El Salvador
Pro Wrap

Callum's run through El Salvador told a story.

He had to take out Ethan in his opening heat, then Liam in the next round. Friendly fire both times. That's the kind of draw that either breaks your rhythm or sharpens your focus. For Callum, it was the second one.

He surfed with intent all event. Not flashy, not overthinking — just finding the right part of the wave and putting the board where it needed to go. The right-hand points suited his approach. Set the rail, hold the line, finish properly.

His quarter-final against Kanoa was his best heat of the event. The judges at Punta Roca rewarded single, committed turns over volume — one honest rail over three smoky mirrors — and that's exactly what Callum delivered. That 7.50 came from a committed turn in a critical section. No hesitation, full rail.

It wasn't enough to get past Kanoa, but it was the kind of surfing that shows he belongs at that level.

The Juliette gave him what he needed: speed through the flatter sections where the wave went soft between the rocks, hold when it steepened up, and enough release to finish turns cleanly without the board getting sticky.

Jumping seven spots on the rankings tells you the event mattered. He's at 21st now. That's a different conversation to where he started the week.

Molly was one of the best surfers in the water all week.

Her opening heat set the tone — a 7.83 on her first scoring ride. That's not easing into an event. That's arriving ready.

What stood out was the consistency. A 13.60 heat average across the event means she wasn't relying on one big score. She was putting together proper waves, back to back, heat after heat. In an event where Tropical Storm Cristina cut the schedule in half and the conditions kept shifting, that kind of output says a lot.

Carissa Moore had to get past Molly on her way to the win. That's the company she's keeping now — going head to head with a five-time world champion and making it competitive.

The MF DNA RT suited El Salvador well. The right-handers gave her room to draw longer lines and really load up through the bottom turn. Molly surfs with a lot of power for her frame, and the DNA RT gave her something to push against without losing speed between sections.

She made the semis and sits third in the world. That's the trajectory she's been building all season.

Not a lot of surfers can maintain that kind of output across different conditions — from Snapper to Raglan to El Salvador. Different waves, same standard. That's what separates the top five from the rest of the field.

It wasn't Ethan's week.

He and Steph were on everyone's fantasy teams coming into this one. Warm water, right-hand point break — on paper, this was their kind of event. The broadcast had them both pegged as event favourites.

But Punta Roca doesn't care about paper. Ethan went out in Round 2 — drawn against teammate Callum, who had the better read on the day. That's how it goes sometimes. The draw, the timing, and the conditions don't always come together.

He dropped from 6th to 9th on the rankings, but he's still very much in the title conversation heading into Rio. That's the bigger picture. One early exit doesn't erase what he put together at Snapper or the form he's been carrying all season.

Riding the Juliette — same board that carried him through the Gold Coast. It's not a question of equipment. Sometimes the wave just doesn't give you what you need.

Liam was considered an event favourite at Punta Roca. He surfs that kind of wave well — long right-handers, power off the bottom, room to build through sections.

His event ended against Callum in Round 2 in a tight priority situation. A split-second call — Liam didn't check the priority disc, assumed he had it, and both surfers went on the same wave. It was the kind of moment that can derail an event before it really starts.

The broadcast crew summed it up well: nobody wanted to see Liam go down early. He's too good a surfer and he brings too much to the competitive scene for a result like that to feel right.

But he's at 11th on the world rankings. He's in good shape heading into the back half of the season. One heat result doesn't define his year — and the body of work he's put together in 2026 speaks for itself.

Connor went out early. Not the event he wanted after the momentum he built at the Gold Coast.

Punta Roca can be selective — the lulls were long, the conditions kept shifting through the week, and if you didn't get the right waves in those early heats, you were on the back foot quickly. With Tropical Storm Cristina disrupting the schedule, the windows to compete were narrow. Connor needed more from the ocean and didn't get it.

He's 15th in the world. Still in a strong position. Rio will be a different wave — beachbreak, more unpredictable — and a chance to reset.

Steph went down to Israeli rookie Anat Leor in Round 2. The broadcast called it the commentator's curse — everyone had her pegged for a deep run at a tropics right-hand point break. After winning the Gold Coast, a wave like Punta Roca should have been perfect for her.

But the tropics are their own challenge. The heat, the humidity, the long paddles back up the point after each ride — it all adds up. And sometimes the waves just don't cooperate.

She dropped from 10th to 12th on the rankings. Still riding the Number 8 — a board that proved itself at Snapper and will get more chances as the season rolls on.