ASP World Tour: June 2009 Archives

The Hang Loose Santa Catarina Pro ran Round 2, the elimination round, yesterday, and proving that our boys stand straight up when their backs are against the wall, Jordy Smith, Adriano De Souza and Tiago Pires, who trounced Dane Reynolds, all lit their respective heats up. For the first time this year we're looking at everybody on the Red Bull squad seeded into Round 3...which is nice.

Apparently Jordy "was devastating against Ben Bourgeois." Most notably, he racked up the highest single wave score of the day, a 9.00 out of a possible 10.

"It's still pretty tough out there and it's difficult to find a spot to line up," Jordy would say "There are some pretty good waves coming through the bowl though and if you can get on them, you can open up a bit. I just got lucky with my wave ion and was able to put up a couple of scores."

Day 2 of the Hang Loose Santa Catarina Pro, Stop No. 4 of 10 on the 2009 ASP World Tour, has awoken to another morning of clean four-to-six foot (2 metre) waves on offer at Praia Vila, prompting event organizers to call the elimination Round 2 on starting at 8am.

"We have similar conditions to yesterday in terms of swell but the sun is shining and the conditions are projected to be a bit cleaner today," Perry Hatchett, ASP Head Judge said. "We'll be starting Round 2 at 8am and looking to complete the round by day's end."

The Hang Loose Santa Catarina Pro is underway, and with one day in the books the drama's on hot and heavy. Mick Fanning continued to terrorize the world's best surfers this morning, employing his lightning-fast forehand approach to navigate the thumping beach breaks. Although slow to start, the powerful natural-footer picked up momentum throughout the heat, netting the day's highest heat total of a 16.43 out of a possible 20, including a 9.50 for a blistering assault on a roping righthander.

"I couldn't find a rhythm towards the start and Aritz (Aranburu) came out with a 5, I came out with a 6, Aritz got a 7 and we went back and forth," Fanning said. "Towards the end, I was able to find a wave that stood up across the bank and it allowed me to really open up. I got one good turn off the top to start and just tried to stay on rail throughout the rest of the wave."

Despite being absent from last season's event with an injury, Fanning remains one of the most dangerous surfers in Brazil, with back-to-back wins in 2006 and 2007. Sitting within striking distance of an ASP World Tour ratings jump, the Australian is focused on capitalizing at the Hang Loose Santa Catarina Pro.

"I've won the event the last two times I've been here so hopefully I can make it a three-peat," Fanning said. "It's still early days, but I'm feeling fit and focused and looking to put some results together over the course of these next events. I'm confident in my abilities in Brazil."