Lake Alfred, Fla. (April 26, 2015) – The first stop of the Malibu Boats Evolution Pro Series concluded on Sunday as Harley Clifford claimed the Malibu Cancun Pro title and extended his lead in the WWA Wakeboard World Series. Steel Lafferty and Malibu’s Phil Soven rounded out the podium while Rockstar Energy’s Nicola Butler took the Pro Women win followed by Malibu’s Dallas Friday and Raimi Merritt.
The final day of the Malibu Cancun Pro kicked off with the semi final round of Pro Men. In Heat 1 it was Lafferty setting the bar with a 86.67 score followed by Soven right on his heels to transfer to the final. JD Webb and Tony Carroll matched the pace in Heat 2 to advance and Cory Teunissen won Heat 3 ahead of Clifford to set the six-man final round.
The Pro Women took to the water where each rider got two runs including a Wild Card trick. With World Series leader Meagan Ethell knocked out in the semi final round, all the girls raised the bar to try and take home the Cancun Pro title. After qualifying through Friday’s quarters and Saturday’s semis, Butler threw down a flawless run in the final and capitalized by sticking a Roll a Blind as her Wild Card trick to win a bonus $1,000 for the Rockstar Best Trick. Rounding out the podium was Friday and Merritt. Representing Mexico was Larisa Morales who finished in fifth place.
“This was my first time to the Malibu Cancun Pro and it couldn’t have gone better,” said Butler. “I qualified top seed on Friday and rode smooth on Saturday to move to the final round. I won with my first pass and stuck my Wild Card for the double win today. It feels good to come back after being injured last year and I hope to keep it going all year.”
The gloves came off in the Pro Men final round as the riders edged each other out for the top spot as they progressed through the heat. Behind the Malibu Wakesetter 22 MXZ it was Soven who took the early lead with a 83.33 score, but it was Clifford, wearing the yellow bib as the Wakeboard World Series points leader, who once again dominated the competition with two mobe 540, a toe-side 900 and for his double-up trick he stomped a heel side 900.
“Couldn’t be more stoked on today,” said Clifford. “The conditions were really tough, but I just tried to stick my tricks the best I could and came away with a clean run. The wake was great all weekend and I’m really excited to get the win for the second-straight weekend.”
In the Pro Men’s Rockstar Double-Up Best Trick it was Lafferty’s toe-side, backside 720 that took top honors and the $1,000 prize. While the WWA Wakeboard World Series moves on to Brazil, the Malibu Evolution Pro Series will resume with their second stop at the Malibu Tokyo Pro in August.
Results
Malibu Boats Cancun Pro Presented by Rockstar Energy
Puerto Cancun – Cancun, Mexico
Sunday, April 26, 2015
Pro Men Final
- Harley Clifford – 93.67
- Steel Lafferty – 89.67
- Phil Soven – 83.33
- Cory Teunissen – 78.33
- Tony Carroll – 63.33
- JD Webb – 40.00
Pro Women
- Nicola Butler – 83.33
- Dallas Friday – 79.33
- Raimi Merritt – 78.17
- Taylor McCullough – 77.83
- Larisa Morales – 72.33
- Tarah Mikacich – 63.33