To that last point, without question Fletcher should walk away with "Ride of the Year" and "Tube of the Year, and while it's not listed as an official category, they should give him the nod for "Wipeout of the Year" too. And maybe give him "Bad Ass of the Year" while they're at it. That wave of his from Teahupoo on Aug. 27, 2011, nobody's ever ridden anything like it. Hands down. He'll tell you he should have died twice over. Plus, given his older brother Christian's performance at the XXL podium a couple of years ago, his acceptance speech would be nothing short of all time.

Just the same, watch out for the Irish. Andrew Cotton's late entry from Mullaghmore Head is a beast ... and he pays the price at the end. There are others too. On Oct. 16, 2011, West Oz produced what some are considering the biggest wave ever ridden in Australia, a wave that's already won an award at Australia's big-wave awards show. The July 12, 2011, session at Cloudbreak, Fiji, has Ryan Hipwood and Kohl Christensen in the running for "Ride of the Year" and "Tube of the Year," respectively. Both are beautiful, exceptionally large waves, but maybe because the waves are so perfect, they lack the dramatic flair of Fletcher's. Nominees from the Basque Country, Tasmania and Mexico round out the list. The big-wave community continues to proliferate, and the wide-ranging, far-afield entrants into this year's show are demonstrative of that.

FIVE BILLABONG XXL RIDE OF THE YEAR AWARD NOMINEES (Surfer prize $50,000 - Video prize $5,000)
Nathan Fletcher (San Juan Capistrano, California, USA) at Teahupoo, Tahiti on August 27, 2011.
Ryan Hipwood (Gold Coast, Australia) at Cloudbreak, Fiji on July 12, 2011.
Greg Long (San Clemente, California, USA) at Puerto Escondido, Mexico on May 19, 2011.
Garrett McNamara (Haleiwa, Hawaii, USA) at Praia do Norte, Nazaré, Portugal on November 1, 2011.
Jeff Rowley (Torquay, Victoria, Australia) at Jaws, Maui, Hawaii on January 30, 2012.

FIVE MONSTER PADDLE AWARD NOMINEES (Surfer prize $15,000 - Photo/video prize $4,000)
Ken "Skindog" Collins (Santa Cruz, California, USA) at Maverick's, California on February 8, 2012.
Danilo Couto (Bahia, Brazil) at Jaws, Maui, Hawaii on January 4, 2012.
Shane Dorian (Kona, Hawaii, USA) at Jaws, Hawaii, on January 4, 2012.
Jamie Mitchell (Gold Coast, Australia) at Todos Santos, Mexico on January 6, 2012.
Dave Wassel (Haleiwa, Hawaii, USA) at Jaws, Maui, Hawaii on January 4, 2012.

FIVE BILLABONG XXL BIGGEST WAVE AWARD NOMINEES (Surfer prize $15,000 - Photo/video prize $4,000)
Andrew Cotton (Croyde, Devon, United Kingdom) at Mullaghmore Head, Ireland on March 8, 2012.
Garrett McNamara (Haleiwa, Hawaii, USA) at Priaia do Norte, Nazaré, Portugal on November 1, 2011.
Axi Muniain (Zarautz, Basque Country) at Agiti, Spain on December 15, 2011.
Ollie O'Flaherty (Lahinch, County Clare, Ireland) at Mullaghmore Head, Ireland on March 8, 2012.
Damien "Taco" Warr (Yallingup, Western Australia) at Cow Bombie, Western Australia on October 16, 2011.

FIVE MONSTER TUBE AWARD NOMINEES (Surfer prize $5,000 - Still photography prize $2,000)
Kohl Christensen (Haleiwa, Hawaii, USA) at Cloudbreak, Fiji on July 12, 2011.
Nathan Fletcher (San Juan Capistrano, California, USA) at Teahupoo, Tahiti on August 27, 2011.
Tyler Hollmer-Cross (Hobart, Tasmania, Australia) at Shipstern Bluff, Tasmania on May 17, 2011.
Bruce Irons (Hanalei, Hawaii, USA) at Teahupoo, Tahiti on August 27, 2011.
Everaldo "Pato" Teixeira (Florianopolis, Brazil) at Teahupoo, Tahiti on August 27, 2011.