Billabong Pipe Masters – Injuries and Updates
√ Dusty Payne (Back) Probable
12 November, 2015 – Dusty Payne (back) will be surfing today at the Triple Crown’s first stop: Hawaiian Pro. If all goes well, he will most likely find his way to the CT finale at Pipeline. Payne won this QS last year so the headline basically writes itself: Payne Back From Back Pain to Claim Back-to-Back Hawaiian Pros. Gosh that’s good.
÷ Matt Banting (Knee) DOUBTFUL
12 November, 2015 – Matt Banting (knee) has revealed on Instagram that he will not be competing for the remainder of the 2015 season. 
This comes as a surprise; Banting seemed to be making a steady recovery with ample time before Pipe, but as we’ve seen this year, injury is a tricky sea to navigate. Best of luck, Matty, and see you in 2016.
***Banting is considered Doubtful because this Instagram post can’t be counted as official. Once a statement is made, we’ll downgrade his status to Out. Crazy things have happened, though, so monitor the situation.
√ Jordy Smith (Back) QUESTIONABLE
10 November, 2015 – Jordy Smith (back) has been upgraded to Questionable status following a release by the World Surf League. In their statement, they confirm that Smith is scheduled to compete at all three Triple Crown events in Hawaii. This is great news for Smith and his fans, but we don’t know if he actually is back at 100% health. This will most likely be revealed during his performance at the two QS events of the stretch and you won’t have to make a decision until Smith proves he’s good to go. If Jordy can surf up to par, we’ll upgrade his status again. It looks promising, but stay tuned.
√ Italo Ferreira (Knee) PROBABLE
11 November, 2015 – Ferreira is confirmed surfing in the Hawaiian Pro and won’t likely hit setbacks on his first CT Pipeline entry.
4 November, 2015 – Italo Ferreira has been surfing with a mild injury to his left knee sustained a few months ago. Here he is in Portugal, keeping the issue a playful secret:
Then he did this:
So it looks like we’re good here.
Matt Banting (Knee) QUESTIONABLE
28 October, 2015 – Matt Banting (knee) is back with a Questionable tag heading into Pipeline. He’s been a real tease, almost as bad as Jordy Smith, in his fluctuating return status. The original prognosis suggested Banting would be back long before Portugal, yet he still hasn’t surfed an event since Fiji barely at all since July. Unable to recover in three months has us scratching our heads – he was rehabbing full time during this period as well. With five full months from injury until Pipe, though, we like his chances to be back to 100%. His latest Instagram post yesterday suggests he wants this as well, but that doesn’t guarantee it will happen.
Of course Matt “Can’t wait to put the jersey back on!” But only time will tell if it happens.
Dusty Payne (Back) QUESTIONABLE
28 October, 2015 – Dusty Payne (back) was an unexpected scratch from Portugal. Not much fuss has been made of this back injury and no comment has been made regarding its severity or recovery period. Payne’s been flying a lot, Instagram suggests he’s been on long trips which likely means the injury isn’t debilitating – encouraging, but we’d still like to know more. You’ll know when we know, so stay tuned.
Taj Burrow (Paternity) PROBABLE
28 October, 2015 – Taj Burrow (paternity) took some time off the CT for the birth of his first child, Arabella Rose (pictured below), but had previously stated he’ll be back for CT #11. That sounds about right, in 18 years on the Tour, Burrow has missed just one event – the 2014 Pipe Masters. He’s as frothy as they come and it’s unlikely he’ll miss surfing’s prime event for the second time.
![Burrow and new family addition Arabella Rose [via Instagram]](https://surfstats.fantasysurfsessions.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Screen-Shot-2015-10-28-at-15.48.59.png)
Freddy Patacchia Jr. (Retired) DOUBTFUL
28 October, 2015 – There’s some lingering speculation that Freddy Patacchia (retired) may surf in the Billabong Pipe Masters. Though he retired during the Hurley Pro Trestles, he did say he’d still be surfing in some QS events. Patacchia also stated, however, that he would not surf another CT heat. We have one main question – why? If a World Class Break is in your backyard and you’re able to surf it – even just for fun – with 1-2 other guys, well that’d be enough for us. We have nothing but speculative notions so far, but it seems to make a good case.
Target Maui Pro – Injuries and Updates
Laura Enever (Shoulder) QUESTIONABLE
28 October, 2015 – Laura Enever (shoulder) suffered a dislocation prior to the Roxy Pro France October 8th. No comment has been made on recovery period; dislocated shoulder’s can vary greatly from 3-12 weeks for return to normal function depending on severity. It seems that it may have been a mild one, however, with Enever posting on Instagram two days ago that she’s “Starting to get back in the [water].”
