The joy is immense after a final that brought them back to victory after more than eight months. Alejandro Galán and Federico Chingotto celebrate with laughter and hugs in the post-final press conference, following a tough and hard-fought win against strong opponents – Juan Lebrón and Franco Stupaczuk – at the motorola razr Miami Premier Padel P1. Fede Chingotto, the tournament MVP, explains how they achieved success:
“Our mantra is to take it one match at a time, always keeping in mind the advice from our team, especially our coach and trainers. Having our family and friends here was also crucial. We felt full of energy to fight, even after a tough semifinal yesterday against Yanguas-Nieto. What motivates me the most is the immense trust that Ale has in me. I’m deeply grateful to him because he believed in me even when I doubted myself.”
It was pointed out in the press conference that 259 days had passed since their last victory in Genoa. That long without a trophy can feel like an eternity, Galán acknowledges:
“We worked extremely hard because we wanted to be at 100% to have the best chance to compete and win. It has been a very positive year, and we’ve earned our satisfaction day by day. Chingo says he’s surprised by my trust? It was easy to have it—he was named MVP of the tournament! He is a true inspiration for me.”
Ale reveals that he never feared losing the final: “No, I never thought we would lose. It’s just a padel match, and we shouldn’t be afraid of anyone. At one point, we weren’t executing our game plan, but in the second set, we got back on track and secured the win. We played an excellent tiebreak, and I believe we would have won even if it had gone to a third set.”
Chingotto is also pleased with the team’s performance: “We were very consistent on serve, and the best feeling was maintaining confidence in ourselves, staying calm, and focusing our energy.” Looking at the world rankings, Fede believes Stupa and Lebrón still have room to climb:
“I think all the top teams can improve, but we focus on our own team. The positive thing is that we were able to implement many things we worked on before the season. Now, there’s little time to celebrate—we have to fly to Chile for another big tournament.” Their experience in Miami was overwhelmingly positive, they both agree: “Passionate crowd, beautiful venue, in a fascinating city. We hope the growth of our sport in the U.S. continues at this pace.”