Day 3
Los Angeles, CA WPH Press, 3/23/25
R48 Men’s Pro Final: Mulkerrins vs. Lucho
The third and fourth most winning players in Race 4 Eight history met for the fourth time and third consecutive final this season, as Martin Mulkerrins (12) faced Lucho Cordova (11) for the 2025 LAAC title.
The road to the final was uncertain for both, as Mulkerrins faced match point in the third game of his quarterfinal against Sam Esser and another tiebreaker in his semifinal against Diarmaid Nash, while Lucho Cordova was pushed to a tiebreaker in his quarterfinal match with Mark Doyle and faced an 11-7 tiebreaker deficit against Ray Ure in his semifinal before rallying to meet Mulkerrins in the final.
Mulkerrins had won two of his three encounters with Lucho this season, defeating Cordova at the 2024 Memorial and 2025 Juarez and losing in a tiebreaker in the 2025 Red.
Lucho Cordova played his best match of the season in the final, serving aces and earning first-strike opportunities, while thwarting the Mulkerrins attack with perfectly placed returns of serve and neutralizing rally shots. Lucho was in control throughout the second half of the first game, finishing the first game on his third attempt. Mulkerrins tried different serves and shot selections in game two but Lucho continued to have the answers, seemingly reading Martin’s best shots and capitalizing on his opportunities. After playing three consecutive tiebreakers en route to the final, Lucho was able to defeat the R48 #1 in two games and position himself for the opportunity to win his second Player’s Cup in May.
“It is really special to win with my wife here,” Lucho would say to ESPN’s Kara Mack. “She is not able to travel to all of the stops, so it means a lot that she is here. I felt like I was stepping into my shots today and it feels really good to win.”
R48 Playoffs
Sam Esser played his fourth consecutive match decided by two points, rallying from a 17-23 deficit to defeat Sean Lenning for fifth. Jab Bike trailed Shorty Ruiz 8-14 before surging to a 23-20 lead. Bike fended off a Ruiz rally to earn his best 4-Wall Race finish.
Fifth place final: Esser def Lenning 25-23
Ninth place final: Bike def Ruiz 25-23
R48 LAAC Finishes
1st: Lucho
2nd: Mulkerrins
3rd: Ure/Nash
5th: Esser
6th: Lenning
7th: Doyle/Canales
9th: Bike
10th: Ruiz
11th: Fink/McGrath
13th: Perez/Danos/Streibig/Burgos
WR48 Final: Ni Churraoin vs. McMahon
The WR48 LAAC final featured a blockbuster matchup between Ciana Ni Churraoin and Martina McMahon in a rematch of the 2024 World Championships won by Ni Churraoin in a tiebreaker. Ni Churraoin and McMahon entered the LAAC final undefeated this season, with both winning their only starts this season (Ni Churraoin, 2024 Memorial/McMahon, 2025 Red). Ni Churraoin would be aiming to tie McMahon for second on the all-time WR48 titles list with two.
Ni Churraoin and McMahon entered the 2025 LAAC WR48 pro in peak form, with neither dropping a game en route to the final.
Ni Churraoin started well in the final, peppering McMahon’s right hand and building a 6-1 lead. McMahon started to find her serve, closing the gap with three aces. McMahon continued to open up her game, outscoring Ni Churraoin 14-3 to end game one and building a 9-4 lead in game two. Ni Churraoin lobbied for a hinder at 9-4 that she did not receive and used the perceived bad call as fuel to score four consecutive points. McMahon halted the rally with consecutive ace serves and closed out the match with a kill to claim her second title of the season and third career WR48 title.
“I was looking for revenge after the worlds,” McMahon would tell ESPN’s Kara Mack. “Today was kind of winning ugly. I’m just thrilled with this, even though I didn’t show any emotion. I just kind of enjoyed the game. When I’m smiling, I’m not frustrated and enjoying the game. You don’t miss something unless it’s nearly taken away from you (referring to her back injury). I relish these moments and will relish them for as long as I can. The whole atmosphere (on the tour) really riles you up. It’s competitive (on the tour) and great camaraderie.”
Final: McMahon def Ni Churraoin 15-9, 15-8
WR48 Playoffs
Mollie Dagg finished third in her first WR48 start, outdueling 2023 WR48 Rookie of the Year Eilise McCrory in the third place final, while Aoife Holden finished fifth with an impressive wins against Danielle Daskalakis.
Third place final: Dagg def McCrory 25-17
Fifth place final: Holden def Daskalakis 25-18
WR48 LAAC Finishes
1st: McMahon
2nd: Ni Churraoin
3rd: Dagg
4th: McCrory
5th: Holden
6th: Daskalakis
SR48 Final: Fink vs. Lenning
David Fink and Sean Lenning met for the first time on the SR48 in Lenning’s first SR48 start. Fink and Lenning became just the second pair to meet twice in the same Race 4 Eight event, with Fink and Marcos Chavez facing one another in the 2018 Las Vegas Race 4 Eight Men’s Pro quarterfinals and SR48 pro final.
Fink and Lenning both cruised to the 2025 LAAC SR48 final without dropping a game in their three respective matches.
Lenning dominated the final, serving accurately to the left and right and playing sensational offense with no errors in the rally. With his outstanding SR48 debut, Lenning announced himself as the player to beat on the SR48.
Final: Lenning def Fink 15-1, 15-0
SR48 Playoffs
Marcos Chavez defeated his LAAC teammate Rafa Martinez for third, while Bill Mehilos bounced back from his early main draw exit to defeat Chris Watkins for fifth.
Third place final: Chavez def Martinez 15-4, 15-12
Fifth place final: Mehilos def Watkins 25-11
SR48 LAAC Finishes
1st: Lenning
2nd: Fink
3rd: Chavez
4th: Martinez
5th: Mehilos
Thank you!
Thank you to 2025 Race 4 Eight LAAC tournament directors Vic Perez and Rafa Martinez and their outstanding team of volunteers. Thank you to the WPH staff and WPH broadcast team for another outstanding event on ESPN+.
Follow all of the brackets from the 2025 LAAC HERE
David Fink
WPH Senior Writer