Listen: Not One, But Two More Rip Curl Pro Portugal Previews

We start this week’s The Drop on a more sombre-than-usual note, touching on the unfortunate news that has been flooding our screens. Buck and Mikey address what we know so far, which Ethan Davis also wrote about.

An abrupt shift tells you all you need to know about getting your hands on one of Harry Bryant’s EAST surfboards without having to fly to Chile and shuffle your bony butt across the sand until you’re close enough to palm one of his finalists.

Buck gives us a firsthand account of a recent trip to Waco, Texas, for the Swatch Nines event, then nerds out on AI surf forecasting tools, despite being able to walk from his bed to the beach with a coffee and still have it be warm by the time his functioning eye registers what the ocean is doing.

Fortunately for him, no peninsulas in the vicinity have started disappearing quite like Balboa’s, which has recently met its long, pre-announced fate.

At his favourite peninsula, Peniche, the 10th stop of the 2026 World Tour is set to start tomorrow morning at Supertubos. Paul Evans, who will be taking his usual seat in the WSL commentary booth, has written about what to expect this year, with his customary candour and eloquence.

Our hosts discuss the setup, format, favourites, underdogs, overdogs and personal picks for the 2026 Rip Curl Pro Portugal.

If you’ve been salivating for some elite surfing competition and need something to tide you over until the buzzer goes off tomorrow morning around 8ish (WEST time), jump straight into another event preview, discussion and prediction. This time, Mikey and former CT coach Stace Galbraith make their picks accompanied by very recent footage of the warm-up sessions at Supers.

Warmly,

Us