John Epping and his new-look rink from Manitoba were victorious at the Henderson Metal Fall Classic in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., on Saturday, defeating Italy’s Team Joel Retornaz in the final, 5-4.
Team Epping put up five singles in the championship game, including in the eighth end to pick up the one point victory.
The 43-year-old Epping is curling in Manitoba this season for the first time after playing out of Ontario and Northern Ontario for the entirety of his long career.
Epping joined forces with veteran third B.J. Neufeld, second Ryan Wiebe and lead Ian McMillan this off-season with the hope of representing Manitoba at the 2027 Montana’s Brier in Saskatoon later this season.
Team Epping won all six of their games in the Sault Ste. Marie bonspiel, including playoff victories over Ontario’s Team Jayden King in the quarterfinal and Quebec’s Team Felix Asselin in the semi-final.
Epping and company have had a strong start to the 2026-27 season, making the playoffs at the GSOC Invitational and falling in the final of the Shorty Jenkins Classic and Stu Sells Toronto Tankard.
Retornaz’s rink defeated Team Brad Jacobs in the other semi-final while reigning Brier champion Team Matt Dunstone was eliminated by Team Asselin in the quarters.