World Catfish Classic - Offical Global Website
Chiprana, Spain 23rd - 25th May 2012

The first time I fished on the River Ebro was over 10 years ago when three friends and I decided to go fishing for monster fish. I knew very little of the Ebro River and its catfish but I caught my first 2m+/100lbs+ and was immediately sold. After that I had to go back, every year… Once a year or even more.

For the benefit of those who are unfamiliar with the River Ebro and its water levels, we have included the following information to hopefully dispel any fears you may have when viewing any photos like these that you may find.

I have had a long time to reflect on last year’s competition. What we did right and the factors that maybe, let us down. We only had one team and our final placing of seventh was probably a fair achievement.

Where could we improve? What should we change?

It really is all in the draw. Our first-day peg last year was always going to be a zero day, even before we put a bait in the water. I can only hope that this year the draw is a little more in our favour. We will have to wait and see!

Our preparation was slightly lacking last year. It was all a bit ‘last minute’ and haphazard. Very much out of character for me!

The changes in the rules regarding bait will play a big part in this year’s competition. Last year there were definitely fish to be had if squid had been allowed.

This year we are bringing three teams to the championships under the Yoursup Specialist Fishing Equipment banner.

The pool of knowledge and ability is second to none, although we may be slightly lacking in the looks department!  Team Yoursup believes that the concept of this tournament is beneficial for catfishing worldwide.

It is good for the soul to spend time with like minded fishermen, competing hard against each other during the day and drinking hard together at night.

Achieving the title of World Champion is like the Yoursup team mantra…elusive but attainable. Believe me; we will definitely be in it to win it this year!

www.yoursup.co.uk

In May, the second World Catfish Classic will take place on the well-known River Ebro in Spain where numerous top anglers from all over the world will visit Chiprana to compete in the event against each other.

Black Cat is one of the main sponsors of the event and will for the first time take part in the competition with their own team.

The team leader relies on the vast experience of Catfish Specialists Ingo Kuprian (left) and Uwe Barthel (right).

Both anglers come from Greater Frankfurt and are highly experienced in Pellet-Fishing and know exactly how to present the bait in order to entice these large predators.

In the past few years, both Kuprian and Barthel have distinguished themselves, constantly catching large specimens from the Ebro with many in excess of 90kg.

Uwe Barthel (pictured above right) said: “I am looking forward to the upcoming World Catfish Classic in May and I hope that our team will represent the Black Cat brand well and can score one of the top ranks.”

Black Cat Head consultant Stefan Seuß will be present during the competition to actively support his team and he will be available to visitors to answer any questions about Catfish Angling.

Live news from Black Cat:

Updates will be available on Facebook (Stefan Seuß, click on his facebook photo, left) and also on www.team-black-cat.com

Cariba Sol is primarily a property management/holiday rental company. Established 20 years ago on the Costa Del Sol in Spain the owner, Steve Willcocks, has spent all his spare time heading north to fish for Catfish and Carp on the banks of the River Ebro and Segre. For the last six years Steve has been offering a guiding service for Carp and Cat fishing (Mainly as an excuse to get more hours on the bank himself!) This proved to be a big success and you only have to look at the Gallery pages to see the satisfied customers.

The Caribasol Trio

Team Captain, Steve Willcocks, a resident in Spain for 10 years is fluent in Spanish. Caribasol have a large client base and are well established as a guiding firm on the Ebro. Steve`s PB is 184lb but his clients have caught cats to over 200lb! Steve is hoping his knowledge of the local area will be a big advantage while competing in the event.

Welshman Barry John Dawe (BJ) is the Vice Captain of the team and he´s a very experienced sea fisherman who has been Welsh casting champion in the past. His claim to fame being when he was beaten in a casting competition by Frank Warwick - by less than 1 meter! BJ first met Steve when he had a week´s fishing with Caribasol which later resulted in BJ coming over to Spain on a regular basis, working as Steves co-guide during the busy months. BJ´s PB is 194lb - landed on his own when Steve was dropping clients at the airport.

Completing the trio is Matt Rand, a very knowledgeable angler who spends a great deal of time not only catching different species of fish, but also writing for angling magazines and papers such as The Angling Times and Coarse Fishing magazine. Matt met Steve when he booked a trip to write an article for Course Fishing Magazine about the Ebro. He managed a PB of 166lb on that trip. Matt also worked with Steve as a co-guide until being offered his current job at Dynamite Baits and he hopes to bring a Dynamite product that will give his team the edge!

