Even after getting eliminated from the Newcastle Challenger Series event, Mateus Herdy still has good odds to make the CT. Photo: Hannah Anderson//WSL
No one has been flummoxed by the Challenger Series quite like Mateus Herdy. The past two seasons, he heartbreakingly missed qualifying for the Championship Tour with 12th-place finishes.
In 2026, it appears the CT dream might slip through his grasp again. Yesterday, he lost his heat at Newcastle, the final Challenger of the season, victim to a last-minute score from Alister Reginato. His CT destiny is no longer in his hands, but this time he’s better positioned to hold onto his current ninth-place spot on the rankings (top 10 qualify for the CT).
Herdy looked well on his way to advancing to the Round of 16 after landing an eight-point backside full rotation that moved him up into second position. But a minute later, Reginato followed with a solid wave of his own. Needing a 6.30, the judges gave him a 6.33. The heat flipped, and Herdy was eliminated, left in disbelief on the beach.
Herdy thought this full rotation would be enough, but Alister Reginato flipped the heat shortly after. Photo: Hannah Anderson//WSL
So now, with two Challenger qualification spots left to be claimed, there are five surfers in the running: Herdy, Liam O’Brien, who is already eliminated from the event and currently in the 10th slot, Levi Slawson, Dimitri Poulos, and Shion Crawford. The latter three are still in the draw.
The good news for Herdy is that all three of those remaining surfers are on the same side of the draw. Slawson and Crawford face off when competition resumes, so one of them will get eliminated.
According to the Brazilian surf podcast Let’s Surf, there is only one scenario that could knock Herdy out of a qualification slot: if Slawson and Poulos make the semis, and Poulos defeats Slawson to advance to the final. In all other scenarios, Herdy holds onto his spot.
It would be a terrible run of luck if Herdy didn’t qualify this year, especially considering those three surfers still in the running have surfers with CT experience on their side of the draw like Kauli Vaast, Morgan Cibilic, Jackson Bunch, and Callum Robson.
Herdy has to be feeling good about his chances, but given how things have gone for him in the past, I’m sure he’ll be watching those heats when the event is called back on.
