Veteran Australian surfer Julian Wilson made a triumphant return to competitive surfing on Friday, defeating world rankings leader Italo Ferreira in a major upset at the Gold Coast Pro.
Competing in his first World Surf League (WSL) event since 2021, the 36-year-old wildcard entry impressed at Burleigh Heads, where two-metre waves provided ideal conditions for the morning’s heats. Wilson, who took a break from the tour to focus on his mental health, showed he had lost none of his edge, extending his head-to-head record over Ferreira to 5–0.
In a post-heat interview, Wilson said he had to rush to the beach after mistakenly thinking his heat was scheduled for later.
“It definitely got the heart rate going, but I think it helped,” he told the WSL. “I didn’t have time to overthink the conditions, and that probably worked in my favor because the line-up was really tricky this morning.”
Ferreira, an Olympic gold medalist and current CT rankings leader, faced an early setback. On his first wave, he attempted a high-risk aerial but landed heavily, damaging his board. He was forced to paddle in for a replacement and initially chose to climb over rocks rather than use the jetski, before changing his mind and heading around the headland.
Wilson took advantage of the Brazilian’s absence from the line-up, scoring a combined 9.30. He nearly sealed the result with a deep barrel ride but just missed completing it. Meanwhile, Ferreira struggled to build momentum, only registering a score of 3.77 by the halfway mark of the 30-minute heat. Though he needed just 7.10 to overtake Wilson, he couldn’t find a suitable wave before time expired.
Wilson now advances to the round of 16, where he will face French surfer Marco Mignot. Mignot secured his spot by defeating fellow rookie George Pittar in a high-scoring battle, earning a two-wave total of 16.23 thanks to his aerial tricks. Pittar, known for his power turns, posted a solid 14.23 but fell short.
In other competition news, Australian wildcard Morgan Cibilic continued the streak of upsets on Thursday by eliminating world No.2 Ethan Ewing. Cibilic is scheduled to face Hawaiian Seth Moniz in the round of 16.
The women’s quarter-finals are set to follow, with finals action expected to continue into the weekend.