DAY two of the World Surf League 2016 Fiji Pro saw a series of exciting battles as the first eliminations of the competition took place.
After a pair of uneventful opening heats where the world’s two top ranked surfers, Matt Wilkinson and Italo Ferreira, progressed comfortably into Round 3, Cloudbreak started providing plenty of enticing waves that warranted high scores from the judges.
Leading the way was Hawaiian Dusty Payne, who won an action-packed heat against Nat Young of the USA.
Young’s wave selection was excellent as he caught barrel after barrel, impressing the judges with his commitment and earning a score of 14.67 out of 20.
However, Payne produced a sensational ride, linking together some sharp turns on his way to a 9.33 out of 10, giving him a winning total of 16.50.
Meanwhile, 3-time world champion Mick Fanning continued his encouraging comeback from injury with a stellar performance against close friend Kai Otton.
Fanning looked extremely motivated after his lengthy layoff as he scored 16.10, enough to narrowly beat fellow Australian Otton.
After a successful day for Brazilian surfers on Sunday, 2014 world champion Gabriel Medina continued his country’s excellent start to the competition, pulling off a difficult aerial manoeuvre on his way to a hard-fought victory over an impressive Ryan Callinan.
The closest contest of the day came just after midday, with Josh Kerr surviving a late comeback from Kolohe Andino to claim victory by just 0.26 points.
38-year-old Taj Burrow extended his career by at least another day with his win over Caio Ibelli. Burrow has announced that the Fiji Pro will be his final event as a professional surfer.
Australia’s Julian Wilson was a shock casualty, succumbing to Alejo Muniz for his third Round 2 exit this year, leaving his world championship prospects in jeopardy.
With conditions at Cloudbreak forecasted to deteriorate over the course of this week, there is unlikely to be any competition today. The event window runs until Friday 17th June.