She’ll have 6-7 weeks of recovery time from injury to Maui, so there’s a good chance, especially if she’s actually surfing already. Missing France was a big blow to her hopes of qualifying for the 2016 CT and if she can’t compete in Hawaii she’ll be in trouble.
OLD NEWS:
Quiksilver Pro France
Jordy Smith (Back) OUT: 3 October, 2015 – Smith has finally withdrawn from France. His nagging back injury will likely keep him out of 2015 until Pipeline at the earliest, but don’t expect him back by then. It’ll be last minute withdraws the rest of the year, most likely.
Matt Banting (Knee) OUT: 3 October, 2015 – Matt Banting joins Jordy Smith in the INJ Withdrawn club. That’s disappointing for Banting, who certainly looked like he would be healthy in time, but some minor rehab setbacks wouldn’t allow it. Look for him in Portugal, but monitor the situation moving forward as he’s still considered questionable.
Aritz Aranburu will replace one of the two while Jack Freestone or Caio Ibelli – pending invitation acceptance – will supplement Dane Reynolds as Wild Card or fill the second INJ Replacement spot.
Women’s PRT
Stephanie Gilmore (Knee) OUT: 18 September, 2015 – Stephanie Gilmore has withdrawn from the Cascais Women’s Pro slated to begin next week. This comes as a bit of surprise as Gilmore flew to California for the last event and was just barely a late scratch.
“My rehab is taking longer then I initially expected, Im returning to the water this weekend and am able to start training and surfing properly the following week. Fingers crossed I’ll be back at 100 percent for the Roxy Pro France.”
We’re listing her as Questionable for France until she can surf at 100%. Stephanie will be replaced by Pauline Ado for Portugal.
Men’s QuikPro France
Hold on to your breakfast, this is a bumpy road already and the Heat Draw is primed to become a mad house. Here’s the IN’s and OUT’s so far…
Freddy Patacchia (Retired) OUT: 10 September, 2015 – Freddy P grabbed a solid score and called it a day. Then called it a career after his R1 win at the 2015 Hurley Pro Trestles. Hanging up the jersey after 11 solid years on tour, Patacchia turns the page on a new chapter. We wish you well, Freddy! Unless something drastically changes, Patacchia will no longer be competing on the WSL CT. For France, he is replaced by Alejo Muniz.
Taj Burrow (Paternity) OUT: 6 July, 2015 – Taj has called himself off for both European events of the tour this year, opting to be home for the birth of his first grom. With his elusive first World Title out of reach in 2015, we can’t argue with the decision. Look for TB back in the lineup at the Pipe Masters this December, in the meantime he will be replaced by Tomas Hermes.
Kelly Slater (Mild Nagging Injuries) PROBABLE: 19 September, 2015 – Kelly has done this to us before (remember his “retirement” in April?) – so there’s no reason to fret. He enjoys stirring the pot and has been known to kick up dust, but it always settles – Kelly very, very rarely misses an opportunity to compete if he is healthy. If the forecast starts looking good for France, expect Slater to be surfing. The risk lies in that forecast, though, because if it’s anything but promising, he is much more likely to sit it out.
Matt Banting (Knee) PROBABLE: 14 September, 2015 – Banting was mentioned in Quiksilver’s Instagram post as being likely to suit up for France:
We do think that Banting is actually probable for France, but mainly based on the nature of his injury and average time of recovery. Quiksilver is the event sponsor, Banting is a Quiksilver Team Rider and there is definitely a marketing tactic in play with this post. That’s why we won’t take it at face value for a second. He’s cleared his initial 3-6 dry weeks and started some rehab already, so we think that’s a much better indication for a probable start.
Jordy Smith (Back) DOUBTFUL: 19 September, 2015 – Jordy Smith has shown absolutely no sign of motivation to return to the CT this year. We’ll have him listed as Doubtful until something changes, but look for him to withdraw from France. As of now, there is no clear replacement for if/when that happens.
Trestles
UPDATE: Stephanie Gilmore (Knee) OUT: 8 September, 2015 – Stephanie Gilmore is a late withdrawal from the Swatch Women’s Pro. Her nagging injury has now kept her out of four straight events and released in her statement that her knee is only at about 70%. Monitor this heading into Europe and consider her Questionable.
Tahiti saw Jeremy Flores blow minds with his win in first heavy, then tricky conditions. Tough to see that coming after his horrible injury just a few weeks ago, but Flores has proven to be one of the toughest guys on tour. We won’t be needing to update his injury status any further.
UPDATE: Matt Banting (Knee) OUT: 5 September, 2015 – Matt Banting has officially withdrawn from the Hurley Pro Trestles due to injury and Tomas Hermes will be surfing in his stead. We will list Banting as Questionable for the European Leg, but since he’s started some rehab already, we expect he’ll compete at FRA.
