Fanning favoured to win World Title

In less than two weeks, a pair of Aussies will battling for world surfing supremacy on the North Shore of Oahu at the 39th annual Billabong Pipeline Masters, the final contest on the ASP World Tour schedule.

Mick Fanning, the 2007 world champion, currently leads the Tour with 7,140 points. Following in second is fellow countryman Joel Parkinson with 6,772 points.

Winning the world title is going to be tough for Parko – he needs to finish two rounds ahead of Fanning at the $340,000 Pipeline Masters.

As a result, Fanning is listed as a heavy -400 betting favourite to earn enough points to capture the title. This means a bettor who backs Fanning would have wager $400 in order to win $100.

Parkinson, meanwhile, is listed as a +250 underdog. This means a bet of $100 would pay $250 if Parko were to be victorious.

The two 29-year-old surfers have dominated the tour this season – both have three wins in the 10-event schedule.

Parkinson, who’s finished second on the World Tour in 2004, started the season strong winning three of the first five events. The 6-foot tall Aussie then suffered an ankle injury at mid-season and finished 17th in the next three events.

In the most recent event in Portugal, Parko seemed find his groove again finishing third.

Fanning, on the other hand, has picked up momentum in the second half of the season. The 5-foot-10 Aussie has won three of the last four events, including the contest in Portugal.

Nine-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater is currently No. 7 in the ASP standings. The 37-year-old American has one tour victory this season and is the defending champion of the Pipeline Masters, an event he has won six times.

The Billabong Pipeline Masters is scheduled to take place from December 8-20 at the famous Banzai Pipeline.