As if wrangling the No.1 ranking from four-time champion Steph Gilmore wasn’t enough, a cheeky Sally Fitzgibbons says if it came down to it, she’d be willing to fight Steph for the world title. Just putting it out there, ASP people...
And with 20 years of ninja and kung-fu skills honed in order to defend herself from her three older brothers, our money is on Sal.
She’ all grown up and she’s ready to kick some arse. Just like she did at Bells Beach last month when she rung - and almost dropped - the coveted chiming trophy with her first ever ASP tour win, and with her second win in as many event at the Subaru Pro in New Zealand. Second no more for this girl from Gerroa. Oh, and she wants more.
“Steph hasn’t tried to fight me or anything - yet,’’ Sally says with her trademark laugh. We can only assume this over-the-phone interview is taking place in the Fitzgibbon’s secret underground boxing lair, from where Sal fine-tuned those lethal fighting skills to not only overcome her big brothers, but world surfing. ‘‘But I’m used to that with three older brothers (laughs). Nah, Steph has been awesome. We actually had a pretty funny moment at Bells when I was coming in on a wave, we kind of high-fived with a little Machado-Slater moment. It was pretty special. She congratulated me and was just stoked an Aussie took the win."
‘‘But I know even though she definitely has the relaxed approach to everything and it always seems like she is cruising, Steph is super hungry for a win and it makes it very exciting. I’m just gonna have to try and stop her.’’
The once-impossible task now made all the more easier after securing her first ever tour win after what seems countless seconds - Greenseas no more, Sal is all John West. ‘‘I got the monkey off my back!’’ she says, elated.
‘‘I’ve made that many semis and finals that you’d think by now I’d know what to do! And I did! I’ve learned from all of that, I was learning all the time.
“I had a quick start and got some good scores, and when the final buzzer went I was shocked. I was like: “What? That’s it! I won! I did it?” People were just everywhere, it was crazy. I felt like I was in a stadium with all the people lined up against the shore.
“It was a pretty incredible couple of weeks. To win Bells, it was pretty sick – I was just buzzing. There was just so much going on with the 50th and all my friends and family, and surf icons were down there. I thought to myself: ‘It’d be a pretty awesome to win this thing with everyone here’.
No big deal... only the most prestigious event in Australian surfing and the second biggest event in surfing history after Pipeline.
"I just can't wait for the next event, the next wave. I've never been No.1 before but I reckon I could get used to it!"
Someone must have swapped her Red Bull for water at the Layne Beachley Classic but, Sal missing out on the final by the narrowest of margins to Peru's Sofia Mulanovich. We're still waiting on confirmation but it's believed that final was in fact judged my a Peruvian pan-flute band...
Oh well, back to No.2 in the world and primed for the next Pro. Good luck, Sal!
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