Canadians Cory Johnston 13th, Gallant 21st, Gustafson 44th Chris Johnston 57th & Evan Kung 59th
BASS Press Release
ALEXANDER CITY, Ala. — It was a slow start to Day 2, but Mississippi pro Brock Mosley stayed the course and caught just enough to retain the lead at the 2026 Lippert Bassmaster Elite at Lake Martin.
Mosley landed five largemouth weighing 10 pounds, 15 ounces on Day 2 in east central Alabama, increasing his two-day total to 26-6 after landing a tournament-high 15-7 on the first day of competition. His lead is just 7-ounces over second-place Joey Cifuentes and 11 ounces ahead of Emil Wagner.
“There’s still two days of fishing left, and I’m surprised to even be in this position,” he said. “I’m just going to go fishing; I really don’t have any pressure.”
Anglers enjoyed another day of warm sunshine on Lake Martin, and while plenty of 10- to 12-pound bags reached the scales, four 14-pound bags crossed the scales as well as the tournament’s biggest bass.
Mosley was the first man out of the cut the last time the Elite Series visited Lake Martin in 2018, one of the coldest Elite Series events ever. This time around, Mosley has taken a different approach and so far, it is paying off.
“I learned that year that you can burn your fish in practice,” he said. “I didn’t even fish shallow in practice all that much (this week). I ’Scoped all of practice and caught some doing that. That is an option still, I just don’t think I can catch a 3-pounder doing it.”
So far this week, Mosley has found success switching between dirty shallow water and clearer water offshore. Preferably, he would like to stay in the dirty water and throw power baits like a spinnerbait, ChatterBait, crankbait and jig.
Wood, rocks and docks have all produced quality bites, with some of his best bites coming in a foot of water or less, especially when the water reaches 55 to 56 degrees in the afternoons.
“I’ve been catching a lot of bass in dirty water. I expanded on it yesterday and I still have areas I haven’t hit yet,” he said. “We’ll take it one day at a time and see if we can catch 10 or 11 pounds.”
When he does move offshore, he targets brushpiles with a ball-head jig from Buckeye Lures.
With a cool night leading into Friday’s tournament, water temperatures dropped several degrees in Mosley’s best area. While he landed a 2 1/2-pounder early on, the 2023 Sabine River champion had a feeling the next couple of hours would be slow.
“The fish just didn’t bite,” Mosley said. “I figured out pretty quickly it was going to be a slow morning and we were just going to have to wait until the water warmed up. And I salvaged the day at the end.”
During the lull up shallow, Mosley fished offshore to fill out his limit before moving back to the bank, where he proceeded to cull out all the bass he landed offshore.
“This afternoon they started biting again, but I never ran into any 3-pounders,” he said. “I lost one there that would have helped a little at the end.”
Despite the slow morning, Mosley was encouraged by what he saw on Friday.
“I think the bass are wanting to move up, and it’s encouraging when the fish you are catching are white. It means they are coming,” he said.
Hailing from Clinton, Ark., Cifuentes added 13-0 on Day 2 after landing 12-15 to jump from sixth to second with a total of 25-15. His performance so far is a much-needed momentum boost for “The Cowboy,” who finished 98th at Lake Guntersville to start the season and came close to losing his Elite Series qualification after the 2025 season.
“It was good to rebound this week and catch some fish,” Cifuentes said. “I haven’t had the best last two years. Last year I finished 68th in points and almost got cut. This gives me some confidence, because I started wondering if I could still compete with these guys. This verifies that.”
The two-time Elite Series champion has been throwing what he calls a “fuzz ball”, a bait he has never thrown despite the growing popularity of the bait-style. Green pumpkin with either a blue or purple flake has been the best producing color so far.
“It has been a joint effort between me, Austin Felix and Jake Whitaker,” he explained. “I just found a good area. I don’t think I’m fishing it any differently than they are. It is so light and hard to get out there. But the key is keeping it super light. It has to fall slowly to get the bass to bite.”
Cifuentes caught over 25 bass on Day 2, but most of his better bites have come in shallower water, including a 3-4 spotted bass that anchored his bag.
Water temperatures in his region of the lake are over 50 degrees, and he feels the bass are wanting to make a push into the shallows. As the day goes on, he has noticed the bigger bass are more willing to bite.
Wagner, meanwhile, caught the biggest bag of the second day, 14-10, to jump from 19th all the way to third with a total of 25-11. He anchored his bag with a 3-15 largemouth and a 3-pound spotted bass.
“I caught 9 1/2 pounds four or five times today,” Wagner said. “You just have to get fortunate to catch some of the better ones.”
A Lake Lanier guide, Wagner has felt right at home with the multitude of spotted bass on Lake Martin. After losing several key fish on the first day of the tournament, Wagner picked a new section of the lake on Day 2 and dialed in a pattern. The majority of his bites are coming in less than 30 feet of water with three different finesse tactics.
The bluebird skies have helped Wagner dial in where the bass will be.
“Whether it is a rockpile, brushpile or dock, (the sun) sets them up and positions them where you can find them,” he said. “They actually bite a lot better in the clouds, but when it is cloudy they roam a lot more.”
New Jersey’s Michael Iaconelli landed the Phoenix Boats Big Bass of the Day, a 5-3 largemouth that is the biggest of the tournament thus far, unseating Wesley Gore’s 4-6 from Day 1.
Carbondale, Ill., pro Trey McKinney leads the Progressive Bassmaster Angler of the Year race with 187 points. Arkansas pro Stetson Blaylock is second with 178 points followed by Cory Johnston in third with 178 points. Drew Cook is fourth with 177 points and Mosley is fifth with 175 points.
Georgia’s Caleb Hudson leads the Pro-Guide Batteries Bassmaster Rookie of the Year race with 173 points followed by Pake South in second with 133 points and Fisher Anaya in third with 133 points.
The Top 50 anglers will launch from Wind Creek State Park beginning at 7 a.m. CT and return for weigh-in beginning at 3 p.m. The Top 10 pros after the Day 3 weigh-in will compete on Championship Saturday for a chance at the $100,000 top prize and the coveted blue trophy.
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