Too early to tell? Photo: @jamesboothphoto / @charliehardy
Every Brazilian surfing fan is smiling ear-to-ear right now. Medina’s victory at Snapper Rocks was overwhelming, and definitely it wasn’t an upset. There might be some controversy about results, as Parko and Medina used different strategies, but one thing is obvious: the Brazilian surfed on his backhand with a drive that is seldom seen on the Tour.
Now, we’ve all seen it before. A Brazilian surfer wins a WCT event. So much fuss. The whole country is ecstatic. Remember the broken bell? What happened then, that caused Adriano to plunge from leader of the ASP rankings to a sorry 13rd place in a span of eleven months? Too much pressure? Too much optimism after a great year head start? Whatever happened to De Souza last year is something that we hope doesn’t happen to Medina.
Defeating Parko on his own turf wasn’t just lucky strike. Just ask Fanning and Taj. Still, winning the first of eleven events doesn’t give you any guarantee of a World Title. Being a World Champion is about consistency – something Brazilian surfers have seemed to lack in the past. But being able to conform to the judgment criteria is also something really important in this sport, and when Gaby put aside his aerial game to snap the lip in wild vertical attacks – good ol’ moves that seem to get the judges’ hearts pumping a little faster – he just showed to the world that he just might have what it takes.
Medina is off to a great start. However the overjoy of such a glorious win might be double-edged sword. He definitely deserves to take delight from it, but shouldn’t get too cocky and forget that it’s only March. There’s still a long way to go.