27 August, 2015 – Banting has said only that he is feeling better every day and one Instagram post of a pre-injury air captioned “Soon…” How soon? We don’t know yet, but knee injuries are stubborn and he isn’t running for a Title this season – look for Banting to play it safe if he’s not 100%.
UPDATE: Jordy Smith (Back) OUT: 7 September, 2015 – We had a feeling this was coming. Jordy is officially withdrawn from the Hurley Pro Trestles, replaced by Aritz Aranburu for the second time in as many events. We’ve been fairly persistent in suggesting Smith may be done for the season and with only four events left, we could be right. There is a chance we’ll see him at Pipe even if the injury is very serious, since that’s way out in the future. Monitor the situation moving forward, though.
5 September, 2015 – Smith recently stated in an interview with Australia’s Surfing Life “I can’t go back into this until I am a hundred percent. I can’t risk this again. …I have to persevere and get back to one hundred percent before I come back. It might take the rest of the year, but it also might take a lot less.” These are not words you want to hear if Jordy’s on your radar. We suggested after his J-Bay exit that Smith might not return in 2015 – he’s out of World Title contention and a well-sourced rumor mill rumbled that he wanted time off anyway. Don’t expect Jordy to suit up for Trestles, but do expect a late withdrawal. Without any current footage posted to social media, we have to assume Smith has not returned to the water.
27 August, 2015 – We really want to slap the “Doubtful” tag on Jordy, but we will wait until 2 September. If he hasn’t announced he’s back or posted some current shredding videos, we will assume he’ll be out for Trestles. Stay tuned.
Mick Fanning (Shark Encounter) 27 August, 2015 – Consider Mick still a risky play. He bombed (not in the good way) at Teahupo’o and Southern California has had shark action. He’s still out to prove he’s fine, though, and he just might be. Check out this video from 9news.com.au of him catching shade at Shippstern Bluff earlier today:
John John Florence (Ankle) IN: 27 August, 2015 – Florence was eliminated in R3 of the Billabong Pro Tahiti, but he went out surfing better than anyone in the contest, posting an event-high 18.4 AHS over two surfed Rounds – precautionary ankle-brace and all. Consider him 100% for Trestles.
TAH
Jeremy Flores (Concussion, Facial Fractures) Closer to Probable:
11 August, 2015 – Jeremy Flores just lifted our spirits on Instagram, posting himself deep behind a Teahupo’o curtain with the caption “Let’s do it again !” We are hopeful, but know that this sort of hype can often be just that – hype and nothing more. We’ll wait until the 13th to slap a Probable tag on him, but don’t drop him from your team just yet.
Matt Banting (Knee) and Jordy Smith (Back) Officially OUT for Tahiti:
11 August, 2015 – According to the Billabong Pro Tahiti official Heat Draw, Matt Banting and Jordy Smith have withdrawn from the event. They will be replaced by Aritz Aranburu and Garrett Parkes respectively. We are working on our Outlooks to get up to speed and in the meantime, here’s the new Heat Draw:
11 August, 2015 -Banting just posted this to Instagram. It appears as though he’ll be withdrawing officially from the Billabong Pro Tahiti, though we still wait for an official statement…
9 August, 2015: Aritz Aranburu In, Banting (or Smith, or Both) OUT:
Aritz took to Instagram today to announce he’s slated for the Billabong Pro Tahiti, saying he was happy for the opportunity but sad it had to come from another surfer’s injury. He wished a healthy recovery to Matt Banting and Jordy Smith, so one or both of them will be withdrawing:
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Injury Status Report for the 2015 Tahiti Pro
Mick Fanning and Julian Wilson (Shark Encounter) – In for Tahiti
6 August, 2015 – Mick Fanning has been verbally assertive that he’s regaining normalcy following the J-Bay Shark Encounter heard ’round the world. In a recent interview with Good Morning America, Fanning stated:
“It’d be great just to get back into the water, get back into an event and just concentrate on surfing again.”
Good news for Mick: There is only 1 record of a fatal shark attack in French Polynesia according to sharkattackdata.com (a man was “…tossed overboard to sharks by Rodrigue brothers who were later executed in Manila” in 1893. No, 1893 is not a typo.)
Unlike Mick Fanning, Julian Wilson may not be dealing with the emotional stress of his shark encounter well – at least publicly. After initial interviews in the wake of the J-Bay Final, Wilson has since been quiet, letting his long-term girlfriend, Ashley Osborne, do the talking. Stating in an interview with the Daily Telegraph on 25 July she said
“[Julian] hasn’t really done much yet to try and move on, but hopefully he will have a surf soon and he will be feeling a lot better afterwards.”
The only record of Wilson’s return to the water has been a lightly publicized “quick surf” in his home town of Coolum. Monitor closely as this short session may be a publicity move to prove he’s over the emotional stress of the event.
