Michael February has delivered his career-best result as he finished fifth in the Tahiti Pro Teahupo’o event No 7 of 11 at the 2018 World Surf League Championship Tour.
February, who had not progressed beyond round three in his previous seven events on the elite 34-man tour, was eventually ousted by Jeep Rankings Leader Filipe Toledo from Brazil in their quarter-final match-up.
The Championship Tour rookie from Cape Town had earlier defeated Durban compatriot Jordy Smith in the third round and won his three-man round four heat over Australian Wade Carmichael and Ezekiel Lau from Hawaii.
February earned 4,745 points that saw him jump four places to No 27 on the CT rankings, and within 2,000 points of a qualifying spot for the 2019 elite tour with four events remaining in the 2018 season.
Gabriel Medina from Brazil claimed his second Tahiti Pro Teahupo’o title and his first win of 2018 by defeating Australian Owen Wright in the final; he held in clean but inconsistent 1-1.5m waves at the famed South Pacific reef pass.
‘I’m just so happy to win here again, I just want to thank God. I feel blessed to have been in the right spots at this event and now I’m going to enjoy this moment, then I’m focusing on the next event,’ Medina said.
‘I came here and trained a lot, and I was just waiting for the victory. I love Tahiti and I’ve had some great finals here. I’ve won here before, two second-place finishes, and another win now,’ commented Medina.
Medina’s victory moves him up from third to second on the Jeep Leaderboard, 6,300 points behind Toledo and well within striking distance of capturing a second WSL title this year if he maintains strong results in the final four events, two of which he won last year.
Wright’s runner-up finish marks his best result in Tahiti and his best result of the season.
The rankings leader’s form was impeccable throughout the event, including a brilliant quarter-final win over rookie February, who will retain the Jeep Leader Jersey going into the next stop, the Surf Ranch Pro in Lemoore, California in September.
WSL Men’s CT Jeep Leaderboard (After Tahiti Pro):
1 Filipe Toledo (BRA) 41,985
2 Gabriel Medina (BRA) 35,685
3 Julian Wilson (AUS) 32,380
4 Italo Ferreira (BRA) 30,160
5 Wade Carmichael (AUS) 25,550
South Africans
7 Jordy Smith (Durban) 23,575
27 Michael February (Cape Town) 11,000
43 Matthew McGillivray (Jeffreys Bay) 420
PHOTO: WSL/Poullenot