Adriano de Souza Claims Rip Curl Pro Portugal Over Kelly Slater at Picturesque Supertubos
Adriano de Souza (BRA), 24, 2011 Rip Curl Pro Portugal Champion!
SUPERTUBOS, Peniche/Portugal (Tuesday, October 18, 2011) – Adriano de Souza (BRA), 24, has taken out the Rip Curl Pro Portugal over Kelly Slater (USA), 39, in clean three-to-five foot (1 – 1.5 metre) barrels at Supertubos today.
Event No. 9 of 11 on the 2011 ASP World Title Series, the Rip Curl Pro Portugal culminated in exciting fashion today as a feast of picturesque barrels closed out one of the most memorable events in ASP history.
De Souza tore through the field on the final day of competition, taking down Travis Logie (ZAF), 32, Michel Bourez (PYF), 25, and Bede Durbidge (AUS), 28, en route to his final clash with Slater. The young Brazilian opened up with a solid forehand barrel to secure a 9.00 out of a possible 10 and put pressure on the defending champion. Slater answered back with two solid scores of his own, but De Souza came back in the final minutes to hammer the nail in the coffin and secure the third elite tour win of his career.
“Kelly (Slater) has been my hero since I ever heard about surfing,” De Souza said. “He is a living legend and to be competing against him at this level is more than a dream come true. He has pushed me more than any other surfer and I owe him a lot. The waves have been incredible for this event. Thanks to Rip Curl for bringing us here and thanks to all the Portuguese who have supported me throughout the event.”
Today’s win vaults De Souza from 6th to 3rd on the ASP World Title rankings and into contention heading into the last two events of the year.
“I haven’t been as consistent as I would like to be this season but I have had two of the biggest results of my career here and in Brazil,” De Souza said. “It’s very special to win in these kinds of conditions. I just want to finish the year with some good results – I’m not thinking about the World Title.”
Slater, reigning 10-time ASP World Champion, moved one step closer to clinching his 11th crown today. Should he finish 9th or better in the upcoming Rip Curl Pro Search San Francisco event (two heat wins), he will seal the deal.
“It’s been an amazing event,” Slater said. “I can’t remember a time when we’ve had so many 9s and high 8s and we’ve all just got barreled off our heads for three days straight. It’s been pretty amazing. Unfortunately, there was really only that one good one in the Final and I made a priority mistake and let Adriano (de Souza) have it. It’s obviously a good result for me and it makes things harder on everyone else. Let’s hope for good conditions in San Francisco.”
Taj Burrow (AUS), 33, rampaged through the day’s affairs, claiming a Round 4 win before dispatching of red-hot rookie Julian Wilson (AUS), 22, in the Quarterfinals. Burrow then faced Slater in a heated Semifinal exchange. The Western Australian pulled out to an early lead as both tube specialists went blow for blow in the opening exchanges. However, a last-minute Perfect 10 from the champ would seal the deal and send Burrow home with an Equal 3rd.
“What do you say after that?” Burrow said. “It was another one of those situations where we were both getting good waves. I broke my board and was paddling out when he dropped in on that left – first left of the heat – and I knew it was a 10 straight away. I’m still a bit blown away. It’s been an amazing event though. Some of the best waves I’ve ever surfed.”
Bede Durbidge (AUS), 28, matched his best result of the season today, besting John John Florence (HAW), 19, and Joel Parkinson (AUS), 30, en route to his Equal 3rd place finish. Despite having his run halted by De Souza in the Semifinals, today’s result moves Durbidge from 18th to 15th on the ASP World Title rankings and that much closer to cracking the Top 10.
“It’s been a big event for me here so I can’t be upset with losing there,” Durbidge said. “We’ve had incredible waves throughout the event and I just didn’t have the rhythm there in the Semifinal. It’s a big result for me and hopefully that turns my year around heading into the last two events.”
Owen Wright (AUS), 21, current No. 2 on the ASP World Title rankings, was eliminated this morning in a hard-fought Round 3 battle against ASP Dream Tour newcomer John John Florence (HAW), 19. Despite posting an excellent 16.96 out of a possible 20, Wright was unable to overcome the preternatural onslaught from the young Hawaiian.
“When I saw John John (Florence) moving through the draw, I knew there was a real possibility of meeting him early on,” Wright said. “He’s obviously very dangerous in these conditions as it resembles him home at Pipeline. That said, I put together a good heat I think so I can hold my head up. I just didn’t come out on top in this instance.”
Wright’s early ousting from the Rip Curl Pro Portugal doesn’t bode well for his 2011 ASP World Title campaign as reigning 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater (USA), 39, moves closer to clinching the crown. However, the young Australian remains positive in his approach to the remainder of the season.
“I’m going to go home before San Francisco and recharge,” Wright said. “There are still two events to go and I really want to finish my year strong.”
Highlights from the Rip Curl Pro Portugal will be available via http://live.ripcurl.com
Thanks to our broadcast partners at FUEL TV in Australia and Portugal, Ma Chaine Sport in France, Luxembourg, Belgium, Switzerland and Africa as well as ESPN in Brazil.
