Wow.

That was some contest.

Moana, Slater, classic Pipe. Records, upsets, injuries, surprises and redemption.

Fantasy-wise, it was a mixed mag. Anyone who picked the usual suspects of Kelly, John and Mr Consistency Kanoa were rewarded, as were those who believed in Carissa. Moana was another ‘obvious’ pick who came through, and both Miggy and Seth repaid the faith of the data.

There were dark horses though. Sammy Pupo and Lucca Messinas were surprise quarter-finalists, while 2021 ROTY Morgs and heavy-wave favourite Jack Robinson disappointed.

Let’s have a quick look at how Pipe played out by letting the numbers tell the story.

37,960

That’s the score that Gus Bomba posted to claim the first event of the season. It may not make him a Pipe Master, but it certainly puts him in the driver’s seat for a free week at Kingfisher Resort. He also walks away with:

• a 12-month subscription to fuel.tv, the action sports television and streaming service
• a 12-month subscription to the Holistic Academy online surf-training and performance program

Well played, Gus!

12,364

At around a third of the winner’s total, Jeandre Blignault picked a fairly poor team. At first we thought he was deliberately bombing in order to secure the 12-month digital subscription to Surfing Life, but then we realised he’d spent big in order to stack his team with expensive surfers.

It never pays off.

To be sure though, we’re adding a new rule: to be eligible for the last-place prize of a Surfing Life subscription, players must select a full team of 8 surfers as well as an emergency substitute.

This way, we can make sure that we’re sending the consolation prize to someone who genuinely tried and failed. It’s the least we can do.

(By the way, Jeandre still gets his prize; check your emails if you’re reading…)

0

The number of perfect rides (across both men’s and women’s events) at Pipe this year.

The judges seemed pretty determined to keep the scale low throughout, so the tens were kept in the pocket this year.

1

Rookies earning a 33rd place at the first event of the year.

Nobody wants to start the year with a dirty turd, especially with a cut-off after 5 events. With lower seeds and lesser experience, the large 2022 rookie class were always at risk of suffering a few ignoble results. But no.

Jordan Lawler (not a rookie), Morgan Cibilic (2021) ROTY, veteran Jadson Andre all suffered straight-set losses. It was Hawaiian phenom Imaikalani deVault who disappointed many fantasy players with his poor rookie debut.

Hopefully he’ll bounce back for Sunset.

2

Rookies making the quarter-finals.

On the other side of the coin, two rookies enjoyed a dream debut; Samuel Pupo and Lucca Mesinas are currently sitting at 5th in the world on the back of some serious sleeper success.

3

Caio’s Ibelli’s current rank.

It was a sweet irony that Caio’s biggest rival on tour has gifted him such an incredible opportunity. Caio was off-tour at the end of 2021 and languishing in the lowly 3rd-replacement zone behind Jordy Lawler and Matthew McGillivray for a tour call-up. But with Ryan Callinan and Yago already out, Gabriel Medina’s withdrawal for personal reasons gave Caio another chance.

With a solid 3rd place at Pipe and some serious long-term injuries being added to the tour roster (Carlos Munoz and Liam O’Brien are out), Caio is probably wondering why he didn’t drop off tour earlier.

5

Years after Kelly Slater’s first Pipe win (1992) that fellow finalist Seth Moniz was born.

In fact, by the time Seth was taking his first breath in August 1997, Kelly had already won Pipe four times.

6

Years since Kelly’s last event win.

Remember Tahiti in 2016? It seems like a long time ago, no? Many thought it would stand as Kelly’s last ever event win, but, after a long break, Slater has added to his bounty. He now has an incredible 56 CT event wins.

Gabriel Medina has 16.

John has 8.

8

Pipe titles for Kelly.

That’s across a little over 31 years.

It’s the most wins by any single surfer at any single event. Ever. And it’s at PIPE!

The next closest Pipe specialist? The late, great Andy Irons. Maybe Andy would have had a few more in him before his untimely death, but as his record stands, it’s just half of King Kelly’s (4).

12

Years since a wildcard won a CT event.

Moana Jones Wong’s incredible win was one for the books. The last wildcard to win a CT event was Tyler Wright way back in 2010 (at Sunset).

The last time a surfer won a CT event in their very first tour appearance was also Tyler at Manly in 2008.

You need to go all the way back to Snapper 2005 to find a wildcard (just a little someone called Steph Gilmore) who won the first event of the season and led the tour on debut.

Moana seems to have followed a fantastic pedigree with her breakthrough event.

13

Number of brothers who have competed together at a Pipe CT event.

John/Ivan Florence and Sam/Miggy Pupo increased the fraternal statistics for the event, adding to some respectable family names such as Ho, Hobgood and Irons.

97

Percentage of FSS players who selected John John Florence for their fantasy team.

While 5th probably wasn’t where we expected to see him finish, you’d have been crazy to leave him out.

Other notable ownership stats included: Kelly Slater, 71%, Seth Moniz, 56%, Caio Ibelli, 19% and Miguel Pupo, just 4%.

Worth mentioning also is Jack Robinson, who disappointed 78% of players with his loss.

So, with only days to go until Sunset kicks off, it’s time to lock in your own numbers and sort out that fantasy team.

Good luck!