Young Wannanup surfing star Maverick Wilson has kicked off his new year in epic fashion with a hard-fought win at the popular Taj’s Small Fries event in Yallingup over the weekend.
Taking to a pumping Smith’s Reef in the state’s biggest junior surfing event, Maverick was able to show off his skills with a dominant display in a hotly contested under 12 boys division, shredding his way to a victory in front of WA surfing legend Taj Burrow.
The local wunderkind used his high-speed and razor-sharp rail game to score a perfect 10-point ride on his way to a combined total of 17.60 (from a possible 20), defeating Remy North (Yallingup, WA), Max McGillvray (Evans Head, NSW) and Creed Smart (Coffs Harbour, NSW), who surfed strongly in the 25-minute final.
His first-place finish follows on from a win in the under 10s category in 2018, with Maverick saying he was rapt to go back-to-back.
“I love Taj’s Small Fries and it means a lot to be here after winning the 10’s last year,” he said.
The event also produced strong results for former Mandurah surfing siblings Macklin and Ace Flynn.
The pair and their family recently moved to the Margaret River region and showed they’re ready to continue their ascent up the ranks in 2019 taking out second place in the under 14s and under 10s divisions respectively.
Secret Harbour’s Jack Bulloch also enjoyed a strong showing in the water taking out fourth in the under 10 micro groms.
Since 2006 Taj's Small Fries has become a rite of passage for many of the country's best young surfers, allowing them the chance to get some up-close advice from Burrow who spends most of the event either on the beach or in the water.
“It’s been such an epic day down here, I’m really glad the waves have turned on,” Burrow said.
“The groms have been absolutely shredding and it’s been amazing to see it all going down.”