Cloudy B wins Classic in style

Team Cloudy B on Looney Tunes domi­nated the 2026 Flame Tree Fiji Classic, securing the championship with an impressive 1904.1 points after three days of competitive fishing.

The winning crew recorded a Sailfish last Friday before landing four more Billfish on Saturday, comprising three Blue Marlin and a spearfish.

They capped their campaign on Sunday with Ryan Hunt's 38.7kg Yellowfin Tuna and Jona Maru's Mahimahi.

The victory earns the team the champion­ship trophy, $10,000 in prize money and an invitation to represent Fiji at the 2027 Costa Offshore World Championship in Quepos, Costa Rica.

There was also a special family achieve­ment for the O'Hallorans, with three mem­bers claiming individual honours.

Nicole O'Halloran was named Champion Female Angler after catching her first-ever Billfish.

Tristan O'Halloran claimed the Champion Junior Angler title with 750 points after tag­ging and releasing his first Sailfish and Blue Marlin.

Josh O'Halloran also celebrated his first Billfish, a Spearfish.

Appreciation

Tournament director Kapena Nelson con­gratulated all participating teams, anglers and supporters for making the 18th running of the competition a success.

The tournament recorded eight Billfish tagged and released, comprising six Blue Marlin, one Sailfish and one Spearfish.

A further 13 fish weighing a combined 284kg were brought to the scales, with 54 strikes and 45 hookups recorded over the three days.

Team Flame Tree of Wai Tadra finished second overall with 1164.8 points and claimed the consolation Big Boat prize.

Their angler Zach Wakeman was named Champion Male Angler with 1077.2 points from five fish, including two Blue Marlin tagged and released.

Lunasea finished third with 572.9 points, followed by Team Broadwater on Dream Weaver with 176.2, Rogue with 28.2 and Northstar II with 20 points.

The heaviest fish awards went to Chris Brookes of Dream Weaver for a 45.1kg Yel­lowfin Tuna, Neil Irvine of Lunasea for a 12kg Mahimahi, Matt Alford of Rogue for a 14.1kg Skipjack and Max Greenwood of Northstar II for a 10kg Wahoo.

Nelson thanked the participating boats, skippers, anglers, crews, volunteers, club committee, weighmaster Ed Porter and Sails Restaurant, which hosted the prize-giving.

He also acknowledged the sponsors, led by platinum sponsor Flame Tree Develop­ments, alongside Diggabits, Pacific Energy, Cardos Steak House, Altitude Refrigeration, WFM, Shimano, Victoria Wines, Technix Bitumen, Plantation Island Resort, Honda Marine, DHL Global Forwarding, Marine Solutions, Vinod Patel, Kaiviti Shipping, Neat Feat, Hidden Gem Charters, Blueridge Plumbing and Port Denarau Marina.