The last Drop of 2025 is a heavy one. A reigning world champ parts with his headline sponsor. The WSL calls off the day of the event at Pipe. Stab gets in a bidding war with a major surf brand (and loses, then wins). And Stab Surfer of the Year gets a facelift.

Where does localism end and insanity begin? Particularly in the Canary Islands, where a crazed, scooter-riding, rock-wielding man just went full Joe Namath on a visiting surfer. Buck and Mikey break this down along with an exclusive Kolohe Andino interview, Nate Florence's Austrian torture chamber, Mikey Feb's broken board theory, the world's best artificial wave and some exciting news from Hawaii.

Sorry we're late, tech difficulties! And if you missed last week's ep, that's probably our fault as well. Something happened where it didn't upload to Apple pods until yesterday, so now we've got two eps in two days which I guess is better than nothing. Maybe? I'd say it won't happen again, but it probably will, so thanks as always for coming along for the ride with us. For now

Depends who you ask. If it's Mikey C or Buck, well, the answers still vary. This week the boys break down 14 more titles returning to the CT, a new ep of EAST, and a couple real thinkers: 1. Is Chat GPT ruining surf culture? 2. Who has the right to protect a wave? It's a heady ep, one that might come up in your next (therapy) session. But in the end, it's only surfing. Don't think too hard.

At 33, Carissa Moore will be the first mom to return to the CT since the mid-2000s. Mikey and Buck discuss her legacy and chances of winning another world title against today's new class of champions. Also, the boys get wrapped up in a wavepool imbroglio that took Billy Wilson 4 months to investigate. Our apologies to anyone named Nick. Snapt5 dropped exclusively on Stab Premium this week, along with a note from Sam McIntosh about what we've been up to and where Stab is heading in the next six months.

In the same week, Joel Tudor took on a major airline (and won), Jaleesa Vincent wrote an explicit rap song about her Pussy (surfboard), and a world junior champ put his life savings into a luxury sunglass brand. Just when you thought surfing was gonna be just fine, Paul Evans joins the pod to excoriate children and tell us when, precisely, our little hobby went tits up. Buy Veia boardbags (with wheels) if you, unlike Paul, prefer convenience to chaos.

What really happened at the GB Cup this week? Mikey and Buck do their own research and reveal the truth behind the headlines. We also ride shotgun with Mick Fanning, drive deep into the Atacama Desert, and find ourselves face-to-face with surfing's most digitally-inept superhuman. If you listen to this pod, you can support us by supporting: Veia, FCS, Living in Sunshine.

One man's miracle is another man's marketing ploy. It was kind of a dark week in surfing, from fake pregnancy announcements to brain tumors to death, but at least we have a little EAST sugar to help it all go down. Mikey and Buck break it all down and give away a new Veia leash to one lucky listener (who we hope is not an incel).

Tya Zebrowski recently became the youngest-ever CT qualifier at 14 years old. But just quietly, another surfer is on track to become the oldest CT qualifier in the same graduating class. By all accounts, a far more impressive achievement. Also this week: Mikey and Buck rank the greatest surf towns, steal leashes, get up & stand for Jamaican beach rights, and a whole lot more. VEIA GIVEAWAY Do you live in Europe, and want to win a Veia leash or a Stab towel? Send a picture of your worst surf rash (or any rash really) to buck@stabmag.com.

That's a wrap for Stab High Sydney. If you live under a state-imposed media blackout: Joel Vaughan and Sierra Kerr took out the Men's and Women's divisions on their very last waves, while Skai Suitt and Loci Cullen won the Ladybirds and Bottle Rockets. World champ Yago Dora owned the Monster Air for a massive late spin. Mikey and Buck break down the event and some BTS moments fresh out of a deranged after party.

Yago Dora joins our little pool party alongside fellow world champ Molly Picklum to face off against the reigning Stab High Champs Hughie Vaughan and Sierra Kerr. Mikey C and Stace provide White Claw-fueled insight and some sneaky picks from our practice day.

