The HIC Pro, which is the official qualifying event for the Triple Crown of Surfing, has been underway at Sunset Beach over the past few days. The large field is beginning to dwindle and the eliminations have been hazardous for a lot of the more well-known competitors.
This is just the beginning, but the Triple Crown annually concludes with the Billabong Pipe Masters and Monday was also a significant day for that event, despite it still being more than a month away. Two of the sport’s most renowned names announced they would be back in the mix for the season finale at Pipeline, which should add even more drama to the Triple Crown and world title races.
John John Florence and Kelly Slater have surfed just five and two events this season, respectively. Florence injured his knee during a freesurf session in Bali, and Slater has been getting healthy after fracturing his foot in 2017 and then facing a bout of turf toe earlier this year. But the two heavyweights are re-entering the fray at a wave that has helped define each of their careers.
Getting regulars back into the lineup always makes for a deeper and tougher contest. But when we’re talking about Florence and Slater, the Championship Tour finale now feels like a pressure cooker for the three world title contenders.
Gabriel Medina, Julian Wilson and Filipe Toledo all have a chance to come away with the 2018 crown. Each of their paths to that dream scenario could now include a duel with Florence or Slater in the fairly early stages of the event.
Two men who have been a part of some of the most memorable moments in Pipeline competition history can each serve as spoilers with a major say in the 2018 champion. We all know that Slater would love to have a big showing and pick up his eighth Pipe Masters victory to head into what he says will be his final CT run in 2019.
Plus, this remains the only accomplishment Florence is yet to tick off on his career checklist. He’s been a world champ (twice), a Triple Crown champ (three times), a Pipe Pro champ (four times) an Eddie Aikau champ (2016), but amazingly never a Pipe Masters champ. Having grown up literally steps from the wave, it’s only a matter of time before he achieves that mark and picks up that final piece of hardware.
While he will certainly hope to take care of business himself, this news is probably best for Medina. For either Wilson or Toledo to overtake him for the title, each would need to at least reach the final heat. Having both Florence and Slater in the mix makes that a tougher task, regardless of how the draw shakes out.
Slater is set to open up the event in heat one against Jordy Smith and Frederico Morais. Florence is lined up in heat seven against Wade Carmichael and Griffin Colapinto. We’ll have to see what type of form they’re in after staying away from competition for much of the year, but I would feel pretty certain that each is gearing up for a memorable comeback at the world’s most iconic location.
With that still off in the distance, the more immediate concern is the HIC Pro. The later rounds should be pulsing in the coming days, however they will not include Kauai surfers Evan Valiere, Koa Smith or Chris Foster. Valiere was knocked out Tuesday from his round three heat because of an interference call. Valiere had made it through his first two rounds and would have also advanced to round four if not for the triangle coming out on his third wave.
Seth Moniz, Imai Devault, Finn McGill, Leo Fioravanti, Mitch Coleborn, Nathan Florence, Wiggolly Dantas, Makuakai Rothman, Ian Walsh, Eli Olson, Ryder Guest and Mason Ho have all been knocked off in the early going. Four-man heats will continue to be treacherous and the right amount of luck, skill and creativity will eventually culminate in a champ.
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David Simon can be reached at dsimon@thegardenisland.com.
