Filipe Toledo and Bettylou Sakura Johnson Win Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM

Filipe Toledo (BRA) and Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) have won the 2025 Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM, Stop No. 6 on the 2025 World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT). The pair put on incredible performances on Finals Day in front of tens of thousands of fans who lined the famous surfing headland. For the first time in over two decades, the iconic Burleigh Heads crowned two Championship Tour event winners as the birthplace of head-to-head surfing turned on clean, three-to-four-foot surf.

Bettylou Sakura Johnson Claims Maiden CT Victory

Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) claimed her maiden CT win today at Burleigh Heads, overcoming CT veteran Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) in the Final. Sakura Johnson came into the Gold Coast event sitting in 13th place on the rankings and in desperate need of a massive result here to move above the Mid-Season Cut line ahead of Margaret River. After back-to-back Quarterfinal finishes, the 20-year-old Hawaiian looked primed to take the next step, and it was on show from her Opening Round heat as she posted some of the highest heat totals of each round all the way to the Final, where she eventually claimed the biggest result of her career.

"This is the best feeling in the world," Sakura Johnson said. "I'm over the moon to have my first win here on the Gold Coast. This is what winning feels like, and I want to keep winning. I'm super stoked to get this feeling, and I'm so grateful for everything. It's taken a lot, so much hard work and a lot of patience and perseverance to put everything together. This year was a really hard year for me, dealing with injuries and a whole bunch of other things, but super happy to just pull it together."

After only just making it through her Semifinal against 2025 CT Rookie Vahine Fierro (FRA), Johnson came out swinging, posting an 8.50 (out of a possible 10) on her first ride, then continued to post mid-range scores until ending on a two-wave total of 15.33 (out of a possible 20). Her frontside rail game was the perfect match for the fast, down-the-line walls at Burleigh. Fitzgibbons, who was in form all day, seemed to lose rhythm with the ocean, leaving Johnson to cruise to a comfortable win and rocket seven places up the rankings to No. 6 in the world.

“I really wanted to just enjoy it all,” Sakura Johnson continued. “Soak in the moment and yeah, just know that I can do it, and trust myself, in the abilities, once I get the chance to get the wave. But yeah, I'm so happy.”

Filipe Toledo Repeats History on the Gold Coast

A decade later, Filipe Toledo (BRA) has repeated his inaugural CT win over Julian Wilson (AUS). In an exact rematch of the 2015 Gold Coast Pro Final, the Brazilian once again claimed victory over the Australian. Today’s win marked the 16th CT victory of Toledo’s career, moving him further up the rankings of the men’s all-time winners list to No. 10. After becoming the first Brazilian to win back-to-back World Titles in 2022 and 2023, Toledo decided to take the 2024 season off to spend more time with his young family, who today celebrated his son’s birthday. The return to Tour in 2025 has been notably sluggish for the 30-year-old, with only one previous Quarterfinal notched this season. An excellent Round of 32 performance in this event turned the page on Toledo’s rhythm, and he continued to push the boundaries, peaking with the 14th 10-point ride of his career in the Semifinals for a jaw-dropping barrel to alley-oop combo. The win shot Toledo a full five places up the rankings to sit one place shy of the Top 5 as World No. 6.

"First of all, I just want to thank God to bring me back here," Toledo said. "I took the year off to take care of myself, to take care of my family, just like [Julian Wilson] did, you know, but I came back a little earlier than him. It was definitely hard to get back and get going with all the surfers, everyone so in tune, so ready for anything. I was like man, I've got to get back again, you know, and it feels damn good to be back."

The men’s Final opened with fireworks and did not let up, with Wilson and Toledo going blow-for-blow in an extremely competitive Final. An opening full rotation air reverse from Toledo was met with two variations of a slob-grab air reverse from Wilson in consecutive waves, giving the Australian an early advantage. But Toledo was only just getting started. A long barrel to giant hack earned an 8.53, before an aggressive two-turn combo collected a 9.07. Wilson responded by improving on both of his scores, posting two excellent 8-point rides of his own, but his second of the two fell short of the requirement, leaving Toledo victorious.

