In a truly historic moment, wildcard Moana Jones Wong has won the Billabong Pro Pipeline, the first-ever, full-length women's Championship Tour event at surfing's ultimate proving ground. Squaring off against five-time World Champ Carissa Moore in the Final, the Pipeline local got to work early and never looked back.
Courtesy of two gracefully surfed, 6-point Pipe barrels, Jones Wong controlled the majority of the 40-minute Final. Moore had opportunities at both Pipe and Backdoor, but was never able to hold on for completions that would have kept her in the heat.
Cementing her journey to the top of the podium, with less than two minutes on the clock, Jones Wong knifed a drop at Pipe, backdoored a tall barrel and came flying out a huge smile on her face and her arms in the air. The queen of Pipeline had arrived.
From wildcard to queen, Jones Wong tops the podium at the Billabong Pro Pipeline thanks to her dedication to conquering the most fearsome wave in surfing.
"I can't believe, I'm losing it right now," Jones Wong said from the water immediately after the Final. "This is the best moment of my life. I never thought I would accomplish this."
"Carissa is my favorite surfer, she's my hero, I can't believe this. It's insane. I always wanted to have a Final at Pipe with Carissa," she continued.
Jones Wong started the day much the way she ended it, in the barrel at Pipe. Getting clipped at the very end of her very first ride of the day, the judges threw here a 3.17 for the effort and the women's Final Day was officially off and running. Continuing to leverage her local knowledge, Jones Wong then notched a 3.67 for clean pocket ride at Pipe. About halfway through the heat, Jones Wong locked into a bomb, disappeared behind the curtain and came flying out with the spit, arms raised to the sky. Awarded a 7.67, her calm, calculated approach was paying off.
With 10 minutes left in the heat, two-time World Champ Tyler Wright still didn't even have a score on the board. But then she found the diamond in the rough at Backdoor she'd been looking for. Dropping into an absolute bomb, she broke the combo situation with an 8.83 to get back in the heat. That was as close at Wright would get. In the waining minutes of the heat Jones Wong extended her lead with another Pipe gem and moved on into her first CT Final.
"This is definitely a dream," Jones Wong smiled afterwards. "This means everything to me right now, I can't believe this is happening to me right now."
In the next Semi, Moore faced off against longtime rival Lakey Peterson. After opening up with a pair of throwaway scores, the women settled into the heat. Moore found a quick Pipe barrel for a 3.17 to give her the early lead.
In a heat bombarded with stacked sets, the scoreline remained low for most of the heat. With less than five minutes to go, all Peterson needed to take the lead off of Moore was earn a 2.75, but without priority the five-time World Champ was able pick off another Pipe wave and create more distance between her and her opponent.
Carissa Moore - WSL / Tony Heff
With Jones Wong and Kelly Slater earning much-deserved wins at the Billabong Pro Pipeline the 2022 Championship Tour is off to an intriguing start.
Now in the yellow leader's jersey, it was announced at day's end that Jones Wong's getting a wildcard into the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach and will be looking to keep her North Shore dream run going.
Then there's the GOAT. Will Slater hang up the jersey after a "conversation" with himself?
It's a long road to the Rip Curl WSL Finals, and there are a lot of twists and turns ahead, but after what we just witnessed at Pipe, every minute of it is going to be worth watching.
Moana Jones Wong - WSL / Tony Heff
Read More
Up next the 2022 Championship Tour will move down the Kam Highway for the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach. The waiting period kicks off on February 11. Keep it locked here on WorldSurfLeague.com for the latest.
Finals Day Recap: Wildcard Moana Jones Wong Makes History With Win At Billabong Pro Pipe
Jake Howard
In a truly historic moment, wildcard Moana Jones Wong has won the Billabong Pro Pipeline, the first-ever, full-length women's Championship Tour event at surfing's ultimate proving ground. Squaring off against five-time World Champ Carissa Moore in the Final, the Pipeline local got to work early and never looked back.
Courtesy of two gracefully surfed, 6-point Pipe barrels, Jones Wong controlled the majority of the 40-minute Final. Moore had opportunities at both Pipe and Backdoor, but was never able to hold on for completions that would have kept her in the heat.
Cementing her journey to the top of the podium, with less than two minutes on the clock, Jones Wong knifed a drop at Pipe, backdoored a tall barrel and came flying out a huge smile on her face and her arms in the air. The queen of Pipeline had arrived.
"I can't believe, I'm losing it right now," Jones Wong said from the water immediately after the Final. "This is the best moment of my life. I never thought I would accomplish this."
"Carissa is my favorite surfer, she's my hero, I can't believe this. It's insane. I always wanted to have a Final at Pipe with Carissa," she continued.
Jones Wong started the day much the way she ended it, in the barrel at Pipe. Getting clipped at the very end of her very first ride of the day, the judges threw here a 3.17 for the effort and the women's Final Day was officially off and running. Continuing to leverage her local knowledge, Jones Wong then notched a 3.67 for clean pocket ride at Pipe. About halfway through the heat, Jones Wong locked into a bomb, disappeared behind the curtain and came flying out with the spit, arms raised to the sky. Awarded a 7.67, her calm, calculated approach was paying off.
With 10 minutes left in the heat, two-time World Champ Tyler Wright still didn't even have a score on the board. But then she found the diamond in the rough at Backdoor she'd been looking for. Dropping into an absolute bomb, she broke the combo situation with an 8.83 to get back in the heat. That was as close at Wright would get. In the waining minutes of the heat Jones Wong extended her lead with another Pipe gem and moved on into her first CT Final.
"This is definitely a dream," Jones Wong smiled afterwards. "This means everything to me right now, I can't believe this is happening to me right now."
In the next Semi, Moore faced off against longtime rival Lakey Peterson. After opening up with a pair of throwaway scores, the women settled into the heat. Moore found a quick Pipe barrel for a 3.17 to give her the early lead.
In a heat bombarded with stacked sets, the scoreline remained low for most of the heat. With less than five minutes to go, all Peterson needed to take the lead off of Moore was earn a 2.75, but without priority the five-time World Champ was able pick off another Pipe wave and create more distance between her and her opponent.
With Jones Wong and Kelly Slater earning much-deserved wins at the Billabong Pro Pipeline the 2022 Championship Tour is off to an intriguing start.
Now in the yellow leader's jersey, it was announced at day's end that Jones Wong's getting a wildcard into the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach and will be looking to keep her North Shore dream run going.
Then there's the GOAT. Will Slater hang up the jersey after a "conversation" with himself?
It's a long road to the Rip Curl WSL Finals, and there are a lot of twists and turns ahead, but after what we just witnessed at Pipe, every minute of it is going to be worth watching.
Read More
Up next the 2022 Championship Tour will move down the Kam Highway for the Hurley Pro Sunset Beach. The waiting period kicks off on February 11. Keep it locked here on WorldSurfLeague.com for the latest.
Moana Jones Wong
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