Yesterday at Margaret River was a sad affair. With multiple surfers competing for their 'CT lives, when the ax started to fall, things got really somber, and quick.
It all started with Deivid Silva coming up just short against John Florence. Next up was the GOAT, and then Jacob Willcox, Frederico Morais, Eli Hanneman, Ian Gentil, Kade Matson and Callum Robson all got the chop.
Is it a fair system? Not really. Willcox, Hanneman, and Matson are all rookies. Shouldn't they get more than 5 events to prove their worth?
Either way, it seems like the mid-season cut is here to stay. We've seen Joao Chianca get cut, and then finish Top 5 in the following season. Will any of the recent victims follow suit? If there's any consolation prize, the first stop on the Challenger Series is at Snapper Rocks, a former 'CT venue, and a wave that's objectively more fun than Margarets.
Will Slater show? As crazy as it sounds, the GOAT hinted that he might enter if the forecast looks solid. And if he bags a big result? Maybe keep that retirement champagne on ice. At least until Fiji.
In the meantime, when the comp resumes, the grim reaper will still be hanging around WA. On the men's side, Miguel Pupo, Sammy Pupo, Seth Moniz and Caio Ibelli are surfing for their 'CT lives in the next round, with Yago Dora out of the comp and sitting dangerously close to the cutline.
Unfortunately for the Pupo brothers, they're matched up against one another in the second heat of the round of 16, meaning one of them will send the other back to the Challenger Series. For the women, only Luana Silva is out of the comp (and will likely get cut), meaning the ax is yet to fall on 5 more women as well.
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