"It was just a lot of fire, you know," Toledo continued. "The rematch again after so many years, what 10 years, sharing the Final again here on the Gold Coast. The crowds are amazing. All the Aussies, all the Brazilians. We're just super competitive, me, Jules, everyone that's on Tour, you know, we want to win so bad every time we're in a Final. As Julian said, it just brings the fire out of us. And both of us are now being dads, with kids, to the families. It was so funny looking back, just us, like way younger and trying to go after our dreams, and now we're here with beautiful families."

A month after announcing his return to competition on the Challenger Series, Julian Wilson (AUS) has concluded a dream run on the Gold Coast with a runner-up finish in the event where he first made the Final in 2015 and won in 2018. Wilson last appeared on the CT in 2021, withdrawing after the fifth event of the pandemic-affected season in order to spend more time with his family. Having never officially retired, the 2018 World Title runner-up had long considered returning to the CT, plans which were recently made firm with a wildcard into this season’s Challenger Series draw. Wilson never imagined that an opportunity to compete in the trials for the Gold Coast Pro would turn into the accomplishment that it has, but is taking it as a strong encouragement as he re-engages with his passion for competing.

“First and foremost, thank you the WSL for giving me just a chance,” Wilson said. “To convert it into what it's turned into has been a very memorable experience for me. The fans, the support that I've received coming back has been quite emotional, so thank you everyone for the support. It's not easy to step away from the thing you love to prioritise your family and watch from the sidelines. These surfers inspire me so much. This is what I was born to do. My kids got to share it this week, it's been super super special. So yeah, just super gracious for this opportunity and thanks to my sponsors. Thanks to my wife for getting me back here and dragging the kids down with me every day, rain, hail, or shine. But yeah, enough about me, congratulations to Filipe [Toledo]. The Brazilian crowd got me so fired up out there today, and from the bottom of my heart, I love you guys.”

Veteran Fitzgibbons Finds First Final Since 2021

Australian surfing legend and CT veteran Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) today claimed her biggest result in four years, finishing runner-up at the Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro. The 17-year veteran of the Tour has struggled with consistency in the last few years and comes into the Mid-season Cut this year facing potential relegation. The former Gold Coast event finalist came into this week needing to Final to give herself a chance ahead of the Western Australia Margaret River Pro, and she pulled on all of her experience throughout the event to find herself in the last heat of the competition. On her way to the Final, Fitzgibbons took down the in-form Isabella Nichols (AUS) in the Quarterfinal and the 2025 CT Rookie Erin Brooks (CAN) in the Semifinals but fell short of claiming her maiden Gold Coast CT victory.

“I wanted to get it together so bad in that Final,” Fitzgibbons said. “It's been a fight and a grind the last few years, but I really want to be here and my deep desire is to keep surfing for this country, for all you guys, my family down here, my friends. This means the world to me, and I just want to fight for it. It was nearly the best birthday present for my dad down there, but today was Betty's day.”

Gold Coast Royalty Put on a Show at Burleigh Heads

Earlier in the day, two of the Gold Coast’s favorite sons and Australia’s biggest sporting icons, Mick Fanning (AUS) and Joel Parkinson (AUS), hit the lineup at Burleigh Heads for a fully judged Heritage Heat. It was their first match-up for scores since 2017, and the competitiveness between the two good friends hadn’t gone anywhere. With the low-tide conditions making the Burleigh lineup harder to navigate, the pair of World Champions, with a pair of Gold Coast Pro titles each, were always going to put on a show, and that’s exactly what they did. Parkinson, known for his ability to find tubes, did exactly that on his opening few waves, but struggled to come out. Fanning opted for turns to build momentum, and it looked to be the smarter course of action. This was until Parkinson found back-to-back set waves and went to town, posting an excellent heat total of 16.83 for his timeless and effortless tube riding and carves. Fanning managed one solid score but never found a backup, leaving the 2012 World Champion to take the win and hold bragging rights until the next time they meet.

