With pristine eight-to-10 foot (2.5–3 metre) barrels detonating across the reef at Teahupo’o, the Billabong Pro Tahiti completed the remaining heats of Round 3 before bolting through Rounds 4 and 5, setting up the quarter finalists for a potential finish on Monday.
The fifth event of 11 on the 2011 ASP World Tour, the Billabong Pro Tahiti has enjoyed a historic run of swell for the event, with the world’s best surfers pushing the limits of paddle-in surfing at the infamous lefthander and locking in some incredible rides.
Jeremy Flores (FRA), 23, current No. 15 on the ASP World Title rankings, became the third surfer in history, after Kelly Slater and Joel Parkinson, to lock in a Perfect 20 heat total in his Round 5 bout against an in-form Michel Bourez (PYF), 25.
“I’m so stoked!” Flores exclaimed. “What’s on my mind right now is I just had a heat out there with Michel, one of my best friends on tour and it’s so big and perfect and we got some amazing barrels. I was saying the other day that I’d never got a 10 before and that I’d like to get one, and now I’ve gotten two in the same heat. I’m so stoked.”
ASP/Kirstin
It was not such an enjoyable day for a lot of others. Some brutal wave conditions saw a series of surfers crash out. Jordy Smith (pictured above) was in agony after a severe wipeout during round three.
The South African continued the competition despite suffering a suspected broken rib and was narrowly defeated by Travis Logie (RSA), placing equal 13th overall.
With the top-five rated surfers on the ASP World Title rankings all having been eliminated from competition, multiple world champion Kelly Slater (currently number six) stands to benefit significantly with a result in Tahiti.
Slater will face Aussie Matt Wilkinson in the quarters, with Jeremy Flores hoping to continue a memorable competition with a match-up against Josh Kerr.
Check out the highlights from Sunday here...
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI REMAINING ROUND 3 RESULTS:
Heat 4: Michel Bourez (PYF) def. Dusty Payne (USA) – Payne withdrew from competition due to injury sustained during a free surf on Thursday afternoon.
Heat 5: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 15.77 def. Jadson Andre (BRA) 14.94
Heat 6: Kelly Slater (USA) 17.60 def. Ricardo dos Santos (BRA) 15.84
Heat 7: Travis Logie (ZAF) 14.93 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 12.43 - Re-surfed at the end of the round.
Heat 8: Chris Davidson (AUS) 11.77 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 10.86
Heat 9: Brett Simpson (USA) 17.26 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 16.70
Heat 10: Owen Wright (AUS) 16.80 def. Taylor Knox (USA) 5.00
Heat 11: Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 12.20 def. C.J. Hobgood (USA) 6.44
Heat 12: Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 12.60 def. Mick Fanning (AUS) 7.93
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI ROUND 4 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Josh Kerr (AUS) 16.30, Jeremy Flores (FRA) 12.16, Kai Otton (AUS) 8.10
Heat 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 13.77, Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 6.50, Michel Bourez (PYF) 2.90
Heat 3: Travis Logie (ZAF) 15.66, Brett Simpson (USA) 15.00, Chris Davidson (AUS) 14.43
Heat 4: Owen Wright (AUS) 19.77, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 12.23, Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 11.60
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI ROUND 5 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 20 def. Michel Bourez (PYF) 18.13
Heat 2: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 11.84 def. Kai Otton (AUS) 11.56
Heat 3: Brett Simpson (USA) 17.33 def. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 14.00
Heat 4: Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 15.50 def. Chris Davidson (AUS) 15.14
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI QUARTER FINAL MATCH-UPS:
QF 1: Josh Kerr (AUS) vs. Jeremy Flores (FRA)
QF 2: Kelly Slater (USA) vs. Matt Wilkinson (AUS)
QF 3: Travis Logie (ZAF) vs. Brett Simpson (USA)
QF 4: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Raoni Monteiro (BRA)
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