SURFERMAG.COM PRO TOUR UPDATES
Official Results of the Rip Curl Pro Round Four Heats (1st>1/4 Finals; 2nd finishes=9th, receives US$5,000)
- H1: Mick Fanning (Aus) 17.2 def. Kalani Robb (Haw) 12.56
- H2: Guilherme Herdy (Brz) 11.24 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 10.87
Round Three (1st>Rnd 4; 2nd finishes=17th, receives US$4,000)
- H6: Mark Occhilupo (Aus) 13.0 def. Lee Winkler (Aus) 9.67
- H7: Neco Padaratz (Brz) 14.93 def. Dean Morrison (Aus) 13.9
- H8: Andy Irons (Haw) 17.24 def. Adam Robertson (Aus) 11.0
- H9: Joel Parkinson (Aus) 15.5 def. Victor Ribas (Brz) 10.53
- H10: Sunny Garcia (Haw) 15.94 def. Shane Dorian (Haw) 11.83
- H11: Daniel Wills (Aus) 14.67 def. Richard Lovett (Aus) 7.67
- H12: Shea Lopez (USA) 15.93 def. Armando Daltro (Brz) 13.0
- H13: Darren O'Rafferty (Aus) 13.43 def. Luke Egan (Aus) 6.94
- H14: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 15.5 def. Taylor Knox (USA) 14.87
- H15: Kieren Perrow (Aus) 16.04 def. Flavio Padaratz (Brz) 15.93
- H16: Phil Macdonald (Aus) 15.34 def. Cory Lopez (USA) 11.5
Upcoming Round Four Heats (1st>1/4 Finals; 2nd finishes=9th, receives US$5,000)
- H3: Kelly Slater (USA) vs. Mark Occhilupo (Aus)
- H4: Neco Padaratz (Brz) vs. Andy Irons (Haw)
- H5: Joel Parkinson (Aus) vs. Sunny Garcia (Haw)
- H6: Daniel Wills (Aus) vs. Shea Lopez (USA)
- H7: Darren O'Rafferty (Aus) vs. CJ Hobgood (USA)
- H8: Kieren Perrow (Aus) vs. Phil McDonald (Aus)
April 23, 2003 (Bells Beach, VIC, Australia) World #5 Mick Fanning (Aus) today led the charge into the 2003 Rip Curl Pro quarterfinals. The 31st anniversary US$250,000 World Championship Tournament (WCT) relocated this morning to Johanna, about two hours drive west of Bells Beach, where round three was completed and then the first two heats of the fourth were decided this afternoon.
Shifty 4-6 ft (2m) right-handers were on offer throughout the day. Hollow barrels provided the day's top scores, though a strong rip current running through the lineup made positioning extremely difficult for competitors.
Fanning - the 2001 Rip Curl Pro champion and last year's ASP 'Rookie of the Year' - upped the ante as his round four heat with Kalani Robb (Haw) played out. The Australian's smooth forehand carves and fast snaps in the pocket collected an 8.8 and then another 8.4 his final ride. Robb, who was a standout during round three two days ago, locked in one good ride, but still needed another worth 9.37-points to advance.
"Pretty stoked," said Fanning afterward. "I had a bad day as I lost my car keys earlier and noticed my surfboard was all cracked, then they almost didn't run our heat this afternoon. To get out there and have a win, it just made things so much better. The waves were fun, probably the best we've had in the contest so far. I'm just going to keep doing my own thing and we'll see what happens."
Fanning will now meet Guilherme Herdy (Brz) in tomorrow's quarterfinals, after the Brazilian won the day's last heat over Damien Hobgood (USA).
"It was a hard heat cause the current was so strong and we used a lot of energy paddling," explained Herdy. "I got one wave at the end to move into first, and I'm stoked to be in the quarterfinals. Mick surfs very well and already reached the semifinals in the first WCT. He's probably going to fight for the world title this year, but I'm in his way and will try my best to beat him tomorrow."
Defending Rip Curl Pro winner and reigning world champion Andy Irons (Haw) put an end to local Rip Curl Pro wildcard Adam Robertson's (Aus) run in round three. The Hawaiian opened with a superb 9.57 ride, following a long tube ride and series of critical forehand turns. He later posted another 7.67 to secure the day's highest combined total of 17.24-points. The Surf Dive 'n' Ski Trials winner was left needing a combination of scores worth 10.07-points.
"My first wave lined up really well and had a nice barrel and a couple of sections on the inside," explained Irons. "It was wild out there and definitely a different side of the coin from conditions at Bells.
"The wildcards are always really sketchy for me," he added. "I freak myself out as you never know what they're going to do. They've got nothing to lose and he surfed really well. I kind of just got the better waves."
Neco Padaratz (Brz) eliminated current ratings leader Dean Morrison (Aus) in round three of the Rip Curl Pro. In what proved an exciting clash, the Brazilian was his usual frenetic self, laying down forehand snaps with precision and speed for the better scores.