“I wouldn't call that on fire, a couple of good waves that we turned into pretty bad waves by the end of it,” Parkinson joked. “But that was fun, you know. It's like surfing for me, and I guess Mick [Fanning], too, is just about us enjoying it. That was enjoyable. It was fun. It wasn't really fireworks, but yeah, it was a lot of fun.”

"The event has definitely had its moments where, especially yesterday afternoon, we saw some really good surfing," Fanning said. "I think probably the highlight is watching Julian [Wilson] making the comeback. It's been really exciting. We competed with Jules on Tour and, you know, good friends. So it's awesome to see him come back, and hopefully he does really well."

In the Quarterfinals, Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) faced the second inter-generational superheat of her wildcard run when she came up against Rookie phenom Erin Brooks (CAN). The eight-time World Champion, Gilmore, had already defeated reigning World Champion Caity Simmers (USA) in the Round of 16, but this time the momentum was on the side of the younger generation, with 17-year-old Brooks putting 37-year-old Gilmore into combination by heat’s end. The undisputed queen of Australian point breaks, Gilmore’s timeless style and flow saw her post two scores in the 7-point range. However, the impeccable technique of the critical backhand hits put up by Brooks landed the Canadian an 8.33 followed by a 9.43, which matched her own event-high single wave score for the women. Brooks went on to be defeated by Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS), but the points gained from her second Semifinal finish of the year pushed her two places up the rankings to World No. 8 ahead of the last remaining event prior to the Mid-season Cut.

“That heat was so crazy, I'm so lucky that I was able to surf against Steph [Gilmore],” Brooks said. “I've looked up to her my whole life and right when I got on Tour her and Carissa [Moore] kind of took time off, which is fair because they've put in so much effort to this sport, but I was like, ‘No I want to surf against you guys.’ So I was really happy that she joined this event and she's been crushing it, but I'm just glad to get the win off of her because she's so amazing.”

For more highlights from the Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro Presented by GWM, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.

1 - Filipe Toledo (BRA) 17.60

2 - Julian Wilson (AUS) 17.20

1 - Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 15.33

2 - Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 7.83

HEAT 1: Filipe Toledo (BRA) 17.67 DEF. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 14.07

HEAT 2: Julian Wilson (AUS) 15.60 DEF. Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) 14.90

HEAT 1: Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 12.33 DEF. Vahine Fierro (FRA) 7.00

HEAT 2: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 11.17 DEF. Erin Brooks (CAN) 9.40

HEAT 1: Filipe Toledo (BRA) 15.83 DEF. Yago Dora (BRA) 11.90

HEAT 2: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 13.43 DEF. Morgan Cibilic (AUS) 8.97

HEAT 3: Julian Wilson (AUS) 14.10 DEF. Miguel Pupo (BRA) 9.40

HEAT 4: Kanoa Igarashi (JPN) 14.34 DEF. Jordy Smith (RSA) 13.84

HEAT 1: Vahine Fierro (FRA) 12.83 DEF. Luana Silva (BRA) 10.83

HEAT 2: Bettylou Sakura Johnson (HAW) 15.33 DEF. Molly Picklum (AUS) 13.37

HEAT 3: Erin Brooks (CAN) 17.76 DEF. Stephanie Gilmore (AUS) 14.27

HEAT 4: Sally Fitzgibbons (AUS) 14.47 DEF. Isabella Nichols (AUS) 12.60

The WSL Championship Tour will next head to the Western Australia Margaret River Pro for Stop No. 7, which will hold a competition window from May 17 - 27, 2025. The event will be broadcast LIVE on WorldSurfLeague.com, and the free WSL App. Check out more ways to watch from the WSL's broadcast partners.

For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.

The World Surf League (WSL) is the global home of competitive surfing, crowning World Champions since 1976 and showcasing the world’s best surfing. The WSL oversees surfing’s global competitive landscape and sets the standard for elite performance in the most dynamic playing field in all of sports. With a firm commitment to its values, the WSL prioritizes the protection of the ocean, equality, and the sport’s rich heritage, while championing progression and innovation.

For more information, please visit WorldSurfLeague.com.

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