Gold Coast Open surfers weigh in on controversial Abu Dhabi World Surf League event

The surfing community is divided on the newest world tour event in Abu Dhabi, with the competition overshadowed by controversy in the lead up. See what some of the top Aussie surfers had to say about the event here.

Morgan Cibilic at the 2025 Gold Coast Open.

Australia’s professional surfing ranks remain divided on the presence of a man-made wave on the world tour and called for the sport’s governing body to cap the use of wave pools to one each year.

The competition, which started on Friday, has drawn mixed reviews from professionals who featured at the Gold Coast Open second-tier event.

Morgan Cibilic claimed the Gold Coast open title at Burleigh Heads and weighed in on the controversial world tour event.

“I definitely prefer the Mother Nature side, I think the wave pool’s a cool event, it’s something different and it’s just another event we get to go to,” Cibilic said.

“I like competing in a fair few events throughout the year, I think it’s epic, it is somewhere new that we would never really go for surfing.

“It is just one event, the whole rest of the year we’re in the ocean and it is something different.

“Different guys excel in those kinds of waves, so it’s pretty sick, something to change it up.”

Fellow competitor Alister Reginato backed the use of the wave, but only in a limited capacity.

“I prefer the natural stuff, but one event a year is enough,” he said.

“It is pretty cool to see, it takes the whole Mother Nature aspect out of it and we get to see some really good surfing.

“I think there’s a place for it for sure but just not too many of them.”

Originally published as Gold Coast Open surfers weigh in on controversial Abu Dhabi World Surf League event