14-07-2025
SA's Jordy Smith eliminated by rookie in J-Bay
Rookie Frenchman Marco Mignot delivered a devastating blow, taking out world No 1 Jordy Smith in front of his home crowd and stripping him of the yellow leader jersey in the Corona Cero Open J-Bay on Sunday.
The event continued on Sunday to complete the men's round of 16 with three-to-five foot lines rolling through at Supertubes.
With a dissipating swell, conditions slowed down throughout the morning, and organisers decided not to run the women's quarterfinals on Sunday.
The competition has been called off for Monday and Tuesday, and the next call will be made on Wednesday at 7.45am for a possible 8.03am start.
On Sunday, Mignot stayed busy building a solid score, while Smith opted to wait for a bigger set wave, which never arrived.
Smith left it too late, needing a near-excellent score in the dying minutes, and Mignot advanced to his second quarterfinal appearance on the Champions Tour (CT).
'If you take on No 1, and you beat him, it's a bigger reward,' Mignot said.
'I always want to surf against the best and push myself. These moments are special, to share them with Jordy, the king of J-Bay, but I'm super happy to take the win.
'Before coming here, I was watching clips of Jordy, because I think he's the best out here.'
Drawing each other again but on a different continent, Americans Griffin Colapinto and Cole Houshmand got a rematch in Supertubes after facing each other in the final of the VIVO Rio Pro just over a week ago.
Colapinto got to work quickly to build a score, and shut it down with a 7.50 (out of a possible 10) for his powerful turns and drawn-out carves on a big J-Bay wall.
Coming under pressure from João Chianca (BRA) in the first heat of the round of 16, world No 2 Yago Dora (BRA) started on the back foot.
A quick equipment change saw a shift in momentum as Dora knew he had to get a big score on the board.
Relying on his aerial prowess, Dora raced down the line, launching himself into the golden light of the morning and navigating the landing for an excellent 9.00.
'I broke the tip of my fin, and that was my magic board,' Dora said.
'I didn't want to change boards, so I just caught a wave in to change the fin.
'There was a long lull, so I tried to stay patient and wait for an opportunity. It was a weird wave, so I knew I would have to go big again.
'The second best feeling in surfing is flying through the air and landing in the flats, it's so scary, so when you pull it off, it feels so good.'
With Smith knocked out of the event, Dora has moved into the No 1 position, but Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) can still challenge him for the yellow leader jersey in J-Bay as both advanced to the quarterfinals. — World Surf League
