The first time Ale Galán and Juan Lebrón faced each other on opposite sides of the net in a final happened in an unusually hot and humid Miami—almost as if the local climate had absorbed the intensity of the clash between the sport’s first true dominant force, Galán and Lebrón as a pair, in a padel world rapidly evolving and expanding globally.
Ale and Juan. Juan and Ale. A match within the match, an emotional battle that, regardless of whether the feelings are warm or cold today, always ignites the crowd—this time, a U.S. audience.
Chingotto and Galán, however, wasted no time making a statement in the motorola razr Miami Premier Padel P1. They stormed out of the gates, putting Lebrón and Stupaczuk on the back foot with a commanding 6-1 first set. The score didn’t necessarily reflect the actual level of the players on the court but rather the sharp, nearly flawless start by Chingalán compared to the sluggish beginning for Lobo and Stupa.
The notion that the match could end quickly was shattered by a strong reaction from Lebrón and Stupaczuk in the second set. They repeatedly threatened to push the contest into a decisive third set, but their hopes were ultimately extinguished by Ale Galán’s relentless hunger and Chingotto’s mechanically precise padel. The final 7-6 score sealed the match—a fair result overall, though perhaps a bit harsh given how well Stupa and Lebrón performed throughout the tournament, especially in their stunning semifinal victory over the “Invincibles,” Coello and Tapia.
For Lebrón, who is pushing hard for the world No. 2 spot behind the currently untouchable Coello and Tapia, this loss is a tough pill to swallow. However, there is no doubt that he and Stupa represent the “third force” in the global padel landscape.
For Galán and Chingotto, this marks their sixth title since the start of last season, though they hadn’t won a tournament since last July in the P2 event in Genoa. As for Stupa and Lebrón, they can take solace in the fact that they’ve reached the final in every tournament they’ve played so far this year—Riyadh, Cancún, and Miami.