Kelly Slater: “Gabe’s Probably The Hardest Guy To Compete Against, Maybe Ever”

Remember when we said that the World Tour had reached a point of stagnancy without John John in the mix and that Gabriel Medina would waltz to a breezy World Title victory?

Well, thanks to an uncharacteristically clumsy move from the 2x Champ, that didn’t happen. Which is all for the better, as far as we’re concerned. We now have a five-man race heading into the Pipe Masters, and Medina actually has to make up some ground if he wants to be declared Supreme Leader of the surfy surfy tour in 2019. 

Although, if you ask Medina’s peers, and specifically the winningest male and female surfers in history (Kelly Slater and Steph Gilmore), they’ll tell you that there’s no competition. That Gabe Medina is a competitive beast and anyone in his path should move the fuck outta the way or risk being ruthlessly steam-rolled.

In the video above—which, to be transparent, was produced by Rip Curl and is therefore slightly biased toward Medina—Gabriel is presented as surfing’s apex predator. Steph and Kelly further this agenda with quotes like, “Gabe’s probably the hardest guy to beat, maybe ever,” (Kelly) and, “Gabriel’s surfing is superhero status,” (Steph Gilmore). 

Meanwhile, Gabby is just happy to have his rice and his beans. 

Click above for a titillating short.