Brooks, Fierro, and Sakura Johnson Advance in Short Day at Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero

CLOUDBREAK, Fiji – The Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero, Stop No. 8 on the World Surf League (WSL) 2026 Championship Tour (CT), has seen a short day of competition complete three heats of women's Round 2 to set the first two Quarterfinal matchups in Fiji.

Vahine Fierro (FRA) is through to the Quarterfinals at the Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero after eliminating Sawyer Lindblad (USA) in Round 2, Heat 3 today. Credit: WSL / Cait Miers

After competitors arrived to find pristine conditions and waves in the three-to-five-foot range, the dying swell slowed right down, forcing the competition to go on standby. With plenty of swell forecasted later in the event window, competition will look to resume in more favorable conditions. The WSL Tours and Competition team called the event OFF for the day tomorrow, with the next call to be made on Sunday, August 30. 

The first heat of the day saw Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) take a much-needed heat win over Luana Silva (BRA) to find her way into the Quarterfinals for only the third time this season. After a breakthrough season in 2025, which saw Sakura Johnson finish No. 5 in the year-end rankings, she has struggled to reach Finals Day this season and is sitting down in the rankings. Today, she found a good flow, posting a solid 14.60 heat combination (out of a possible 20) to overcome Silva, handing her a second-straight first-round loss. 

"After they called it off yesterday, it was hard to hold all of that energy that you build up ahead of your heat and bottle it until today," Sakura Johnson said. "I've just been rolling with it to find a groove and going with it. I've been foiling in the evening and finding a lot of peace doing that and just living each day to the fullest and enjoying my time here. I was really hungry for that heat. I've got to make heats if I want to stay on tour, and I really want to keep surfing and complete my surfing. I want to be the surfer in that 35-minute heat, that's my biggest goal here."

Erin Brooks (CAN) got the better of Caroline Marks (USA) in tricky, slower conditions at Cloudbreak, continuing her strong run at an event that holds special meaning in her career. This was Brooks and Marks' first time meeting up in a CT heat, and Marks was left needing a 7-point ride in the slower conditions before the event was called off for the day. Marks is currently sitting at World No. 8, outside the Top 5 she's typically occupied at this point in past seasons, as she continues to search for the results and wins that have defined much of her career. Brooks, meanwhile, continues to build on the form from Tahiti and into her dream Perfect 10 at the start of this event.

Tahiti's Vahine Fierro (FRA) has taken down World No. 3 Sawyer Lindblad (USA) to progress into the Quarterfinals, guaranteeing her best result of the season. In an all goofy-foot matchup, it came down to a battle of the better waves, with Fierro finding a long, hollow tube ride to separate herself from Lindblad and post a solid 7.00-point ride to win with a two-wave total of 11.67 (out of a possible 20). It's a massive heat win for Fierro, who needs a good result if she's to hold her place on the CT into the 2027 season. 

"It's an amazing feeling to make it past this round," Fierro said. "Coming up against Sawyer, I knew she's incredible in lefts and has been doing so well, but I also knew I could use my strength, and in this heat it paid off. I'm stoked I got a few turns and a little barrel too. The ocean was really slow, but I'm glad they called it off yesterday afternoon because today is glassy. It was tricky because of the two swells, but also with the tide going low, it was breaking in a different spot than where it was in the morning, so I had to adapt to the conditions, and I think I did that well for what the conditions offered. I hadn't even thought about making the quarterfinalists yet; I was more thinking about the staff on Tavarua, because they were saying to me, she's staying on Nomotu; you've got to beat her. That helped me forget about Quarters and rankings because it was a fun little challenge, so thanks to them. They have such good energy and their support is the best, so I took that into the heat."

2026 Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero Women's Round 2 Results (Heats 1 - 4):
HEAT 1: Carissa Moore (HAW) 12.13 DEF. Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 11.50
HEAT 2: Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 14.60 DEF. Luana Silva (BRA) 9.00
HEAT 3: Vahine Fierro (FRA) 11.67 DEF. Sawyer Lindblad (USA) 10.43
HEAT 4: Erin Brooks (CAN) 10.83 DEF. Caroline Marks (USA) 6.00

2026 Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero Women's Remaining Round 2 Matchups (Heats 5 - 8):
HEAT 5: Gabriela Bryan (HAW) vs. Yolanda Hopkins (POR)
HEAT 6: Nadia Erostarbe (ESP) vs. Isabella Nichols (AUS)
HEAT 7: Molly Picklum (AUS) vs. Brisa Hennessy (CRC)
HEAT 8: Lakey Peterson (USA) vs. Francisca Veselko (POR)

2026 Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero Women's Quarterfinal Matchups:
HEAT 1: Carissa Moore (HAW) vs. Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW)
HEAT 2: Vahine Fierro (FRA) vs. Erin Brooks (CAN)
HEAT 3: TBD 
HEAT 4: TBD 

2026 Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero Men's Round 3 Matchups:
HEAT 1: Seth Moniz (HAW) vs. Cole Houshmand (USA)
HEAT 2: Yago Dora (BRA) vs. Kanoa Igarashi (JPN)
HEAT 3: Morgan Cibilic (AUS) vs. Leonardo Fioravanti (ITA)
HEAT 4: Callum Robson (AUS) vs. Jake Marshall (USA)
HEAT 5: Italo Ferreira (BRA) vs. Connor O'Leary (JPN)
HEAT 6: Samuel Pupo (BRA) vs. Griffin Colapinto (USA)
HEAT 7: Miguel Pupo (BRA) vs. Kauli Vaast (FRA)
HEAT 8: Barron Mamiya (HAW) vs. Gabriel Medina (BRA)