- Reigning World Champions Return to Their Happy Place
- Bryan and Ferreira Look to Consolidate Top Spot
- Earle Leads Wildcard Contingent in First CT Appearances
- More Available at WorldSurfLeague.com
Pictured: The full CT field returns to the Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero, and the event window officially opens tomorrow, Tuesday, August 25. Credit: WSL / Aaron Hughes
CLOUDBREAK, Fiji (Monday, August 24, 2026) – A full field of the world’s best surfers has touched down in the tropical paradise of Fiji ahead of this year’s Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero, Stop No. 8 of the World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT), which holds a competition window from August 25 to September 4. With fun waves on the forecast, the anticipation is growing ahead of an incredible showdown at Cloudbreak, the famed left-hander known to be one of the best waves on the planet. As this year’s Tour has just passed the halfway mark, this event will play a pivotal role in shaping the rankings for the back half of the season as the race to the 2026 World Title begins to heat up.
The first call to start the competition will be tomorrow, Tuesday, August 25, at 7:30 am FJI time for a possible 8:00 a.m. start.
Reigning World Champions Return to Their Happy Place
The 2025 Fiji event hosted the WSL Finals, a one-day winner-take-all event that saw Molly Picklum (AUS) and Yago Dora (BRA) each claim their maiden World Titles with emphatic performances at Cloudbreak. This year, the pair returns to their happy place, but the task looks a little different, with an entire field to get through over multiple days of competition before they can etch their name on the Fiji trophy once again. Sitting in third place on the rankings with a win and a runner-up to his name, Dora is in need of some consistency and more solid results if he’s to put himself in the conversation for back-to-back world titles by season’s end. The stylish goofy-footer sees Cloudbreak as the perfect place to start that run this week.
“Fiji has always been a special place for me, even before I won my World Title here,” Dora said. “After last year, I really feel like I have a special bond with this place and this wave, and I feel really confident coming back here to a wave that really suits my surfing. This year’s Fiji Pro is an important event for me, and it’s a key time of year to achieve a big result. In my head, I need to win to turn this year around and get in the lead again, so that’s what I’m aiming for. I know how good the next few events are for me, and statistically, I’ve done really well at those events, so I want to start the run here and get some momentum heading into the back end of the year.”
For Picklum, a win here is almost essential if she’s to have a chance at claiming back-to-back World Titles. After starting the year with a runner-up finish at the Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, Picklum has only passed the Quarterfinals once this year to finish in third place in El Salvador. The tenacious Australian is confident that she can turn the year around as she comes into the next two events (Fiji and Trestles) as the defending winner and looks to go back-to-back on all fronts, starting here in Fiji.
“It’s so nice coming back here to Fiji,” Picklum said. “You get to reminisce on those memories and look back on those times. At the same time, though, I’m super aware that this is a new year and a new event, and I can’t just sit back and hope that all of the same things unfold. I obviously want the same result, but I feel different this time and this year, so I’m just excited. I love Fiji. The place is amazing; the people are so warm. It’s really hard not to be happy here, so I’m just happy to be back. It’s been a hectic season so far on Tour, so I’m just stoked to get some Island time. This year, I’ll be pacing myself a lot more than last year. Last year, I knew it was just one event, one last time, so I put the pedal to the metal, but this year I have to be a bit smarter about where I spend my energy. Obviously, you want to give your all, but you need to know that in two weeks we have another event, so it’s just being smart with energy, I suppose.”
Bryan and Ferreira Look to Consolidate Top Spot
An extremely consistent year sees Gabriela Bryan (HAW) holding the Yellow Leader Jersey coming into Fiji. The 24-year-old Hawaii representative also comes into Fiji fresh off her worst result in over a year after she bowed out in the first round in Tahiti earlier this month. Having made huge improvements to her backhand tuberiding over the last season, Bryan is confident she can find that winning feeling again here at Cloudbreak and is fully aware that a win here would put her well out in front as she eyes her maiden World Title.
“I am leading the rankings but not by very much,” Bryan said. “Let’s just call it like a six-way tie at this point, and I just happen to be sitting in amongst it all with a different color jersey on. It’s been a crazy year so far, starting off with a win, then getting to here. I feel like my surfing has been good, but everyone on tour surfs so well, so there is no easy heat. I had a pretty rough run in Tahiti, so I’m just working through that, but it’s so good to be back in Fiji. This place is so powerful that it makes it simple; you’re just looking for big turns or big barrels. I was also over here before Tahiti, so I had some good practice here and feel really ready for it. I’ve been here a few times now but still haven’t got that solid result. I really do think Cloudbreak is one of those waves where the more time you spend here, the more it makes sense. I think it’s one of the trickiest lineups on tour, so I’m glad I’ve got some more time here, especially without the tour here. I’m feeling way more prepared this year, and the forecast is looking pretty nice, which is awesome.”
