Gabriel Medina (BRA), 18, defending Quiksilver Pro France winner, picked up where he left off last year, posting a solid win in Round 1 this morning.
LA GRAVIERE, Hossegor/France (Sunday, September 30, 2012) – The Quiksilver Pro France, Event No. 7 of 10 on the 2012 ASP World Championship Tour (WCT), completed the final three heats of Round 1 this morning in shifting three-to-five foot (1 – 1.5 metre) barrels at La Graviere before calling competition off for the day.
Gabriel Medina (BRA), 18, defending Quiksilver Pro France winner, dominated this morning’s action, posting an impressive 9.00 on his opening ride for a solid backhand barrel before consolidating with a flurry of scores on both rights and lefts.
“The banks are very different this year compared to last year,” Medina said. “Last year was better for turns and airs and this year it’s just straight barrels so far. Conditions were tough this morning, but if you picked the right wave, you could get a good score. Stoked to win my first heat back in France.”
Jordy Smith (ZAF), 24, current ASP WCT No. 9, posted an well-earned Round 1 victory this morning despite the trying conditions on offer at La Graviere.
“It’s definitely tough out there,” Smith said. “The waves are sharp which makes everything last minute. Most of the way through the heat, no one had big scores so it wasn’t comfortable until the end. Happy to make it out of my first heat though. I have a lot of family support in France right now and I love coming here.”
Kieren Perrow (AUS), 35, current ASP WCT No. 26, caused the upset of the day, besting former event winner Adrian Buchan (AUS), 30, and last year’s event Runner-Up Julian Wilson (AUS), 23, to advance directly to Round 3. Winner of the 2011 Billabong Pipeline Masters, Perrow is more than comfortable in the barrel.
“It’s the lowest-scoring heat win I’ve ever had but it’s Round 1 so you take it anyway you can,” Perrow said. “It’s a thumping, little bank at the moment and if you can find the right ones, it squares off nicely. Obviously Ace (Buchan) and Julian (Wilson) are no slouches out there, but I feel confident in these kinds of conditions as well. Hopefully it only gets better.”
Officials went on hold following Round 1 this morning in hopes that conditions may once again become favorable with the rising tide, but ultimately called Quiksilver Pro France competition off for the day.
Event organizers will reconvene tomorrow morning at 8am to assess conditions for a possible 8:30am start.
When competition resumes, up first will be current ASP WCT No. 2 Joel Parkinson (AUS), 31, up against wildcard Wiggolly Dantas (BRA), 22, in the opening heat of Round 2.
REMAINING QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 10: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 12.33, Heitor Alves (BRA) 8.63, Adam Melling (AUS) 2.47 Heat 11: Kieren Perrow (AUS) 9.23, Adrian Buchan (AUS) 6.84, Julian Wilson (AUS) 6.54 Heat 12: Gabriel Medina (BRA) 14.33, Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 9.34, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 5.23
QUIKSILVER PRO FRANCE ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Joel Parkinson (AUS) vs. Wiggolly Dantas (BRA) Heat 2: John John Florence (HAW) vs. Dusty Payne (HAW) Heat 3: Adriano de Souza (BRA) vs. Taylor Knox (USA) Heat 4: Josh Kerr (AUS) vs. Kolohe Andino (USA) Heat 5: Jeremy Flores (FRA) vs. Yadin Nicol (AUS) Heat 6: Owen Wright (AUS) vs. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) Heat 7: Julian Wilson (AUS) vs. Adam Melling (AUS) Heat 8: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) Heat 9: Adrian Buchan (AUS) vs. Travis Logie (ZAF) Heat 10: Heitor Alves (BRA) vs. Bede Durbidge (AUS) Heat 11: Kai Otton (AUS) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT) Heat 12: Damien Hobgood (USA) vs. Miguel Pupo (BRA)
