Surf Spot Guide: Rosy Hodge Talks Hossegor, France

Rip Curl is pleased to announce that the local wildcard to the Rip Curl Pro Portugal has been given to none other than new Portuguese National Champ, 22 years old Miguel Blanco from Ericeira. The second Wildcard has been allocated to 18-year-old South American Junior Champ Samuel Pupo from Brazil!

Here & Now” features Miguel Blanco on his latest mission to Indonesia during the swell of the decade.

Being in the right place at the right time, Miguel ended up scoring the now legendary monster session in Nias Pulau, the wave that ultimately changed his life and ended up on the cover of Surfer Magazine in the USA.

The surfing in this clip shows off Miguel’s surfing as it is – raw and powerful – and it’s the quality of that surfing that saw him become the Portuguese National Champion just last week! This win was not only a huge achievement in its own right, but it also clinched his spot as the local Wildcard to the 10th Edition of the Rip Curl Pro Portugal!

“This has been a great year… such a great rollercoaster!” Miguel said, after he heard the Wildcard news.

“I’ve been putting a lot of energy into surfing and just stoked to be doing what I love the most every day! I had a big gap in summer so I decided to go to Puerto Escondido and Indonesia. I caught a good swell in Puerto and somehow ended up being in Indo for the biggest swell of this last decade. ‘Here & Now’ shows some of that action.

“To add to that magic trip, Surfer Magazine came out and I was in the cover! It was my first cover on an international magazine. While that was happening I was back home doing the National series, where the winner has the chance to surf in the Rip Curl Pro Portugal as a Wildcard.“

Everything just came together and I won the event. I was crowned National Champ and I earned the wildcard for the WCT in Peniche. What a year!The second Wildcard for the Rip Curl Pro has been allocated to the 18-year-old Brazilian surfer who’s making a name for himself in his home country and abroad – Samuel Pupo. This year Sammy made waves in Brazil, staking claim to the 2018 South American Pro Junior Title.

“I am so excited to surf in the event,” Sammy Pupo said.

“I had the opportunity to surf in the Rip Curl Pro Bells in 2017 when I won the trials event – and it was my first World Tour event, so I had a lot of learning to do very quickly. “I still do, but I can’t wait to surf in my second CT event!”

Congratulations to both of our Wildcard to the 2018 Rip Curl Pro Portugal… the 10th Edition of this historic event. See you in Portugal! The waiting period kicks off on October 16th. Tune in via the World Surf League.