Alas, a rippable left point break on the Championship Tour. Gabriel Medina, who had publicly lamented the directional imbalance of rights and lefts on the tour, got what he wanted with the 2026 addition of Raglan on New Zealand’s North Island. The world champ, Yago Dora, is giddy about the new left-hander on tour.
Raglan injects the season with a new type of surfing that it hasn’t had in recent memory. For years, the lefts on tour had either been heavy tubes or shorter reef breaks. We’ve long seen how the CT surfers perform on long rights — Snapper, Bells, J-Bay, Punta Roca — and now we’ll get to see how they link up multiple maneuvers going the opposite direction.
Here are five heats to tune in for when the fourth stop of the 2026 CT kicks off May 15.
Ethan Ewing vs the winner of Billy Stairmand and Morgan Cibilic
Ethan Ewing has a second-place tour finish on his resume, but this year he’s gunning to snap the 13-year dry spell for Australian men and win a world title. After a win on the Gold Coast, he finds himself ranked fourth on the tour, in a good position to claim the yellow jersey for the rankings leaders.
But Ewing’s success could put him in a tricky early-round match-up. In round two, he could face the local wildcard, Billy Stairmand. Given it’s the CT’s first time coming to Raglan, no one has extensive experience at the wave. If Stairmand gets past Cibilic in round one, he could prove a feisty match-up for Ewing in round two.
Stairmand has nothing to lose, and Ewing will be eager to keep his season momentum rolling near the top of the leaderboard.
Erin Brooks vs Yolanda Hopkins
After finishing eighth during her rookie year last year, 2026 was supposed to be Erin Brooks’ breakout season. Her air repertoire is unmatched on tour (see her part in Now Days), and, with a full year of CT experience under her belt, she could be ready to vie with the top surfers in the title race. But thus far, 2026 has been a sophomore slump for Brooks.
She has two ninths and a 17th this year, taken out twice by Lakey Peterson and once by Steph Gilmore. Experience has prevailed against the teenager.
But Raglan could be a turning point. No one is better equipped to wow the judges on a rippable left point break than Brooks. We know what she’s capable of, and it’ll be interesting to watch how big she chooses to go.
Al Cleland vs Griffin Colapinto
Alan Cleland’s throwback power surfing has made him a fan favorite since his rookie debut on the Championship Tour last year. While the first-ever Mexican on tour managed to pass the mid-year cut in 2025, he didn’t have any breakout performances, never getting better than a ninth.
Like Brooks, Cleland’s sophomore season has not gone as planned. He’s been eliminated, rather handily, in round two of each event this season. He’s drawn tough match-ups: Gabriel Medina twice and Jack Robinson once. And it’s not going to get any easier for him in Raglan, matching up against Griffin Colapinto.
Cleland has that “wow-factor” to his surfing that can take down a heavyweight on the right day. He’s going to need to show it eventually to improve his ranking and avoid the early event tussles with top competitors.
Jack Robinson vs Kauli Vaast
The top-ranked rookie coming into the season, Kauli Vaast, finally got his first heat wins as a full-time CT competitor on the Gold Coast. His fifth-place finish moved him up six spots in the ranking. The Teahupo’o local showed that he’s not just a one-trick pony at Snapper Rocks — he doesn’t just ride tubes, but he can compete on rail, too.
Kauli will have another chance to show his rail surfing on the long walls of Raglan and continue moving up the leaderboard. But Jack Robinson is a tough round two draw. It’s a heat that promises must-watch surfing.
Luana Silva vs winner of Tyler Wright and Francisca Veselko
It’s been 22 years since a Brazilian woman led the CT rankings. The 21-year-old Luana Silva isn’t usually mentioned in the same breath as some of her peers like Caity Simmers, Brooks, Molly Picklum, and Caroline Marks, but she’s shown the most competitive prowess thus far in 2026, earning back-to-back runner-ups at Margaret River and the Gold Coast.
There is still a long season ahead, but if Silva can notch another good result at Raglan, you’ll have to start taking her seriously for the title race. She’ll either get former world champion Tyler Wright or rookie Francisca Veselko in the second round, eager to build upon her early season momentum.