Jordy Smith (Back) – Doubtful (THIS VIDEO IS NOT CURRENT!)
9 August, 2015 – Aritz Aranburu took to Instagram today to announce he’ll be surfing in the Billabong Pro Tahiti. He was only specific enough to wish a recovery to Matt Banting as well as Jordy Smith. It would appear the camps of both surfers do not want to admit withdrawal any earlier than they have to. Smith has been posting old footage on social media perhaps to stay marketable while he’s dry.
8 August, 2015 – It would appear that Jordy Smith is back in action as per Josh Kerr’s recent Instagram Post – worth checking out, he punts a ridiculous alley oop. We still have no official word on his back injury from Jordy himself, but if this video is recent we have no reason to believe he’ll withdraw.
6 August, 2015 – The knee drama is over, but uncertainty still surrounds Jordy Smith’s back injury as no official diagnosis has been released. Currently, he is slated to surf Teahupo’o, but we’ve seen last minute withdrawals consistently this season. Monitor this situation closely if you plan on playing Smith for TAH.
Matt Banting (Knee) – OUT
9 August, 2015 – It appears a withdrawal from Matt Banting will be made official sometime soon. Aritz Aranburu all but made the announcement via Instagram t0day.
1 August, 2015 – As per an Instagram post, Banting’s “…knee is still on the mend, slowly getting better..” but it still kept him out of the Vans US Open last week. With his return to action uncertain, he’ll remain doubtful for Tahiti.
10 July, 2015 – Matt Banting pulled out of the J-Bay Open with a dislocated knee following a freesurf wipeout. Diagnosis is a dry 3-6 weeks and Tahiti falls right in that time frame. Banting should be monitored heading into the event, and is doubtful to be in the lineup for CT #7.
Jeremy Flores (Facial Fractures, Concussion) – Uncertain
8 August, 2015 – Flores took to Instagram again yesterday to give us all some hope, stating he’ll be testing the waters. It is still 50/50 on whether or not he will withdraw.
16 July, 2015 – Flores is still dealing with frequent headaches due to his concussion suffered in June. In an interview with Surfing Magazine Flores stated
“…I can’t say Tahiti is a guarantee. But if the headaches cease, I’m there.”
Recently last weekend Flores was able to get in the water and surf with the protection of a helmet and headphones. It is a good sign but it is still not a guarantee. This would be Flores’ second year in a row missing this event.
3 July, 2015 – Flores has officially withdrawn from the 2015 J-Bay Open. Alejo Muniz will rejoin the CT as his replacement.
2 July, 2015 – Jeremy Flores is considered doubtful for Jeffreys Bay, stating in a recent interview with Surfline “…I doubt I’ll be ready for J-Bay. I am hoping to be 100% for Teahupo’o.” This comes as little shock to those following the story and seriousness of Jeremy’s horrific Indonesia injury. Monitor the situation moving forward, but don’t plan on Flores suiting up for CT #6.
27 June, 2015 – Flores is the latest injury-bug question-mark heading into Jeffreys Bay. He recently took a hard wipeout in IDO and required air-lifting for facial lacerations and concussion. There is thankfully no brain damage and Flores is expected to make a full recovery, though his status for JBay remains unclear.
John John Florence (Ankle) – Probable
7 August, 2015 – As per a recent video interview and post by Stab Magazine, John John is looking healthy and surfing well, wearing an ankle brace for precautionary reasons. We’ll keep his status as Probable until he paddles out for H11, though.
6 August, 2015 – Still no updates on John John’s status as usual. Initial diagnosis was back in June and he seemed almost ready for J-Bay. We will keep his status as Uncertain, however, until a statement is made. Missing another event would be a crushing blow to John John’s World Title bid.
6 July, 2015 – Florence has officially withdrawn from the J-Bay Open. WSL Deputy Commissioner Renato Hickel said in a statement that Florence “…tried to recover up to the last possible day to fly to J-Bay. But as his foot still pretty sore he decided to miss the event and be ready for Tahiti.” In his stead, Tomas Hermes (BRA) will get his first CT start of 2015.
27 June, 2015 – John John experienced a high ankle sprain that kept him out of Fiji. He’s hopeful, but being vague about injury is never a good sign and his status should be monitored heading into ZAF.
Brett Simpson (Back) – In
6 August, 2015 – Simpson surfed (albeit not great) at the Vans US Open last week and should be considered a full go for Tahiti.
2 July, 2015 – Heading into July, Brett Simpson tossed up an Instagram pic of himself snapping a backhander with the comment “Feels great to be back in the water!!” Sufficiently securing his roster spot among the lineup for J-Bay, Simpo can be considered for your fantasy lineups.
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