The next stop on the 2011 ASP World Title season will be the Rip Curl Pro Search San Francisco from November 1 – 12, 2011.
For additional information log on to www.aspworldtour.com
RIP CURL PRO PORTUGAL REMAINING FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Adriano de Souza (BRA) 15.67
2 – Kelly Slater (USA) 14.73
RIP CURL PRO PORTUGAL REMAINING SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Kelly Slater (USA) 19.50 def. Taj Burrow (AUS) 16.87
SF 2: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 13.83 def. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 12.03
RIP CURL PRO PORTUGAL REMAINING QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.94 def. Julian Wilson (AUS) 17.50
QF 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 18.70 def. Heitor Alves (BRA) 7.67
QF 3: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 17.60 def. Michel Bourez (PYF) 17.53
QF 4: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 17.10 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.60
RIP CURL PRO PORTUGAL REMAINING HEAT 5 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Julian Wilson (AUS) 6.83 def. Chris Davidson (AUS) 3.50
Heat 2: Heitor Alves (BRA) 15.40 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 13.74
Heat 3: Michel Bourez (PYF) 18.93 def. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 17.96
Heat 4: Bede Durbidge (AUS) 17.44 def. John John Florence (HAW) 17.06
RIP CURL PRO PORTUGAL REMAINING ROUND 4 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Taj Burrow (AUS) 17.13, Julian Wilson (AUS) 15.70, Damien Hobgood (USA) 14.10
Heat 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 19.30, Heitor Alves (BRA) 17.20, Chris Davidson (AUS) 13.40
Heat 3: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 15.30, Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 14.64, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 11.67
Heat 4: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 18.00, John John Florence (HAW) 17.84, Michel Bourez (PYF) 16.10
RIP CURL PRO PORTUGAL REMAINING ROUND 3 RESULTS:
Heat 9: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 11.60 def. Travis Logie (ZAF) 8.10
Heat 10: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 13.56 def. Dusty Payne (HAW) 12.30
Heat 11: Michel Bourez (PYF) 16.27 def. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 14.54
Heat 12: John John Florence (HAW) 17.33 def. Owen Wright (AUS) 16.96
ASP WORLD TITLE TOP 5 (after Rip Curl Pro Portugal)
1. Kelly Slater (USA) 58,150 pts
2. Owen Wright (AUS) 45,650 pts
3. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 42,450 pts
4. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 41,100 pts
5. Taj Burrow (AUS) 40,950 pts
Comments
Category: All ASP News, ASP World Tour News
I’m from Aussie, but i gotta tell ya, SUPERTUBOS was a dream to watch.. best beach break i ever seen.. keep it in the tour! Im coming out next year for sure. SICK BARRELS.
Parabéns Mineiro, mais uma vez mostrou sua garra e coragem. Surfou com maestria os canudos!!!
O Brasil esta mais um vez orgulhoso de voce !!!!
I think we can all agree on a couple of things here: You gotta play the hand your dealt and no matter how much it sucks you have to make the right decisions with it (Adriano made better ones) and it is unfortunate that Brasil had to put up with Vin Diesel, The Rock, and Paul Walker while they were making “Fast 5.” I’m certain they were a burden to Your country, which is why in Canada we have made a law that prohibits them from crossing the border. Luda and whoever that Japanese guy is can still come – and DEFINITELY the hot chick – but none of the other cast. What the hell was the point here… RIGHT –
The other thing we can agree on is if the waves were better in the final, for example, say, 10 left hand mega-shackers each, there isn’t even a sliver of a chance Adriano could have won. NO CHANCE. He’s awesome, but not Kelly in the tube awesome. He was a bit smarter and way luckier. But that’s contests 99% of the time. In November when we are discussing who was assaulted by a White shark in San Fran, it’ll be like none of this ever happened anyway…
its just ridiculous how you guys hate when anyone whos not aus\us\haw wins… stop the blaming and let the man enjoy his victory, he deserved it for god sake
Regardless who wins…great surfing, different locations, great surf…can’t go wrong in good waves or poor waves…floating in the surf with friends, mates, sons or brothers and catching something, or watching these great events on the net, it’s all surfing and surfing is the what the soul needs in this mad world…
AMEN!!!
Regardless who wins…great surfing, different locations, great surf…can’t go wrong in good waves or poor waves…floating in the surf with friends/mates/sons/brothers and catching something, or watching these great events on the net, it’s all surfing and surfing is the what the soul needs in this mad world…
Kelly got underscored but oh well, can i ask a question? why do all the brazilians claim average waves like there gold? It is kind of annoying to be honest. the judges should know better. whats your thoughts?
Judges should take points off for d*ckhead claims…
Gotta wonder if age is starting to catch up with Kelly. He looked incredibly sharp in his earlier heats, but not as much so in the final. Adriano on the other hand looked vibrant in the final.
As Kelly’s dominance fades, which is bound to happen sooner or later, and as WT contests more and more are being held in fickle beachbreaks, the Brazilians are most likely gonna take over the world tour, because that’s what they predominately surf at home.
