With the conclusion of the Rio Pro, stop seven of the Championship Tour is a wrap. At the end of the day, rookie Caitlin Simmers and Brazilian Yago Dora were chaired up the beach. For Simmers, it was her second CT event win of the year (she’s surely leading ROY voting), and for Dora it was his maiden CT victory.
Australian Ethan Ewing and the Brazilian Dora were matched up in the final. For the women it was Simmers taking on two-time world champ Tyler Wright. Dora clinched the title by landing a full rotation for a perfect 10. Simmers nailed a giant lip-line re-entry and surfed beyond her years to take down Wright. With their finishes in Rio, both Carissa Moore and Wright secured their positions for the final five at Trestles.
“It hasn’t even sunk in yet,” Dora said in his post heat interview. “It’s amazing. This week was something special. Best week of my life.”
“Thank you to all the people watching at home; I think it’s 4 a.m. there,” Simmers said in her post-heat interview. “Thanks to my parents and thanks to my brother for pushing me and all my sponsors. It’s a really great feeling.”
For Yago and Simmers, the win was critical as it put both in the number five position in the rankings. With just two more events before the final at Trestles, the next couple of weeks will prove the most important of the season.
