HE is the “Cooly Kid” who has grown into one of best boardriders of the modern era. But could Mick Fanning be Australia’s greatest-ever surfer?

As he prepares for the final world tour stop in Hawaii next month, the 33-year-old is on the verge of achieving what only one other Australian surfer has ... four world titles.

But while Mark Richards won the world tour from 1979 to 1982, some think Fanning has faced stronger opposition in the likes of Kelly Slater, Joel Parkinson and Andy Irons.

With Slater arguably the greatest surfer of all time, Fanning has become the topic of much debate over whether he should be regarded as Australia’s greatest.

media_camera Cheyne Horan shares his views on Mick Fanning’s surfing ability.

CHEYNE Horan is regarded as a “trailblazer” of modern surfing after introducing futuristic board designs and inventing a number of manoeuvres still used today.

Now 54, and owning a surf school on the Gold Coast, Horan was four times runner-up to Mark Richards before winning a world masters title in 1999.

“When I first saw him (Fanning) he was 14 years old at a competition at Lennox Head,” Horan said. “He was riding this lime-green board and his style was miles ahead of everyone. You could tell he was going to make it.

“Fanning is still too young and his position needs to be established.

“I wouldn’t say he is at the top of the list. But I would say he is probably in the top eight of all time.

“I would judge more on the contribution to the sport. MR (Richards) created the twin fin, I created the floater and (Michael) Peterson was the fastest surfer on the planet.

“I think if you put Fanning out there against MR in his era and on his board than he (Fanning) would lose.”

media_camera Tom Carroll says Fanning is improving with age.

TOM Carroll is a talented goofy footer who won two world titles and was surfing’s “first millionaire surfer” when he signed a lucrative contact with Quiksilver in 1988. Despite retiring from professional surfing in 1993, Carroll, 52, is now a dedicated big-wave surfer who travels the globe with good friend Ross Clarke-Jones to find the next big swell.

“(Fanning) is right up there, no doubt about it,” Carroll said.

“Mick has shown he is improving with age and he is just a brilliant surfer.

“There is no question that he is a true great of Australian surfing already. It would be so cool to watch him win another world title and tie Mark’s (Richards’) record.

“It is hard to compare the two because it was a lot different back then compared to now.

“We didn’t get to surf continuously good waves. If it was a ripple we would still have to paddle out and compete.

“They are spoiled for choice now but I think that is the way it should be. It showcases the best surfing.”

media_camera Wayne 'Rabbit' Bartholomew says Mick Fanning is getting better every year.

WAYNE Bartholomew is a former world surfing champion and regarded as one of the “original Cooly kids” alongside dual national champion Michael Peterson (1972, ’74) and former world champion Peter Townend (1976).

Bartholomew, now 59, went on to become the president of the ASP and has watched Fanning progress from a junior to a world champion.

“I would say he would be equal to Mark Richards as Australia’s best but his career is not done yet,” Bartholomew said.

“Both MR and Mick are very powerful surfers but their styles were completely different. Mick is not just the fastest. He is a complete surfer and is getting better every year.

“People fear surfing with Mick, he doesn’t really have a weakness. He is consistent all the time and is very good at sniffing out a victory.

“Fanning has reached that level where he doesn’t see other surfers as a threat. He feels he can win every heat.

“The difference is these days surfers are peaking well into their 30s whereas back then the mindset was if you were 25 you were over the hill.

“Fanning has gone well beyond his generation and is still at the top of the pack.

“He could go on to being Australia’s greatest surfer and he is very close to being that right now.”

media_camera Mark Occhilupo talks about Mick Fanning and his potential.

MARK Occhilupo burst on to the world tour at in 1983 at 15 years of age and was quickly heralded as a future world champion.

Despite reaching the WCT top five, “Occy” struggled with personal demons and slipped from the tour in the early 1990s. In 1998, the legendary goofy footer launched a comeback and went on to win the world title in 1999.

Occhilupo has had the unique opportunity to compete in two distinct eras: the “old-school” days of Richards and Carroll and the “new school” of Slater, Andy Irons and Fanning.

“MR was the best ever. Just his style,” Occhilupo said.

“The standards are so high right now. If the surfers these days were doing the things they did back in the old days, everyone would have thought they were aliens.

“If (Fanning) wins a fourth world title then I would say he is equal to MR and I think he would definitely try to eclipse that record and get a fifth title.”