Perhaps it’s time to bring back the old Bud pro tour so we can see the likes of Dane Reynolds and Bobby Martinez competing at quality reef and point breaks. Supertubos had some beautiful barrels, but quite a few heats had only a handful of decent waves. In the heats that had plenty of good waves, the surfing realy shined, but in the heats that didn’t have enough quality waves, it was kind of a joke. For example, the heat with Julian Wilson and Kai Otten was fantastic, but contrast that with the later heat between Julian and Chris Davidson.
Hooray for the older guys and for Adriano. This keeps it interesting and us tuning in. But please, no hating. Teahupoo and Pipe may be the holy grail of surfing to some, but the world tour has a lot more to do with inclusion and variety. Watching Parko or Fanning on the right wave is a thing of beauty. There are guys who surf their hearts out in Round 2 and get 9′s. Then there are the whole heat lull and the one who dropped into the lucky open faces advances. It is hardly ever the perfect session. I think that’s what makes it intriguing.
no hating here. Just pointing out the obvious. The ASP and its supporters
need to stop shooting the messengers and accept that fickle beachbreaks does not
make for a “dream tour”.
Beachbreaks does not make for a dream tour??
Gimme a break…The surfers should be tested in all diferent types of waves.
I guess you are seeing too many movies, but remember that the tour is based on ral life.
It is funny how people comment here about waves, saying waves are crap and then they forget about the 2 feet waves they got a couple of days ago.
Some of them get these type of waves and tell their buddies the waves were awesome.
Just enjoy the tour and the surf…not even the professional surfers are so demanding!
Parabéns Adriano!
Fico muito feliz pela sua vitória! E pelo ano que o Brasil está tendo no WCT
Yeah no floaters just blatant claiming. Just let your surfing do the talking.
o Mister M ta todo recalcado….
Hey why is there a picture of Andy ? well done Adriano!
Hey my friends,
Let´s celebrate in peace.
Meet your girlfriends or take a good surf magazine and everything is alright.
Aloha!!
Noooooooo
The Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes……
It’s coming true!
I had to stop watching – perfect barrels for two nights straight… making it too hard to sleep…. considering waves here not so good atm…
Well done Adriano – waves came at right time for you particularly in final.
IMO best barrels were from JJ Flo / Owen / Kelly / Spartan / Taj / Heitor –
@Portugal tourism – couldnt have gotten much better advertisement than that….
@Fuel / Ripcurl / ASP – awesome work on the broadcast – didnt miss a beat thanks!
Parko too and Bede too… in fact soooo many good barrels hard to remember them
Kelly you can´t win always!
friend, can cry at will, but nobody will be able to stop the Brazilian in the tour. You talk of barrels, already forgotten by Bruno Santos at Teahupoo? But we are not world champions yet because of this discrimination like her, but even that we shall overcome.
Kelly should have won. The Brazilians are on the beach acting like a bunch of gorillas.
Jealousy kills!Brasil gives you!!!
thats called celebration and pride brothaaa, something you guys don’t really seem to have.
cheers to you racist jealous f…cks on making the victory that much better!
Ah!
Go Surf yourselfs.
The haters are gonna hate that!
The brazilians are coming, but dont panic haters, at the end , we are the one who enjoyed watching the contest the most
The surf changed people, get used to it or get angry.
Congratulations Mr. Mineirinho!
Brazil and Guarujá are very proud of You!
Brazilians bustin’ down the door!
Adriano win again, in huge barrels!!! no Floaters no crapy waves……talking what now
and Gabriel Medina win in france……no words, please!
“No Words Please…..?” Yeah Right…Nice Try Buddy. We will see how Adriano and Gabriel do at Ocean Beach and Pipeline. Maybe it will be you who have no words after that……
He has an 4 win-11 loss record against Kelly. In a heat that only had one decent wave he got lucky in the final. Kelly will take the world crown yet again, prooving he is the best no matter what type of surf conditions. Medina got his a$$ bounced early, the surf was too big for him, haha Its time for the brazillians to be quiet.
Uhh…and what about the rest of the contests bro (dennis)? Sorry, but dont make “no words” claims until you claim a TITLE or PIPEMASTERS….
P.S. Try being a little humble and you might get props
Cmon people, ure just being stupid. Why brazilians have to quiet, if brazilians claims the last 2 steps of the tour??? And a 4-11 record against the best competitor of all times is really a great score. So take a look at the WT and check how many brazilian flags in it. US, AUS, BRA, HAW are the TOUR. And nobody who takes surf seriously can contest that.
While the juniors from aus and us are killing each other in the pro jr, those of Brazil are winning stages in WT. Wake up, speaking of new generation, you are far behind. This is because Brazil is a economic powerhouse and its companies are crying for an exchanged in our market now. When this happened, the only thing we lacked, investment in ours talents, it´not a problem anymore, not like it was and you can see the result. Sorry!!!
And i saw many guys talking about style, but owen has the worst style on tour and nobody talk about that… be impartial.