On the men’s side, Italo Ferreira (BRA) comes into Fiji sitting clear on top of the rankings with two thirds, a second, and a win to his name. Known for his dynamic frontside surfing and prowess in the tube, Cloudbreak is a wave made for Ferreira, but it is a location he has yet to find success at. With the World Title showdown returning to Pipeline in 2026, for the first time since Ferreira claimed a famous event win for the World Title in 2019, the Brazilian will look to secure his spot on top heading into the last few events of the season, starting with a big result here in Fiji.
“Things have been so special with my family,” said Ferreira. “Especially with Martin, he’s already eight months old. My wife just sent me a video right now where he’s watching some clips, and he was smiling and having fun with the clips, and that was super nice because I miss him. I’m going to meet them in California, so that’s going to be sick, and I can’t wait to see them both again. Last year was pretty hard because we were traveling, and Sofia was [pregnant] with Martin, and then this year we tried to find some good places to travel, but I think next year is going to be sick, because he will be a year and a half, so it’s going to be easy, and then it’s going to be super special.”
Pictured: Fiji Pro Trials Winners, Ulukilupetea “Tea” Kurop (FJI) and Teo Degei (FJI), will compete against the world’s best surfers at Cloudbreak once the opening rounds are called on. Credit: WSL / Aaron Hughes
Earle Leads Wildcard Contingent in First CT Appearances
This year’s Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero will see three event Wildcards, including local trials winners Ulukilupetea “Tea” Kurop (FJI) and Teo Degei (FJI), along with 2022 WSL World Junior Champion Jarvis Earle (AUS). Earle will make his CT debut at Fiji as the official event wildcard, as the highest-ranked Australia / Oceania surfer on the Challenger Series. He is currently in pursuit of a full-time CT spot and arrives in Cloudbreak with plenty of confidence, given his front-hand stance and the absence of the CT’s pressure on his shoulders. The opportunity to test himself among the best in the world will mark a significant step in his career.
“This is a pretty big opportunity for me to be in this event,” Earle said. “Obviously, these guys are the world’s best surfers, and this is a world-class wave, so it’s really exciting to be a part of it. This is one of my favorite waves in the world, so I just want to try and showcase some good surfing and hopefully get some barrels. Coming into this event, I don’t feel like I’ve got a lot of pressure on me, so I should be able to surf pretty freely. Everyone else here is looking for a result to requalify for the tour or to win a world title, so there is a lot of pressure on them, whereas I should just be able to open up and do some good surfing.”
For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.
2026 Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero Women’s Round 1 Matchups
- HEAT 1: Yolanda Hopkins (POR) vs. Tya Zebrowski (FRA)
- HEAT 2: Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) vs. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS)
- HEAT 3: Alyssa Spencer (USA) vs. Vahine Fierro (FRA)
- HEAT 4: Anat Lelior (ISR) vs. Brisa Hennessy (CRC)
- HEAT 5: Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) vs. Bella Kenworthy (USA)
- HEAT 6: Tyler Wright (AUS) vs. Francisca Veselko (POR)
- HEAT 7: Erin Brooks (CAN) vs. Sophie McCulloch (AUS)
- HEAT 8: Isabella Nichols (AUS) vs. Ulukilupetea Kurop (FJI)
2026 Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero Men’s Round 1 Matchups
- HEAT 1: Luke Thompson (RSA) vs. Matthew McGillivray (RSA)
- HEAT 2: Eli Hanneman (HAW) vs. Teo Degei (FJI)
- HEAT 3: Mateus Herdy (BRA) vs. Jarvis Earle (AUS)
- HEAT 4: Ramzi Boukhiam (MAR) vs. Oscar Berry (AUS)
Watch LIVE
The Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero, Stop No. 8 on the 2026 WSL Championship Tour, holds a competition window from August 25 to September 4, 2026. The competition will be broadcast LIVE on WorldSurfLeague.com and the free WSL app. Also, check out more ways to watch from the WSL’s broadcast partners.
The Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero is proudly supported by Tourism Fiji, Corona Cero, YETI, I-SEA, Red Bull, Surfline, Bonsoy, Fiji Marriott Resort Momi Bay, Tavarua Island Resort, Fiji Airways, One Ocean, and True Surf.
For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.