WET ‘N’ WILD WITH ROCKIN’ FIG:

The biggest surf event on the women’s Assn. of Surfing Professional’s world tour, the “Beachley Classic” finished up last week over in Oz.

The waves were fun in Sydney as the women surfed it out for big bucks and big points. History was made as 14-year-old Australian sensation Tyler Wright was pretty much unstoppable through out the event all the way till the buzzer blew in the final, winning $20,000. Wright was surfing super fast and in the right spot every time in her heats, picking off the best set waves and tearing them apart.

Wright defeated Brazil’s Silvana Lima in the low tide, wind blown final and beat another Aussie, Amee Donohoe, in the semis pretty solidly.

But, her biggest heat win might have been taking out last year’s world champ, Stephanie Gilmore, in Round 3, which was a major upset, to gain even more momentum.

Lima took the victory over Peru’s Sofia Mulanovich, who sprained her ankle doing a fins out move in her semi final, and the second place finish moved her up to fifth in the overall ratings.

But with Gilmore, the points leader, going down early and Mulanovich making the semis, she moves back up into first place in the w.c.t. standings as the tour is heading to her home country, Peru, next.

Seven-time world champ Layne Beachley, who actually puts this event together and helps run it, made it to the quarterfinals and made an unexpected announcement that she will be retiring at the end of the year even though she’s been surfing great and is currently ranked No. 3, but just isn’t 100% focused on surfing competitively anymore. That will be a big loss for women’s surfing as Beachley was quite a talent over the years in small to big surf in any kind of conditions. And the U.S.’s Karina Petroni lost out in round three action to wrap up a good one for the ladies.

The results are in, some of the winners from the new WSA Prime surf tour that was held last weekend down at Church’s.

In the gals 16 and under San Clemente’s Melina Smith won her division getting some nice ones, while 18 and under gals was won by Santa Ana’s Courtney Conlogue, who was going off. Huntington Beach’s Kanoa Igarashi went big taking the boy’s 14 and under’s, while Newport’s Taylor Thorne ripped to victory in 16 and under and Manhattan Beach’s Dane Zaun won the 18 and under’s. Some offshore winds were seen earlier in the week, did ya get any of those mini barrels. Fig over and out.

RICK FIGNETTI is a 10-time West Coast champion and a longtime KROQ-FM surfologist. He owns a surf shop on Main Street. You can reach him at (714) 536-1058.