Goofy-footers Cole Houshmand and Erin Brooks surged in the rankings with wins at Cloudbreak. Photo: Aaron Hughes//Cait Miers//WSL
Cloudbreak delivered. As if we needed more evidence why the Fijian barrier reef needs a permanent stop on the Championship Tour, the Fiji Pro handed out countless barrels and three perfect 10s in the event’s return to a full-time tour stop.
Gabriel Medina logged one of those 10s in the men’s final, but it wasn’t enough to surpass Cole Houshmand, who earned his third career win. Erin Brooks notched the only 10 in the women’s draw during her round one heat, and didn’t have to surf on finals day to get her second CT win in a row after Isabella Nichols withdrew due to injury.
Houshmand and Brooks, both goofy-footers, are two examples of surfers who struggled through the first half of the season but have since completely turned their fortunes around. Houshmand moved up 10 spots with the win to 17th, within the top-22 requalification cutoff. The San Clemente power surfer had been surfing the Challenger Series events for insurance in case he didn’t requalify for the CT, winning the stop at Ballito. While he’s not out of the clear, he may reconsider surfing the rest of the Challengers.
Brooks, who was sitting at 18th heading into Tahiti, won at Teahupo’o and Cloudbreak to surge into eighth overall. A month ago she was looking at the possibility of falling off tour. Now she’s sniffing the fringes of a title race.
During her broadcast interviews, Brooks admitted that she had been doubting herself, not living up to the potential that she displayed both in competition and in her innovative video part in the surf film Now Days. However, after bulldozing through perhaps the most difficult path to the Cloudbreak final — Caroline Marks, Vahine Fierro, and Carissa Moore — Brooks has every reason to believe that she can keep her momentum going into the next stop at Trestles.
Nichols, who came up wincing after a fall during her semifinal win over Brisa Hennessy yesterday, said an MRI determined she suffered a high ankle sprain.
“I can barely even stand on it at the moment,” Nichols said on the broadcast. “So to surf the heat out there, especially with the size of the waves right now, I just feel like it’s not a smart move for me.”
Nichols sent Brooks a message earlier in the day, congratulating her for turning her season around.
“We all know she’s capable of winning both (Teahupo’o) and Cloudbreak, but for her to actually go out and do it while being under pressure, people don’t understand how much mental power this takes,” Nichols said.
The goofy-footers emerged victorious in the semifinals of Houshmand versus Leo Fioravanti, and Medina versus Griffin Colapinto. Even though Medina had already won the Fiji Pro twice and had notched 19 excellent scores at Cloudbreak, Houshmand showed how he’s matured during his third year on tour. His opponent’s accolades didn’t faze him.
Houshmand put the pressure on Medina first with an 8.5 tube ride, then backed it up with an 8.37 combination of turns. But on the next wave, Medina linked a long, deep barrel and emerged with all 10 fingers extended in celebration. The judges agreed and gave him the 10-point ride, the third of the event after Brooks’ tube in round one and Kauli Vaast’s cylinder in men’s round three.
If you claim a 10, you better be right. In this case, the judges concurred. Photo: Cait Miers//WSL
The perfect ride still left Medina needing a backup score of 6.87. Houshmand held priority, but no waves with scoring potential came in the final minutes. It was the 25-year-old’s third career win after he took the trophies at Bells Beach in 2024 and Brazil in 2025.
“I’m speechless. I don’t think I could have scripted it any better,” Houshmand said on the broadcast. “To go against Gabby in the final, have a battle with him (with a) 10 — we have a great friendship, and he’s been a big inspiration my whole life.”
Houshmand said he hadn’t sipped alcohol in two months, but that might change as he celebrates the Fiji Prof victory tonight on Tavarua. “Hopefully my bar tab doesn’t waste all my prize money,” he half-joked.
To be clear, Houshmand took home an $80,000 check for the win. He should have a bit of pocket change left over, even after the rager.
Houshmand said he might break his no-beer streak after this one. Photo: Aaron Hughes//WSL
The men’s title race remained largely unchanged after the Fiji Pro. Italo Ferreira, Fioravanti, and Yago Dora held on to their top three spots, respectively. Fioravanti’s semifinal finish helped him gain a bit of ground on Ferreira, who holds a 2,200-point lead. Medina moved up to fourth, well within striking range of his fourth world title with five events remaining.
On the women’s side, an early exit for Gabriela Bryan gave Carissa Moore the chance to snag the top spot. Other than Brooks, Moore is the only other surfer with two tour wins this season. The inspirational new-mother storyline is unfolding as scripted as Moore pursues what could be her sixth world title.
The CT will hardly get a week’s rest before the Trestles Pro kicks off on September 11 — stop number nine on the season. Keep an eye on Brooks. If she makes it three in a row, she could start paving the path for one of the most dramatic late-season comebacks in the history of the sport.
