3-peat for Nibbler in Mafuti Derby

Captain Ed Diaz of the Nibblers poses with his Biggest Fish trophy with his son and I Sanhalom Laguna Anglers Association president J.D. Tenorio and vice president Ross Arriola during the 2021 ISLA Mafuti Derby awards ceremony last Saturday at the Smiling Cove Marina. (Mark Rabago)

Captain Ed Diaz is making up for his belated start to the sport of fishing by winning anew the 2021 ISLA Mafuti Derby last Saturday in the Saipan lagoon.

The Marianas Visitors Authority Community Projects specialist and the crew of Nibbler caught the biggest emperor fish at a whopping 7 lbs to win the top prize of $1,000, a handsome trophy, and a year’s worth of bragging rights. It was the third straight Mafute Derby that Diaz and his crew won. They first won in 2018 and then made it back-to-back in 2019. The derby was cancelled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Diaz said winning the derby this year was a mix of happenstance and being in the right place at the right time.

“It was kind of hard today. We went out late this morning. We went to the northside of the island to my spots and they were not just biting so we decided to go south.”

Then his sudden change of plans paid off.

Captain Ed Diaz and the Nibblers’ winning 7-lb mafuti. (Floyd Masga)

“It was kind of funny because I put down the reel on my rod-holder and I turned to mix my chew and the rod started pulling. And then when I looked my father-in-law said ‘boy, your rod!’ When I picked up my rod it was kind of stuck on the rod-holder but I finally got it out and [the fish] was already tired…I was trying to tell my father-in-law to hold the tail but he just pulled the line and boom it came in,” he said an interview after the awards ceremony.

When asked what his secret for sweeping all the Mafuti derbies so far, Diaz said he has this tiedown underwater fishing technique that basically helps him win.

“When I do that I kind of know what kind of [lure] to put on the bait and how to catch that thing and it’s a kind of a secret. And if I tell my secret, everybody’s going to know it,” he said laughingly.

In a way, Diaz said he’s just making up for lost time as he didn’t really become a bonafide peskadot until only recently.

“I started [fishing] late and I married late and I have two kids already. [I’m] just busy with work. But when I’m not busy I go fishing as I much as I can and when my wife lets me go.”

And what made Diaz’s win more special was this year’s derby organized by the I Sanhalom Laguna Anglers Association served as a tribute to ISLA former president and founder Mike “Palaksi” Sablan, who passed away late last year.

Scotty Shular and Joji Taguchi proudly show off their 7.55-lb tarakito, which was the hand’s down winner of the side bet in last Saturday’s 2021 ISLA Mafuti Derby. (Floyd Masga)

Diaz dedicated his victory to the family of Mike Palaksi. “I actually donated the fish we caught to Mike Palaksi’s family.”

Second place went to R.J. skippered by George Moses after he and his crew reeled in a 3.75-lb mafuti, while third place was Mama Connie 2 of Jesse Ramon after they landed a 2.95-pounder. Second and third place went home with $700 and $500, respectively, plus, like what Diaz and company got, an assortment of in-kind prizes.

In the total weight category, Chang of captain Ymanuel Sablan took the cake with all the fish they caught weighing 6.5 lbs. In the side bet, Bradda Boys of captain Scotty Shular was the day’s biggest winner by winning the side bet worth $1,479 after they landed a massive 7.55-lb tarakito.

Salty Bandits, meanwhile, pocketed $200 after winning the video contest sponsored by Islands Image & Motion.

ISLA president J.D. Tenorio said their late president, Mike Palaksi, founded ISLA and they created the Mufeti Derby to give small boat owners and their fishermen a chance to compete in a fishing tournament.

“It’s really to give smaller boats the opportunity to be able to go out and enjoy the tournament with their fellow fishermen, fisherwomen, kids, and family inside the lagoon. This derby the boundaries are inside the lagoon from Sugar Dock to the north. This gives them an opportunity to come out and compete against boats similar in length that are not necessarily able to go out to deeper and rougher waters to fish,” he said.