“There’s No Way I Lost That Final”

Take yourself back to Tahiti in 2012… 

As was typical of the time period, Kelly Slater, Mick Fanning, and Joel Parkinson were fighting it out to clinch the number one position at the halfway point of the year – Teahupo’o. Kelly fell out of the event uncharacteristically early, earning a 13th place, leaving Mick and Joel to fight it out for the Chopes’ trophy and a step closer to the 2012 title.

As luck would have it, the two Coolie kids ended up rail-to-rail in the final…but in Joel’s mind, the heat’s not over yet.  

Billabong produced the above short reminiscing on that 2012 final; a healthy flashback to times with more prosperous swell while Parko gears up to surf his last ever event at the End of the Road.   

And while the 2012 trophy is firmly planted on Mick’s mantle piece, Parko has his eyes set on nicking it late one night in the final which he’s still sure he should’ve won. 

Mick on the other hand believes it was less to do with winning the heat, and more to do with losing it. 

“More to the point, who lost the heat? Who went that first wave at the end…that shitty wave! That’s his fault, not mine.” Mick joked about Joel’s poor wave choice in the 2012 final.

“Just the judges, at the end of the day that got a little overexcited…and Mick will vouch for that [laughs]”. Joel laughed. 

So, what are you waiting for, jump up above, and watch the two come close to figurative blows!