at least they can turn their boards.
Episode one Mikey gets a hair cut. Owen ponders the future.
I reckon this pro surfing tour shtick needs a rest. Must be absolutely punishing to try to run it this past couple of years.
Everyone have a spell for two years. Connect with the family, do a bit for your local community and see what comes out the other end.
Maybe we’ll all just giggle about how we used to treat surfing as a competition. Maybe instead the pinnacle of surfing will be some framed cutback in an art gallery or a packed open air cinema watching Ishka Folkwell’s latest masterpiece?
Anyone else formally really enjoyed watching the tour but now find the prospect of the upcoming Sheffield Shield season more appealing?
Its Mikeys life he did OK was a breath of fresh air at first but hes been injured
and the way the travel is with the china virus why would you put yourself
through it? He still has a contract with QS to go free surfing and make clips
a much nicer way to live and surf in my opinion and lets face it he seriously
rips no doubt but hacks his way in heats would never really make it.
As for the contest a lot of you people unfairly bag who ever runs it I for one
is thankful for their effort in trying to keep contest surfing going in such difficult and unpredictable times, dont agree with the final but do appreciate
the time money and effort. Some of you should have a look at yourselves.
honestly who gives a fucking shit about your scabby little life
I’m not sure everyone has to like competition surfing. Even if they do, nothing saying people have to like the product that is being put out now? (Granted it’s free and we have the option to turn on or off)
I'll bet he is going to make more money filming clips than he would on tour. Good decision.
The guy rips. The tour is stifling but "necessary" for so many like Mikey. Good on him. People can choose and do what they wish. The criticism on here degrading his achievements and effort is sad.