For the second year in a row Matt Wilkinson entered the Billabong Pro Tahiti wearing the Jeep Leaders' Jersey, but unfortunately for Wilko, for the second year in a row, he also surrendered it here. Last year he had to hand it over to John John Florence after the event at Teahupo'o. This year, he'll be handing it over to Jordy Smith, the new No. 1 surfer on the Jeep Leaderboard.
Fortunately for Wilkinson, aside from this strange coincidence, this year seems to be playing out much differently than last year. After all, there have now been seven different winners in seven different events in 2017, and Smith will be the fourth different surfer to wear the Jeep Leaders' Jersey at Trestles. The point being, this year's race is far from over, and Wilko, sitting at No. 3 after Tahiti, is still very much in the mix.