RIBEIRA D’ILHAS, Ericeira / Portugal (Saturday, October 8, 2022) - Macy Callaghan (AUS) and Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) have won the EDP Vissla Pro Ericeira today, claiming victory in the Finals against Caitlin Simmers (USA) and Ryan Callinan (AUS) held in four-to-six foot surf at Ribeira d’Ilhas.

Stop No. 5 on the World Surf League (WSL) 2022 Challenger Series, the EDP Vissla Pro Ericeira has been blessed with two days of epic conditions to wrap up competition in firing rights at Ericeira’s world-famous pointbreak.

The final day of competition resumed early this morning with the remaining four heats of the men’s Round of 16 and as the day went, conditions gradually improved and painted a perfect picture for the rest of the event to unfold.

With Qualification in the Bag, Callinan and Fioravanti Go All Out

Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) had another dream start in the Final, putting an excellent 8.17 in the opening minutes for a massive combination of turns on the end section of a solid set wave. Callinan answered on a different wave offering more potential out the back but no real conclusion and his score reflected it with a 6.50.

The Italian backed up his score with another excellent 8.10 at the midway mark in the Final and Callinan was left chasing two new scores with only 15 minutes on the clock. He did come back in the fight with a 7.50 but eventually ran out of time as Fioravanti was chaired up the beach victorious.

“I feel amazing,” an ecstatic Fioravanti said. “Being here with my family, this is one of the best days of my life for sure. Pumping waves and so many people on the beach, what a day! That’s one of those feelings that don’t happen that often in your career and it’s one of the best feelings in the world. Next goal is definitely next year but right now I don’t want to think too much about it, now is the time to enjoy this with my family and with everyone here watching.”

Coming in ranked second on the CS, Fioravanti has seized the lead of the rankings, but more importantly the Italian has officially clinched his spot for the 2023 CT. Having surfed four seasons among the world’s best already, the 24 year-old surfer from Rome will come back to the tour next season reinvigorated and full of confidence.

A former winner in Ericeira, Ryan Callinan (AUS) came close to back-to-back wins but found a big hurdle on his way and had to settle for runner-up, for the second time this season. The Newcastle native has however accumulated enough points to clinch his own ticket for the CT and will feature among the Top 34 surfers in the world next season.

“Just making Finals and to feel like I’m doing my best surfing is amazing,” Callinan reflected. “I was pretty tired and picking some bad waves in the Final but I got a little runner that kept my hopes alive for a finish and if a set came I was feeling pretty good, but it didn’t happen. I’m super stoked about qualifying, to make it official and just take that weight off is just awesome, I’m stoked to be back on tour!”

Callinan and Fioravanti had previously eliminated Ian Gentil (HAW) and Liam O'Brien (AUS) respectively in their Semifinal matchups. Both surfers have rocketed up the ranks into the Top 10 with two events left in the season.

Third Time’s the Charm for Callaghan

Macy Callaghan (AUS) got a great start in the opening moments of the Final, carving down a good right for a 7 point ride to apply pressure to her opponent Simmers from the get go. Both surfers then got caught in a game of paddling deeper on the reef and unfortunately most of their efforts were unsuccessful. The Australian put a final exclamation mark on an epic performance with a good backup of 6.83 in the last five minutes to claim her first win on the Challenger Series.

“I’m so happy that was definitely the biggest win of my life,” Callaghan said. “I’m very tired, I gave it everything in that last heat so I’m really happy to take the win. Making three finals I’ve done more than I expected so I’ll definitely celebrate this.”

Callaghan has now made the Final of the last three CS events in South Africa, California and Portugal and finally captured a maiden win on the tour after two runner-up results. Her fate as a 2023 CT surfer seems almost clinched for certain now as the Australian takes the lead in the CS rankings and should rejoin the elite division for a fourth season.

Caitlin Simmers (USA) has been on an absolute tear all season and today added another massive result to her season tally. Although she has now moved back two spots into 3rd on the CS ladder, the Californian continues to prove she deserves her spot at the elite level. A long way ahead of the No.5 surfer on the rankings, her accession should be a formality in any of the last two events of the season.