We're currently en route to Sydney for our first-ever Stab High on native soil. We'll be at URBNsurf Sydney on October 10th and 11th, so join us if you're around — all info (including tickets) here: https://stabmag.com/news/everything-you-need-to-know-about-stab-high-sydney-2025-presented-by-monster-energy/ The current women's world champ is already locked in to battle against reigning Stab High champ Sierra Kerr (+ Mill Coco Brown, Sky Brown and Bella Kenworthy), and there are whispers of another recent world champ joining us on the men's side. Have a listen and see if you can figure out who. Buck and Mikey also discuss some recently completed events: EAST Fest, Stab Con and Quik Fest 2025, as well as some surf news. Namely: Nate Florence signed by Red Bull, why Soli Bailey has been out of the water for nine months, and how OnlyFans has been quietly funding surf careers. Link for 15% off Living in Sunshine products: LivinginSunshine.com/stab

Surf100 California x Pacifico is complete, and we have a (somewhat) controversial winner — at least if you ask Kelly Slater (nobody did, but he gave us his thoughts anyway). What's not controversial is that Mike Stewart is one of (if not THE) greatest waveriders in human history, so Mikey and Buck break down some of his career feats tube theories. There are also two major sponsor updates this week: Chippa Wilson leaving his 10-year partnership with Brixton for an Italian wingbat brand, and ANOTHER surfer being signed by Nike. Buck also gives us a live report from the Quik Fest in France, where partying is obligatory and tops are optional. Link for 15% off LISS products: LivinginSunshine.com/stab

We finally got the GOAT. What does he really think about the modern state of surfing — you're about to find out. But first, this week's surf news with Mikey and Buck.

Bula vinaka from Tavarua Island, where we just finished interviewing the 2025 world champions of surfing — Yago Dora and Molly Picklum. You'll hear that toward the end of the pod, but first, Stace G and Mikey C dissect their very different views of Finals day in Fiji, including peak performances and surprise letdowns.

Better late than never! Joey T, Vaughan, and Ron join Mikey C on the sand to discuss warm-up sessions and hot tips from Tavarua Island. Sparknotes: Dogs: Italo and Caroline Faves: Yago and Molly

Live from Tavarua, we chat with the most prolific shaper in the WSL Finals (by a longshot) — Matt Biolos is peddling foam to Griffin, Caroline, Gabby, Bettylou and Yago Dora, all of whom are in with a shot for a world title this week.

Stab's co-founder joins The Drop to discuss a recent ep of How Surfers Get Paid — including the time he saw Parko's $1.6M contract lying on a table, when Andy yelled at him for simply riding a wave, and all about Twiggy's new Rip Curl deal at 52. Also... Stab Audience survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FJD5WW9 HSGP S2E8: https://stabmag.com/stabcinema/how-surfers-get-paid-season-2-episode-8/ Stab premium annual 20% promo code (1 week only): negotiators Use it here: https://stabmag.com/get-stab-premium/

Your first Surf100 presented by Pacifico $100k finalist, for one. But Sebastian's story goes far beyond his recent competitive triumphs, as Mikey and Buck discuss in this ep of The Drop. A prodigious talent from youth, it's possible that Seb's ability (and attitude) got in the way of his success. Thankfully, he seems to have grown past this stage and is moving forward with a new, selfless mindset. Also in this ep: Surfing cheat codes from Mason Ho, a major foam dilemma, a 10-year-old that can outsurf Mikey C, whale pirates and more. Psssst, get tickets to EAST Fest here: https://stabmag.com/features/east-fest-palm-springs-tickets/ Take the Stab Audience Survey here: https://stabmag.com/news/take-stabs-2025-audience-survey-win-a-new-surfboard-kit/ Submit proof of Medina's air at Steamer lane to: michael@stabmag.com

The WSL regular season goes out with a full fireworks display... or is that just Jordy Maree's apartment after another blackjack win? It was a strange but enthralling week of surfing — let's discuss with Mikey, Stace, Buck and special guest Snake Paterson.