"He is one of the hardest guys to be against," reasoned Padaratz afterward. "We're both young blood wanting to do so much, so it just came down to waves. I knew it was going to be a really tough heat. I feel sorry to see a friend lose, but someone had to go. The conditions were hard with a lot of paddling, but it's nice to be at Johanna and move the contest to a great area. I'm happy to make another step."
Morrison, who won the year's first WCT at home on Australia's Gold Coast last month, began the heat with a strong ride, but was then forced off a couple of good waves as his opponent held priority and used this tactic to advantage.
"I started off with a good one, but after that the waves I caught didn't turn out well," said Morrison. "I had a bit of a shocker and he held me off a couple with priority that I probably could have gotten scores on. He's a really good competitor, as well as a great surfer."
World #7 Kieren Perrow (Aus) posted the Rip Curl Pro's best single score with a near-perfect 9.87 tube ride against Flavio Padaratz (Brz). The Australian still trailed the majority of the match, since his Brazilian opponent opened with a 9-point ride and had a 6.93 as backup, but he eventually secured another 6.17 to eliminate the in-form Padaratz.
"When Flavio got that 9.0 I couldn't believe it," recalled Perrow. "There was still 25-minutes and a lot of good waves, so I just wanted to get a good wave. I waited for a while and then got lucky with that one. It was awesome (laughs). I was so glad to come out as I was just holding on. It's the best feeling coming back like that."
Perrow will now face fellow Australian Phil McDonald, after he accounted for world #12 Cory Lopez (USA) with a commanding performance, including one 9.17 ride.
Three-time Rip Curl Pro and 2000 world champion Sunny Garcia eliminated fellow Hawaiian and 1999 event winner Shane Dorian. Garcia, who actually placed runner-up in the final Dorian won, got revenge this morning with a convincing victory. Having won all his previous Bells Trophies when the tournament relocated from its main venue, the 33-year-old moved one round closer to his record equally fourth.
"I'm three for three, batting at 100 percent," said Garcia, of his impressive Rip Curl Pro record. "Every time we move the event I've won, so as long as we keep it away from Bells I feel pretty confident that I can bring home another one."
Darren O'Rafferty caused an upset by eliminating fellow Australian and world #3 Luke Egan with a polished attack in the messy lineup. The 23-year-old - surfing with a fractured wrist - found the cleaner, longer running waves, while Egan battled the strong current most of the match.
"It was awesome to come up against Luke," reasoned O'Rafferty. "I had a couple of heats against him last year and he kicked my butt, so it's good to get one back on him (laughs). I felt a bit shaky out there just because of all the bumps on the waves, but I was able to fit in a few turns. I made the 9th (place) round at Trestles (USA) last year, so I'm stoked to equal my best result already."
2001 world champion CJ Hobgood (USA) held off Californian Taylor Knox's late charge. The Floridian opened with an 8.83 backhand ride and then extended his lead with another 6.67 score. Knox snuck into a great wave with 5-minutes remaining and executed two consecutive and critical under-the-lip snaps for a 7.87, but was unable to find the additional 7.64 score he required. After the final seconds elapsed, Hobgood paddled into a set wave unaware the heat was over and perilously dropped from the lip and subsequently snapped his board in half - to the delight of the kid on the beach he gave both ends.
"I got lucky with a good wave at the beginning," acknowledged Hobgood. "I saw Taylor get slammed by one and I was looking for him, as he was held underwater for awhile. Then the same thing happened to me at the end of the heat when I snapped my board. Taylor was surfing great and I thought he might have gotten me at the end, so I'm super stoked to make it."
1999 world champion Mark Occhilupo eliminated fellow Australian Lee Winkler in the day's first heat. Despite staying at Bells Beach yesterday while his opponent traveled to Johanna for a day's practice, 'Occy' read the tricky conditions well to create an early lead. 'Wink' bridged the gap toward the end, but ultimately required another ride worth 6.84-points to advance. Occ will now face six-time world champ Kelly Slater (USA) in tomorrow's first, highly anticipated match-up.
Organizers are aiming for a 7:30am (local time) start tomorrow morning at Johanna. If conditions permit, the 2003 Rip Curl Pro could climax with the crowning of this year's champion tomorrow afternoon.
The Rip Curl Pro would not be possible without the combined efforts of the different groups involved in the event's staging - Surfing Victoria; The Victorian Government Department of Tourism, Sport & The Commonwealth Games; The Surf Coast Shire Council; and the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) - plus the supporting sponsorship of Lifesavers, Ansell, Coca-Cola, Vodka Cruiser, Falls Creek, Fudge & Tooheys Extra Dry.
Satellite and mobile communications from Johanna were provided by Telstra Country Wide in Geelong.
Quarterfinals (1st>Semifinals; 2nd finishes=5th, receives US$8,000)
- QF1: Mick Fanning (Aus) vs. Guilherme Herdy (Brz)
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