“It was a hard Final and Macy did great, so good for her,” Simmers said. “I got out first round last year here so I definitely did better. I’m quite happy with all my other heats and a little disappointed with my Final. I don’t really care about the rankings, I really just want to qualify. I haven’t got much experience in Brazil and Hawaii, but I’m excited about the events. They’ll be new experiences and hopefully good ones!”

The 16 year-old from Oceanside, California who qualified for the CT already last season but declined her spot and preferred to take another year to work on her surfing, came back fired up to the CS tour and made the Quarters of every single event so far this season.

Simmers and Callaghan had previously eliminated Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) and Molly Picklum (AUS) respectively in their Semifinal matchups. Both surfers solidified their spot within the Qualifying Top 5 and further distanced themselves from the rest of the field.

Major Moves From Down the Ranks in Ericeira

The most notable jumps up the leaderboard are obviously O’Brien, Gentil, Morgan Cibilic (AUS) and Jacob Willcox (AUS), most of whom moved into the Top 10, but further down the line, a few surfers capitalized in Portugal and could now have a shot at the last two events. 

The likes of Jesse Mendes (ITA), Adur Amatriain (EUK), Joan Duru (FRA), Matheus Navarro (BRA), Crosby Colapinto (USA) and Alan Cleland (MEX) have all taken a massive leap forward this week and will be underdogs for a late charge in Brazil and Hawaii.

In the women’s draw, the Top 4 is quite locked with all surfers making the semis in Ericeira. The fight for the 5th qualifying spot will be fierce in the remaining two events with probably a dozen athletes in a mathematical position to claim it. 

With the completion of the EDP Vissla Pro Ericeira, the race to qualify for the 2023 Championship Tour continues, here are the updated rankings:

Men’s Challenger Series Top 10:
1 - Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA)      *** Qualified for 2023 CT ***
2 - Rio Waida (IDN)                     *** Qualified for 2023 CT ***
3 - Ryan Callinan (AUS)              *** Qualified for 2023 CT ***
4 - Liam O'Brien (AUS) 
5 - Ezekiel Lau (HAW) 
6 - Dylan Moffat (AUS) 
7 - Ian Gentil (HAW) 
8 - Michael Rodrigues (BRA) 
9 - Maxime Huscenot (FRA) 
10 - Morgan Cibilic (AUS) 

Women’s Challenger Series Top 5:
1 - Macy Callaghan (AUS) 
2 - Molly Picklum (AUS) 
3 - Caitlin Simmers (USA) 
4 - Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 
5 - Nikki Van Dijk (AUS) 

Surfers will now have three weeks to prepare for the next event on the 2022 Challenger Series, the Corona Saquarema Pro from November 1-8, 2022 in Brazil.

EDP VISSLA PRO ERICEIRA MEN’S FINAL RESULTS:
1 - Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) 16.27
2 - Ryan Callinan (AUS) 14.00

EDP VISSLA PRO ERICEIRA WOMEN’S FINAL RESULTS:
1 - Macy Callaghan (AUS) 13.83
2 - Caitlin Simmers (USA) 7.40

EDP VISSLA PRO ERICEIRA MEN’S SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Ryan Callinan (AUS) 15.33 def. Ian Gentil (HAW) 13.90
SF 2: Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) 15.16 def. Liam O'Brien (AUS) 9.73

EDP VISSLA PRO ERICEIRA WOMEN’S SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Caitlin Simmers (USA) 13.00 def. Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 11.26
SF 2: Macy Callaghan (AUS) 11.00 def. Molly Picklum (AUS) 9.77

EDP VISSLA PRO ERICEIRA MEN’S QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Ian Gentil (HAW) 14.90 def. Michael Rodrigues (BRA) 11.76
QF 2: Ryan Callinan (AUS) 15.77 def. Dylan Moffat (AUS) 13.50
QF 3: Liam O'Brien (AUS) 12.16 def. Jacob Willcox (AUS) 6.53
QF 4: Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) 16.76 def. Morgan Cibilic (AUS) 12.23

EDP VISSLA PRO ERICEIRA WOMEN’S QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 15.50 def. Vahine Fierro (FRA) 10.73
QF 2: Caitlin Simmers (USA) 13.84 def. Sarah Baum (ZAF) 12.50
QF 3: Molly Picklum (AUS) 12.10 def. Daniella Rosas (PER) 9.90
QF 4: Macy Callaghan (AUS) 12.17 def. Sawyer Lindblad (USA) 7.73