The 2015 World Title Scenarios

All photos WSL

What a shaken cocktail Portugal was! A bizarre mix of shitty waves, high places for the lowest ranked, and low places for the highest ranked, plus, Italo Ferreira! And now, we look to Hawaii, to the North Shore, to Pipeline. With Mick and Adriano losing so early at Peniche, the title has quite a number of scenarios, and no matter how unlikely some of them are, just remember that John John Florence has lost to Glenn Hall and Keanu Asing this year, so if there’s anything we can be sure about in surfing, it’s that anything is possible.

Rolling into the Pipe Masters, the top surfers with a shot at the title are Mick Fanning, newly-ranked (post-Portugal) World number two Filipe Toledo, Adriano De Souza, and Gabriel Medina. And, while Jules Wilson and Owen Wright both fell out of Portugal’s second round, either could theoretically win a world title in Hawaii.

And so, here’s how it looks before Pipe:

Will Filipe step up at Pipe? This could be his moment.

If Mick Fanning finishes 25th/13th at Pipe
– Owen Wright and Julian Wilson will need a 1st
– Gabriel Medina will need a 3rd or better
– Adriano de Souza will need a 9th or better
– Filipe Toledo will need a 13th or better to clinch the World Title

If Mick Fanning finishes 9th
– Gabriel Medina will need a 1st
– Adriano de Souza will need a 5th
– Filipe Toledo will need a 9th

If Mick Fanning finishes 5th
– Gabriel Medina will need a 1st
– Adriano de Souza will need a 3rd
– Filipe Toledo will need a 5th

If Mick Fanning finishes 3rd
– Adriano will need a 2nd
– Filipe will need a 3rd

If Mick finishes 2nd
– Adriano will need a 1st
– Filipe will need a 1st

And if Mick Fanning wins the event he will clinch the World Title.

Adriano, the Terminator. He don’t stop! WSL/Poullenot/Aquashot

WSL Men’s Top10 (after Moche Rip Curl Pro Portugal):
1. Mick Fanning (AUS) 49,900 pts
2. Filipe Toledo (BRA) 49,700 pts
3. Adriano De Souza (BRA) 49,450 pts
4. Gabriel Medina (BRA) 45,530 pts
5. Owen Wright (AUS) 43,600 pts
6. Italo Ferreira (BRA) 41,600 pts
7. Julian Wilson (AUS) 41,450 pts
8. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 37,700 pts
9. Kelly Slater (USA) 34,150 pts
10. Nat Young (USA) 33,200 pts

Don’t ever count out Gabs.