On his journey from France to Portugal, Ross Williams spent some serious time mulling over his Fantasy Team. Having kept a sharp eye on the competitors during last week's Quiksilver Pro France, he took one last look at the forecast before we caught up with him at about midnight in Peniche to hear his thoughts.
In Portugal last year, John John Florence was a Round Three casualty to Keanu Asing. He'll be looking to redeem himself this year. - WSL / Poullenot/Aquashot
WSL: Okay, so you're really sticking your neck out here with John John and Gabriel in Tier A, eh?
Ross Williams: Haha. Well I got pretty burned picking Kelly in the last event so I'm still a bit scarred from that one. Plus, I think John and Gabe are too obvious not to pick.
What's interesting, however, is that neither of them have a crazy Heat Win Percentage (HWP) in Portugal. They're both in the mid-50s, as compared to France where they were high 60s and Gabe was at 75.
Yeah, but I think John's proven he's in a different place this year, and Gabe's a madman right now going for the title.
Medina was tagged for an interference call against Italo Ferreira in last year's Quarterfinal, so he too will be looking for vengeance. - WSL / Poullenot/Aquashot
What are you looking for with your Tier B picks in Peniche?
I'm picturing all the guys who surf great in punchy, peaky waves -- which frankly, is a pretty long list of guys -- so this one was tough. But Italo went absolutely nuts last year, so he was the easiest of the bunch.
Yeah, his HWP is 71.43, but that's all based on his appearance in last year's event.
I think these conditions are perfect for him. Adriano is just an animal out there too. Very fast and sure on his feet. I think Josh Kerr is going to bounce back here in these conditions, and I really like what I'm seeing out of Parko lately. He's surfing great and looks like he's having a good time, which always helps.
After his jaw-dropping performance last year in Peniche, Italo is no longer a sleeper pick. - WSL / Poullenot/Aquashot
Who did it hurt to pass on here?
I'd say my toughest guys to leave out of this bunch were Caio Ibelli and Seabass [Sebastian Zietz]. I can easily see both of those guys doing well out here because their styles suit these kinds of conditions. Caio was a wildcard here last year and competed well. Ace Buchan is another one who's always a reliable earner in this stuff. That said, I like my picks. They're all competing well this year and rip this type of wave.
Surfing as a wildcard in 2015 Caio Ibelli made it to Round Three before losing to Medina in a close battle. But his strong performance stuck with Williams, who had a tough time leaving Ibelli off his roster this year. - WSL / Poullenot/Aquashot
Alright, so tell me about your Tier C reasoning.
This one was tough too, because I feel like there are a lot of good sleeper picks in this field: Dusty Payne, Matt Banting and Alejo Muniz are all guys I can see stepping up at a place like this. But I'm really liking Jack Freestone and Ryan Callinan here, so I went with them. I know they're both young rookies who've had challenging seasons, but they're both crazy talented.
I could see either win an event like this. Ryan really stepped up in France with that big air against John, and I think he's just now getting his confidence going. As for Jack, well, we saw what he could do in punchy peaks in Brazil. Plus these guys have extra motivation with the whole requalification race. They're pretty far out on the CT rankings at the moment, so they've got nothing to lose, which is exactly where Keanu was in France.
Watch the MEO Rip Curl Pro starting at 8:05 am WET, or watch the complete replay starting at 12:00 pm PDT.
Ross Williams' Fantasy Rundown for the MEO Rip Curl Pro
WSL
On his journey from France to Portugal, Ross Williams spent some serious time mulling over his Fantasy Team. Having kept a sharp eye on the competitors during last week's Quiksilver Pro France, he took one last look at the forecast before we caught up with him at about midnight in Peniche to hear his thoughts.
WSL: Okay, so you're really sticking your neck out here with John John and Gabriel in Tier A, eh?
Ross Williams: Haha. Well I got pretty burned picking Kelly in the last event so I'm still a bit scarred from that one. Plus, I think John and Gabe are too obvious not to pick.
What's interesting, however, is that neither of them have a crazy Heat Win Percentage (HWP) in Portugal. They're both in the mid-50s, as compared to France where they were high 60s and Gabe was at 75.
Yeah, but I think John's proven he's in a different place this year, and Gabe's a madman right now going for the title.
What are you looking for with your Tier B picks in Peniche?
I'm picturing all the guys who surf great in punchy, peaky waves -- which frankly, is a pretty long list of guys -- so this one was tough. But Italo went absolutely nuts last year, so he was the easiest of the bunch.
Yeah, his HWP is 71.43, but that's all based on his appearance in last year's event.
I think these conditions are perfect for him. Adriano is just an animal out there too. Very fast and sure on his feet. I think Josh Kerr is going to bounce back here in these conditions, and I really like what I'm seeing out of Parko lately. He's surfing great and looks like he's having a good time, which always helps.
Who did it hurt to pass on here?
I'd say my toughest guys to leave out of this bunch were Caio Ibelli and Seabass [Sebastian Zietz]. I can easily see both of those guys doing well out here because their styles suit these kinds of conditions. Caio was a wildcard here last year and competed well. Ace Buchan is another one who's always a reliable earner in this stuff. That said, I like my picks. They're all competing well this year and rip this type of wave.
Alright, so tell me about your Tier C reasoning.
This one was tough too, because I feel like there are a lot of good sleeper picks in this field: Dusty Payne, Matt Banting and Alejo Muniz are all guys I can see stepping up at a place like this. But I'm really liking Jack Freestone and Ryan Callinan here, so I went with them. I know they're both young rookies who've had challenging seasons, but they're both crazy talented.
I could see either win an event like this. Ryan really stepped up in France with that big air against John, and I think he's just now getting his confidence going. As for Jack, well, we saw what he could do in punchy peaks in Brazil. Plus these guys have extra motivation with the whole requalification race. They're pretty far out on the CT rankings at the moment, so they've got nothing to lose, which is exactly where Keanu was in France.
Watch the MEO Rip Curl Pro starting at 8:05 am WET, or watch the complete replay starting at 12:00 pm PDT.
Italo Ferreira
Featuring Italo Ferreira, Griffin Colapinto, Jack Robinson, Marco Mignot, Yago Dora, and Ethan Ewing.
Current World No.1 Italo Ferreira continues to show his dominant form in the air at Peniche. Ferreira stomped a massive full rotation to
The two-time event champ, Italo Ferreira, took to the air once again for another excellent score - posting an 8.17 - over wildcard Jorgann
The former back-to-back event champ, Italo Ferreira, showed his composure with his back against the wall and launched himself into an 8.83
Italo Ferreira is back in yellow. After a strong start to the season-finishing with a semifinals result at Pipeline and taking the win in
MEO Rip Curl Pro Portugal
The Jeep Leader talks with Pete Mel following his huge Quarterfinal win over Julian Wilson in pumping surf.
Florence's lead sponsor pays tribute to their star team rider and his first World Championship.
Joel Parkinson finished in ninth place in the MEO Rip Curl Pro, but he was at the top of the podium for cinematic distinction on a wave.
Inspired by John Florence's historic World Title win, the 11x Champ wants to put a solid season together in 2017.
A drone's-eye view of the world's best surfers taking on the unruly barrels of Supertubos.