SNAPPER ROCKS, Queensland, Australia (Saturday, May 4, 2024) – Today, Erin Brooks (CAN) and Mikey McDonagh (AUS) won the Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro presented by GWM, Stop No. 1 of the 2024 World Surf League (WSL) Challenger Series (CS). The pair were the standout performers on an action-packed Finals Day, with Snapper Rocks delivering epic conditions once again with clean surf in the three-to-four-foot range.
16-Year-old Erin Brooks Scores Perfect 10 on Finals Day, Continues to Put Surfing World on Notice
16-year-old Erin Brooks (CAN) has started her 2024 Challenger Series season perfectly, claiming an epic win at Snapper Rocks. This is Brooks’ second event win on the Challenger Series level, and it will see her lead the Challenger rankings as she hopes to qualify for the elite Championship Tour by the season’s end.
“It feels really good to win,” Brooks said. “Good job to Luana (Silva). I thought she was going to get me in the end. I made so many mistakes in the heat, so I’m glad to get the win. My goals are to keep surfing well and I’m really excited about the next event at North Narrabeen. It’s a left and I really prefer to go left, plus I just spent a month training on my frontside in Fiji, so hopefully I can continue to do well.”
In the Final, Brooks faced Brazil’s Luana Silva, who had been on a roll over the last few days of competition. Silva may have dropped the first score of the Final, but Brooks had control of the matchup early, posting an excellent 8.00-point ride (out of a possible 10) on her opening ride. Silva kept busy, posting mid-range scores, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Brooks’ heat total of 13.90 (out of a possible 20).
On her way to the win, Brooks earned a Perfect 10-point ride for a super deep barrel ride in Semifinal 1 against Isabella Nichols (AUS). The prodigious young goofy-footer took off deep, grabbing her rail to pull up into a huge pit, completely disappearing before flying out with a huge spit. Brooks continued down the line to tag three turns and guarantee a perfect score. It was the second perfect score of the event, the second ever on the women’s Challenger Series, and the first of Brooks’ career.
“That is definitely the best barrel I’ve had in a contest,” Brooks said. “It was much bigger than I realized. I knew whoever got that wave would win the heat. It was such a perfect barrel.”
Lennox Head’s Mikey McDonagh Earns Career-Best Result
Lennox Head local Mikey McDonagh (AUS) claimed the biggest win of his career today at Snapper Rocks, dominating the day and, in particular, the Final against reigning event winner Samuel Pupo (BRA). McDonagh is in his second season on the Challenger Series, and after finishing 27th in the rankings in 2023, this is the perfect start for the 22-year-old who has aspirations to join the CT by the end of the year.
“I still don’t even know if this is real,” McDonagh said. “It feels like it could be a dream, and I could wake up at any moment. This is the best day of my life. I’m pretty lost for words, to be honest. I haven’t cracked the Quarters before, I’ve had a lot of 9th-place results so getting into the Quarterfinals is definitely a bit of a monkey off the back. I felt like once I got into those rounds, I could actually unshackle the chains off me and actually show my surfing. It’s a long year, but I’m super stoked to start this way, and I just want to keep it going and hopefully get to the end goal.”
In the Final, McDonagh took charge early, surfing multiple waves all the way down the point, getting cheers from the crowd on every turn. McDonagh eventually landed on a two-wave total of 15.43 (out of a possible 20), which left Pupo needing a near-perfect score. McDonagh’s power and flow on his frontside was the perfect match for the long walls of Snapper Rocks, and it was enough to see him get the win and leave the Gold Coast sitting on top of the rankings.
Brazilians Luana Silva and Samuel Pupo Finish Runner-Up
Samuel Pupo (BRA) could not find a rhythm in the Final to claim back-to-back wins on the Gold Coast, but he was one of the clear standouts of the event, posting some of the biggest scores all week at Snapper Rocks. On his way to the Final, Pupo posted a near-perfect 9.73 for an incredible series of critical snaps and powerful carves. After falling short of the Mid-season Cut and being relegated from the Championship Tour just over a week ago, today’s runner-up finish is a great result for Pupo as he looks to requalify for the CT for the 2025 season.
“I’m really grateful to be here to be in another final,” said Pupo. “My biggest goal over the last two years has been just being more consistent, and I’ve been doing pretty well in the last three events, so I’m happy with that. That’s my main focus now, just going back to back the results. Congrats to Mikey. He didn’t get in the Final because he was lucky, it was because he was surfing. Now it’s just backing it up with a big result, really. We know it’s not easy. It’s a good result, but we still have a lot of work to do. Last year, I almost didn’t qualify with a win, so I know that I have to back it up. Let’s do it.”
Similarly to Pupo, Luana Silva (BRA) was recently relegated from the CT and came to the Gold Coast in desperate need of a big result. Although she fell short of claiming her maiden Challenger Series win, a second-place finish is a keeper result and will reduce some of the pressure as she
heads to the GWM Sydney Surf Pro, which will commence next week at North Narrabeen.
“I’m really happy with the way I performed the whole event,” said Silva. “Not satisfied because I didn’t get that win, but just really proud of myself for how I was composed through the whole event and my performance. We still have five more events to go. It’s a long year ahead. I’m super happy with my equipment. Big thanks to Sharp Eye and Sharp Eye Australia, who made incredible boards for me this year. I am just stoked to make the Final.”
For more highlights and news from the entire Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM, please visitWorldSurfLeague.com.
Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Women’s Final Results:
1 – Erin Brooks (CAN) 13.90
2 – Luana Silva (BRA) 12.57
Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Men’s Final Results:
1 – Mikey McDonagh (AUS) 15.43
2 – Samuel Pupo (BRA) 12.93
Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Women’s Semifinal Results:
HEAT 1: Erin Brooks (CAN) 16.83 DEF. Isabella Nichols (AUS) 10.63
HEAT 2: Luana Silva (BRA) 14.17 DEF. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 11.90
Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Men’s Semifinal Results:
HEAT 1: Mikey McDonagh (AUS) 14.66 DEF. Josh Burke (BRB) 11.33
HEAT 2: Samuel Pupo (BRA) 16.10 DEF. George Pittar (AUS) 14.00
Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Women’s Quarterfinal Results:
HEAT 1: Erin Brooks (CAN) 13.67 DEF. Nadia Erostarbe (EUK) 10.10
HEAT 2: Isabella Nichols (AUS) 16.46 DEF. Macy Callaghan (AUS) 10.34
HEAT 3: Luana Silva (BRA) 13.83 DEF. Bronte Macaulay (AUS) 13.77
HEAT 4: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 10.73 DEF. Alyssa Spencer (USA) 10.53
Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM Men’s Quarterfinal Results:
HEAT 1: Josh Burke (BRB) 15.83 DEF. Joao Chianca (BRA) 11.16
HEAT 2: Mikey McDonagh (AUS) 13.77 DEF. Dakoda Walters (AUS) 12.77
HEAT 3: Samuel Pupo (BRA) 12.23 DEF. Ian Gouveia (BRA) 9.93
HEAT 4: George Pittar (AUS) 17.00 DEF. Michael Rodrigues (BRA) 15.17
For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.