CULBURRA Beach's Mikey Wright has been pipped at the final World Surf League (WSL) Championship Tour (CT) qualification post by Italian Leonardo Fioravanti.
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After splitting the opening two injury wildcard heats on Tuesday, the Culburra Beach Boardrider lost the all-important decider at Hawaii's Banzai Pipeline on Wednesday, to fix to eight foot swell..
The 24-year-old could only muster rides of 7.17 and 1.40, for a combined two-wave score of 8.57 - which was eclipsed by Fioravanti's 14.00 (8.50 and 5.50).
The latter's victory sees him secure spot 34 on the CT, with the season's opening event, the Pipeline Masters, getting underway on Wednesday too.
He will face United States' Kolohe Andino and Brazil's Yago Dora in the seeding round.
Although Wright missed out on automatic qualification into the 2021 season, he will still compete at the Pipeline Masters as the number one injury replacement, with his older brother Owen deciding against making the trip to Hawaii in order to stay in Australia for the birth of his second child.
His wife Kita Alexander is due to give birth in early January, and the required two-week quarantine period for any traveller returning to Australia meant Wright risked missing out on the birth if he competed in Hawaii.
It's hopeful Owen Wright will be able to return for the Sunset Open in Hawaii, which runs from January 19-28.
Mikey Wright will take on Brazil's Filipe Toledo and Portugal's Frederico Morais in round one.
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