2024 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic Kicks Off at the MAC
Day 1: Friday
Portland, OR, WPH Press, 10/4/24
The 2024 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic marked the ninetieth event in the history of the Race 4 Eight tour, with the tour spanning seventeen states and two countries in the Race 4 Eight’s first thirteen seasons.
The 2024 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic features all ten pros in the Race 4 Eight top ten, nine to include R48 #1 and ten-time Race 4 Eight champion Martin Mulkerrins, R48 #2 and 10-time Race 4 Eight champion and R48 #2 Lucho Cordova, 23-time Race 4 Eight champion Killian Carroll, and five-time Race 4 eight champion and R48 #3 Danos Cordova.
Round of 16
Two-time defending Race 4 Eight Portland Classic champion and R48 #1 Martin Mulkerrins spent the morning at the Portland Japanese Garden (HERE), widely considered to be the best Japanese Garden outside of Japan. Upon his arrival at the MAC, Mulkerrins defeated a rejuvenated Max Langmack in the round of sixteen for the second consecutive stop.
Forced to spend the night in the Denver airport due to flight cancellations, R48 #2 Lucho Cordova arrived in Portland just in time to start his quest for a third Portland Classic title. Lucho broke away from Dylan Hernandez midway through the first game, forcing errors off his underhand lob serve. Hernandez evened the match with sensational handball in game two. Lucho built a 9-4 tiebreaker lead and held off a Hernandez rally to advance to Saturday’s ESPN showcase.
Danos Cordova and Diarmuid Mulkerrins staged the longest two-game match of the day, playing for nearly two hours. After taking a close first game, Danos faced game points in the second, trailing the San Angelo product 12-14. Danos reeled off four consecutive points to take the match.
Leo Canales continued the exceptional play that has seen the Phoenix star advance to the semifinals or better in five of his last six starts, blitzing Shorty Ruiz to advance to the semifinals.
Having lost his last three matchups to R48 #5 David Fink, Mark Doyle emphatically ended his losing streak, outplaying Fink in two lopsided games to advance to his second consecutive quarterfinal.
Ray Ure and Sam Esser met for a spot in ESPN’s Saturday quarterfinals, having both lost close tiebreakers at the season’s first stop in Tucson. Esser controlled the action in game one, hitting a number of kills to take a one-game advantage. Ure’s serve and court coverage allowed him to take game two. The tiebreaker featured several lead changes, with both players having opportunities to take control. Ure built a 14-9 lead, but Esser charged back with three consecutive kills to narrow the gap to two. Ure earned a side out and ended the match with a pass to the left, defeating Esser in a tiebreaker for the second time in the last three Race events.
Sean Lenning was too strong for Vic Perez, avenging two losses to Perez in the last sixteen months to advance to his first quarterfinal of the season.
The match of the day pitted 23-time Race 4 Eight champion Killian Carroll against one of the game’s youngest and most exciting talents, Ivan Burgos. Burgos scored just three points against Carroll in the semifinal match at the USHA Three Wall Nationals in early September, but Burgos quickly announced that there would be no repeat of that one-sided loss on Friday. Burgos matched Carroll’s speed and offense in the first game, eventually leading 13-12. Two costly hand errors cost Burgos a chance to win the game, but the disappointment only fueled the Canadian, as he raced to a 12-2 lead in the second. Carroll staged a comeback but would never catch Burgos, falling 15-12. Carroll appeared to finally take the upper hand in the tiebreaker, leading 10-6. Burgos played more aggressively after falling behind, hitting kill shots from thirty-eight feet with his left. The flurry carried Burgos to match point at 14-13, but Burgos was unable to convert in two innings with match points, failing to put away several setups. Carroll rallied from match point down for the second time in his Race career, denying Burgos what would have been a career highlight.
Round of 16
Mulkerrins def Langmack 15-8, 15-8
Lucho def D. Hernandez 15-9, 11-15, 15-9
Danos def D. Mulkerrins 15-11, 16-14
Canales def Ruiz 15-1, 15-3
Doyle def Fink 15-3, 15-4
Ure def Esser 10-15, 15-11, 15-12
Lenning def Perez 15-4, 15-7
Carroll def Burgos 15-13, 12-15, 16-14
Round of 8 (Saturday on ESPN+, all times PST)
Mulkerrins vs. Carroll (10 am)
Canales vs. Doyle (11 am)
Lucho vs. Lenning (Noon)
Danos vs. Ure (1 pm)
2024 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic Press Release HERE
Follow the draws and results from the 2023 Race 4 Eight Portland Classic HERE
WPH Destination Series Portland HERE
Handball Terminology + Instruction and R48 Rules HERE
Race 4 Eight Pro Player Bios HERE
WPH Race 4 Eight Power Rankings HERE
DF’s R48 Fun Facts and Trends + Race 4 Eight History of Champions HERE
2024/25 Race 4 Eight XIII schedule HERE
WPH Coaching Center Instructional Videos HERE
WPH RACE 4 EIGHT: The World Players of Handball’s 2024/25 Race 4 Eight XIII Powered by ESPN features Race 4 Eight stops from California to Mexico, all culminating with The Player’s Championship. Similar to NASCAR’s Nextel Cup and the FedEx PGA Playoffs, players earn points in the Race 4 Eight’s regular season stops to qualify for the season-ending Player’s Championship and bonus prizes.
For more information on the WPH Race 4 Eight title sponsor opportunity, please contact World Players of Handball Executive Director David Vincent at dave.vincent@wphlive.tv or World Players of Handball Development Director David Fink at david.fink@wphlive.tv. For more information on the World Players of Handball, please visit wphlive.tv
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer