A Boost of Brazilians

Tour rookie Italo Ferreira (BRA), 20, was defeated on Friday in solid six foot surf at the iconic Supertubos in Peniche. There was high drama, with upsets in the WSL Title race with local wildcards and new generation athletes reaching finals day in front of capacity crowds.

Toledo started his final with a bang, claiming the event’s second perfect 10 point ride for a combination of two aerial manoeuvres and transitional floaters to launch his assault towards a third event title this season. In a combination situation halfway through the Final, Ferreira took his air game to the next level and launched into a huge aerial for a near-perfect 9.93 that put him right back into the battle for first place.

Toledo kept building momentum and confidence and improved on his back-up score with another two-airs combination to increase his lead over Ferreira, ultimately clinching the Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal title. With a third victory this season, Toledo climbs up to second on the Jeep Leaderboard, only 200 points behind current WSL No.1 Mick Fanning (AUS).

“I have no words, I’m just so stoked,” Toledo said. “I had a crazy two weeks here, I hurt my back right when I got here after France. France was such a bummer for me, but it made me think about everything and put my mind in the right place and now the results are showing. The Final to me is the best heat, I don’t have anything to lose and I just go for it.”

One of the most in-form surfers throughout this whole event, Ferreira fell just short of a first ever CT victory in the final against Toledo, but proved to be extremely consistent in the various conditions on offer in Peniche. Current leader in the Rookie of the Year race, Ferreira nets a career-high result and vaults up to 6th on the Jeep Leaderboard in his inaugural season amongst the World’s Best surfers.

Brett Simpson (USA), 30, equalled his career-best result with a 3rd place in Peniche, defeated by event winner Toledo in their Semifinal bout. Simpson had a solid campaign in Portugal, defeating Kelly Slater (USA), Joel Parkinson (AUS) and giant killer Frederico Morais (PRT) for his spot in the semis among other big performances. This result will propel Simpson to 26th on the CT rankings, giving the Californian a shot at requalification in Hawaii.

In a re-match of last year’s World Junior Championship final, local wildcard Vasco Ribeiro (PRT), 20, took on Ferreira in the semifinals, but this time Ferreira was on a roll and Ribeiro couldn’t find the waves he needed to overtake the Brazilian. Ribeiro’s path to the semis was exemplary, having defeated Jeremy Flores (FRA), Michel Bourez (PYF) and Adriano De Souza (BRA) on his way to an equal third for his First time competing at the highest level.

Reigning WSL Champion Gabriel Medina (BRA), 21, had a mathematical shot at leaving Portugal with the Yellow Jersey had he won the event, but his Peniche campaign was halted in the quarterfinals by a lethal Ferreira. With an equal 5th today, Medina jumps up to No. 4 on the Jeep leaderboard and will be a strong contender when the World Title race resumes at Pipeline next month.

Following the completion of the Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal, the World Title Race heads to Pipeline, Hawaii for the final stop in the 2015 Samsung Galaxy World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT), the Billabong Pipe Masters from December 8-20.

Heading into Pipe, six athletes remain in a mathematical position to clinch the coveted WSL Title with the following scenarios:

* If Mick Fanning finishes 25th/13th
Owen Wright & Julian Wilson will need a 1st;
Gabriel Medina will need a 3rd or better;
Adriano de Souza will need a 9th or better;
Filipe Toledo will need a 13th or better to clinch the World Title;

* If Fanning finishes 9th
Medina will need a 1st;
De Souza will need a 5th;
Toledo will need a 9th;

* If Fanning finishes 5th
Medina will need a 1st;
De Souza will need a 3rd;
Toledo will need a 5th;

* If Fanning finishes 3rd
De Souza will need a 2nd;
Toledo will need a 3rd;

* If Fanning finishes 2nd
De Souza will need a 1st;
Toledo will need a 1st;

If Mick wins the event he will clinch the World Title. All the results, photos and video footage from the Moche Rip Curl Pro can be found on WorldSurfLeague.com and on the WSL mobile app.

Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal Final Results:
1 - Filipe Toledo (BRA) 17.83
2 - Italo Ferreira (BRA) 17.13
 
Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal Semifinal Results:
SF 1: Filipe Toledo (BRA) 14.60 def. Brett Simpson (USA) 12.94
SF 2: Italo Ferreira (BRA) 13.37 def. Vasco Ribeiro (PRT) 9.10
 
Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal Quarterfinal Results:
QF 1: Filipe Toledo (BRA) 9.73 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 8.67
QF 2: Brett Simpson (USA) 10.54 def. Frederico Morais (PRT) 10.46
QF 3: Vasco Ribeiro (PRT) 13.34 def. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 8.17
QF 4: Italo Ferreira (BRA) 18.27 def. Gabriel Medina (BRA) 6.83
 
Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal Round 5 Results:
Heat 3: Vasco Ribeiro (PRT) 10.43 def. Michel Bourez (PYF) 9.77
Heat 4: Gabriel Medina (BRA) 9.26 def. Keanu Asing (HAW) 5.30
 
WSL Men’s Top10 (after Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal):
1. Mick Fanning (AUS) 49,900 pts
2. Filipe Toledo (BRA) 49,700 pts
3. Adriano De Souza (BRA) 49,450 pts
4. Gabriel Medina (BRA) 45,530 pts
5. Owen Wright (AUS) 43,600 pts
6. Italo Ferreira (BRA) 41,600 pts
7. Julian Wilson (AUS) 41,450 pts
8. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 37,700 pts
9. Kelly Slater (USA) 34,150 pts
10. Nat Young (USA) 33,200 pts
29. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 13,950 pts