Eight Australians will compete on this year’s men’s World Surf League Championship Tour after five — George Pittar, Oscar Berry, Morgan Cibilic, Callum Robson and Liam O’Brien — secured qualification at the final Challenger Series event at Merewether Beach in Newcastle. For most it marks a return to the CT, with Oscar Berry’s finish described as a breakthrough; Levi Slawson and Dimitri Poulos also pushed close to qualification at Newcastle.

Australia has not produced a men’s world champion since Mick Fanning in 2013, and Brazilian surfers largely dominated men’s world surfing over the past decade, with Hawaiian John John Florence a notable exception. Organizers say the expanded Australian contingent brings proven firepower to the Tour even if not every qualifier is viewed as an outright title favorite, and combined with a revived full-year points system the influx of qualifiers could make the title race more open and increase expectations for an Australian resurgence. Liam O’Brien singled out Jack Robinson and Ethan Ewing as the Australians most likely to end the title drought under the revived system.

Liam O’Brien became the fifth Australian man to qualify through this season’s Challenger Series after a shaky Round of 64 heat that left him nervously awaiting his fate. He is preparing for his fifth full CT season and said he does not set “massive goals,” remaining unsure exactly what to expect from the upcoming year. O’Brien also released a 10-minute surf edit titled “Amalgam” that stitches together clips from South America, heavy slabs in Western Australia, footage from Cyclone Alfred and a solo run at XL Burleigh, spotlighting his precise forehand rail work and making a case that he can contend for and win CT events.

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