Everyone who comes out with Caribasol wants to come back and thats is not only because they catch big fish, but also because other important factors like accommodation, quality equipment and of course the level of service they get while they are here. Steve, being fluent in Spanish, used his communication skills to seek out good locations for fishing and accommodation with private access to the river (to get around the night fishing rules).

Booking with CaribaSol ensures peace of mind;

• We have an office in Calahonda and we are contactable 24/7.
• We have 20 years experience in looking after clients who holiday with us.
• We will do our upmost to ensure that your trip runs smoothly.

We guarantee that we have back up!

• Standby vehicles in case of break down.
• If Steve is ill or has an accident we have other guides who we have dealt with over the years that will help to ensure this will not affect your holiday.
• We are the only company that allows you a choice of 3 airports (Zaragoza, Reus or Barcelona) to fly to in Spain, thus ensuring that you can seek out the best possible flight prices!

www.riverebrocatfishing.com

Following the great success of the inaugural World Catfish Classic I am delighted to inform you that the dates for the event in 2012 have been confirmed. The 23rd -25th May 2012 will see even greater numbers of the top catfish anglers from around the world assemble to battle it out on the River Ebro for the Title of World Catfish Classic Champions 2012.

The river lived up to its reputation in the first event with a huge 203lbs Catfish being caught by the French team and what a great fish it was. The event itself could not have been closer with the Dutch team of Arnout Tourlou and Ron Beugelink just pipping the American team by 600grms in the last hour of the event to create a nail biting climax. The entire event had a tremendous atmosphere that was enjoyed by all and everybody who participated is looking forward to next year.

There are going to be a few very slight changes for the next event and these are:

• The draw at the opening ceremony will decide the competitors peg  for the first day and the zone order for the event.  There will be a draw on each night for the two following nights to see what the peg numbers competitors will fish the following day. The zones will be decided on the first draw and follow on from that so for example if peg B5 was draw  at the opening ceremony then on day 2 the competitors would fish in zone C and day 3 zone A.
• Teams can comprise of 2 or 3 anglers and all 3 can fish .
• 50kgs of bait can be used per day and this can be either squid or halibut pellets or Boilies
• If a fish is snagged competitors can call the marshal and it may then be allowed for one of the anglers to go out in a boat to free the fish from the snag. The rod must stay on the bank at all times. The freed fish will count in the event.

The rest of the rules will remain the same.

I am pleased to confirm that Berkley are the event title sponsor for the second year and would like to welcome new sponsors Black Cat and Carplove who will join PVTV as Zone Sponsors, Reuben Heaton as the official scales sponsor and a large selection of support sponsors. There will be a tremendous £50,000 prize table for competitors to compete for and we are very grateful to our sponsors for their support in making this possible.

As part of our ongoing commitment to the environment, Friends of the Ebro will continue to campaign for clean riverbanks on the Ebro. I look forward to reporting on the situation following last year’s 25 tonne clear up. Big thanks again to all those who helped last year, which was the start..... There is still plenty more to do so let’s continue what has been started and make a difference responsibly.

10 places for Hungary and 10 places for Romania have already been snapped up  highlighting the  interest that there is in the 2012 event. If you would like to secure your place in the event register now by clicking here or going to the on line registration at www.worldcatfishclassic.com.

Its going to be a brilliant event dont miss it

The English edition of Malaysian Rod & Line September edition has just released a 10 page article to the inaugural world Catfish Classic which took place last May on the rver Ebro in Spain.

A three day battle lead by the americans right until duo Arnout & Ron went from Zero to Hero. Read it all by clicking on each page below (remember to zoom in to get a clearer text.)

Yes it was hard work but in the end well worth it and let's hope that together and continuous help of the angling media along with local and state commitment the Ebro around Caspe but also other places will clean their acts up.

We are serious about the matter at hand and delight to see the repsonse we are getting at all levels. If you don't know about the project please read this excellent article wich will give you a full picture of what has been done so far and please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to register your support to the campaign.

Click here for a link to Friends of the Ebro TackleTradeWorld article - Pages 14 & 15

Black Cat, keen to get their claws into the event, have pounced on one of the three sections available for the 2012 World Catfish Classic. The section, which will be presented as the Black Cat Zone, will be easily recognised by the placement of the distinctive Black Cat logo upon its banners.