Erin Brooks Claims Second Fiji Win as Nichols Forced to Withdraw
Erin Brooks (CAN) has been crowned the 2026 Fiji Pro winner after Isabella Nichols (AUS) was forced to withdraw from the Final due to the ankle injury sustained in her Semifinal win over Brisa Hennessy (CRC). The result marks a full-circle moment for Brooks at a venue that holds special significance in her career. It was here in 2024 that she claimed her maiden CT win as a wildcard, becoming the first Canadian to win a CT event. Since joining the Tour full-time, Brooks endured a slower start to her CT career, but the tide has turned in dramatic fashion over the past month, with this result following her win at the Outerknown Tahiti Pro to give her back-to-back victories heading into the back half of the season. Brooks now sits at World No. 8, making a leap from 19th in the last two events.
“I feel so amazing, I’ve just been having the best time these last two events,” Brooks said. “I can’t believe that I got two back-to-back wins. That just seemed impossible at the beginning of the year, but now I’m just insanely happy. At the same time, I’m honestly so bummed for Isabella [Nichols]. I love her like a sister, and I really wanted to share a Final with her. I hope she rests up really quickly, and I’m praying for her. She’s definitely impressed me in the last two events; she stepped up in such a big way and has been charging, so it would have been such a great Final.”
“I’ve just been having so much fun. That win in Tahiti took so much pressure off and allowed me to go out there and surf the way I wanted to, and in the first heat of this event, I had the best heat of my life, scoring a Perfect 10, and I feel like that’s just grown with me throughout the event,” Brooks continued. “I’ve just been smiling and having fun, and I just love this place. I actually saw Occy (Mark Occhilupo, 1999 World Champion, Tahiti and Fiji winner in 1999). When I got here, he congratulated me on Tahiti and was telling me about the ‘dime-a-double,’ where you win both Fiji and Tahiti back-to-back. It’s been in my head, and the closer I’ve been getting, I’ve been getting so excited, and finally doing it is insane. In the back half of the year, I still need to step up, as I have a lot of last places, but I’m so excited to go to Lowers. I love it there and have a lot of friends and family there, so it’s going to be great.”
Nichols’ Best Result of the Season Comes with Bittersweet Ending
Despite being unable to compete in the Final, Isabella Nichols’ (AUS) runner-up finish is her best result of the season, a significant turnaround in a year defined by inconsistency. Nichols opened 2026 with a strong third-place finish at Bells Beach, but was dealt a string of early-round eliminations through the middle of the season before finding her footing again in Tahiti last month. The momentum carried into Fiji, where she pushed all the way to the Final before her ankle injury forced her out of the jersey today. The result is bittersweet for Nichols, who is close friends with Brooks and spends much of her time with her on Tour. It was Nichols’ toughness, drawing on her Viking heritage, that saw her battle through the injury to see out her Semifinal win before ultimately having to step aside.
“It’s unfortunate, but I’m still so stoked to have made the Final here and to see Erin [Brooks] take the win,” Nichols said. “A big congrats to Erin, she has been the most dominant surfer all week, so I was excited to share the Final with her, but to see her get back-to-back wins, I’m so happy for her; she’s like a little sister to me. Yesterday, I went to the hospital for scans and an X-ray, which showed I have no broken bones but a high ankle sprain. It will be one of those things where I just wait and see, but at the moment, I can barely stand on this foot. So to surf a heat with the size of the waves right now would be smart, especially smart for me, especially if I want to be back and strong for the next few events. It’s all still looking very up in the air for me at the moment, so I will just take it day by day and get home for some much-needed rest. After Brazil, I was in a pretty dark place after not banking a result at a lot of my pet events. I was getting really pessimistic when looking at places like Fiji and Tahiti, as I’ve never made it to the Quarterfinals at either one. I’ve put in some time at these places now, and to see it pay off is amazing.”
The women’s Top 10 stayed much the same after the Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero, apart from Brooks and Nichols both moving inside, pushing Caroline Marks (USA) and Nadia Erostarbe (ESP) into 10th and 11th, respectively.
2026 Fiji Pro Presented by Corona Cero Women’s Final Results:
1 – Erin Brooks (CAN)
2 – Isabella Nichols (AUS) INJ
