HUDAYRIYAT ISLAND, Abu Dhabi, UAE (Thursday, February 13, 2025) - The stage is set for the inaugural Surf Abu Dhabi Pro, Stop No. 2 on the 2025 World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT). After an incredible start to the season in Hawaiʻi, the world's best surfers now shift their focus to the 500-meter-long, perfect walls of Surf Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. With waves on tap at the push of a button, the schedule is locked in for the most unique and pressure testing formats of the year, and it all runs from February 14-16, 2025.
Marks, Peterson, and Defay Eye More Wave System Success
The last time the elite Championship Tour held a stop in Kelly Slater Wave Company (KSWC) technology, Caroline Marks (USA) put on an incredible performance to finish runner-up to eventual winner Carissa Moore (HAW). Marks showed plenty of confidence as she consistently posted excellent heat totals every time she hit the water. Since that event, Marks has won an Olympic Gold Medal and a World Title, guaranteeing even more confidence ahead of this weekend's competition.
"This kind of feels like a snowboard run or a skateboard run," said Marks. "I'm assuming that's how they feel every time, which is kind of cool, but even though it's a wave pool, still sometimes with the wind, it can change a little bit, but I do have like a super good idea of what I'm going to do on the wave, which is pretty fun."
Johanne Defay (FRA) and Lakey Peterson (USA) are the only other women in the draw to contest a Final at an event like this, with their wins at the Surf Ranch in Lemoore, Calif. in 2019 and 2021, respectively. Peterson enters the event on the back of a Semifinal finish at Stop No. 1, the Lexus Pipe Pro, while Defay, who had to sit that event out, looks to put the jersey back on for the first time in 2025. Defay will be hoping to regain the form that saw her claim an Olympic Bronze Medal last year.
"I am really happy to be here in Abu Dhabi and to be back in the jersey," said Defay. "It's been great to have these days to train and compete. That's what's so interesting about this event is that your training will be the same as the competition, which is so different to the ocean. It feels like this wave is a bit slower, maybe, than the Surf Ranch, so it's kind of allowing you to make a few more mistakes in some ways. It's a bit shorter, too. It's just different and it's about finding a rhythm, and I'll hopefully find it for the contest."
Fioravanti and Boukhiam Look for Redemption in the Desert
Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA) and Ramzi Boukhiam (MAR) have arrived in Abu Dhabi looking to bounce back from the Lexus Pipe Pro. Boukhiam was eliminated in 17th place at Pipeline after suffering an interference call in his Round of 32 heat. The Moroccan was one of the first surfers to test the facility in Abu Dhabi and is feeling right at home ahead of competition. Fioravanti's runner-up finish at Pipeline is an equal career-best result that sees the Italian currently ranked No. 2 in the world. 27-year-old Fioravanti is poised for another big result this week as he eyes off earning the Yellow Leaders Jersey for the first time in his career.
"This is my fourth time to this facility," Boukhiam said. "I was lucky enough to come to the opening with a group of surfers, and it was cool to see and surf the wave. Every time I come here, everyone takes really good care of us. The hospitality is amazing, so I'm happy to be back. This will be my first time competing in a pool, so it's exciting, and there's a lot of pressure. I'm sure I'll work it out - my boards are feeling good, so it's time to go. It's such a stressful wave to surf, but as soon as you get your first turn in, the nerves go away. It's cool to go left and right here, and I love to go left, but I'm more confident going right, and I know I can get a big score, so I hope to set myself up on my backhand and have fun on the left. I have a vision of what I want to do and the turns I want to do, which is unique to this wave. It should be fun."
"After the Final in Hawaii, I was straight on a flight that night for a massive transit, then into training here in the pool," Fioravanti said. "It's so fun but also very physical as the waves are so long; you're surfing for almost a minute, so it's a lot. I'm feeling caught up, though, so I'm ready to go. The pressure will be everywhere. There's no hiding from it. Everyone will be watching you for that 55 seconds you ride the wave, it's crazy. This wave is amazing when you look at where we are in Abu Dhabi, one of the sporting capitals of the world. There are so many sporting facilities around us for soccer, golf, UFC, everything. The welcoming you get here in this city is unreal, so it's cool to be competing here this week."
The Surf Abu Dhabi Pro will start tomorrow, Friday, February 14, at 7:00 a.m. GMT+4 with the men's Qualifying Round.
The Surf Abu Dhabi Pro is proudly supported by Corona Cero, Modon, Surf Abu Dhabi, YETI, Red Bull, Body Glove, Apple Watch, Surfline, True Surf, Flexfit, Vissla, and GWM.