Alejo Muniz emerges triumphant in Round 1 of Billabong Rio Pro – Surfing News
Brazil’s Alejo Muniz emerged triumphant in the 12th heat of Round 1 at Billabong Rio Pro, the latest stop on the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Title Series, which continued to deliver a heavy dose of thrilling action at
the point-break of Arpoador in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Wednesday, May 9.
With his success in Round 1, Muniz advanced through directly into the third round of the competition. Australia’s Adam Melling and Hawaii’s John John Florence finished in second and third place respectively, consequently getting relegated to the second round
to surf again for the Round 3 spot.
The opening round of the latest ASP World Title Series event was scheduled to get underway at the main event site of Barra da Tijuca, but the availability of clean two-to-four foot left-handers at Arpoador convinced the event organisers to move the operation
to the secondary venue. The fans consequently witnessed a handful of enthralling battles between the top surfing talent from around the globe, with each surfer driven by his motivation to try and get as close to the coveted ASP World Title as possible.
The final heat of Round 1 saw Muniz taking on Melling and Florence in a three-man battle to get a direct jump into the third round without having to compete in Round 2.
Muniz did not have much luck with the waves during the early stages of the heat, but caught a couple of two juicy sets in the dying minutes of the bout. Scoring a 7.73 off the first one and backing it up with a 7.20-point ride, the Brazilian surfer finished
with a heat-total of 14.93 points. The score held up until the end to seal the deal in his favour and thus add his name to the Round 3 line-up.
Melling was pretty impressive during the course of the contest as well, but was unable to challenge his Brazilian rival’s lead through his heat-total of 12.57 points, which comprised of a 5.00 and 7.57-point wave.
Florence was being pitted as the favourite to win the Round 1 showdown due to the form that he was currently in. However, the Hawaiian surfer failed to live up to the expectations and only managed to score a 3.83 and 5.33 off his best-two waves for a heat-total
of 9.16 points. As a result, he accompanied Melling into the relegation Round 2 to surf another heat to earn a place in the third round.
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