Gabriel Medina emerges triumphant in Round 2 of Quiksilver Saquarema Prime – Surfing News
The young Brazilian sensation Gabriel Medina qualified for the third round (No-Loser Round of 24) at the Quiksilver Saquarema Prime presented by Coca-Cola after managing to clinch victory in the eighth heat of Round 2 (Round of 48) that went down at the
primary event site of Itauna Beach in Saquarema, Brazil, on Wednesday, May 23.
Accompanying Medina into the next round was Puerto Rico’s Brian Toth, who extended his life in the competition following his runner-up finish in the heat. Reunion Island’s Adrien Toyon finished in third place, while Hawaii’s Mason Ho rounded out the bottom-position.
The failure to finish in top-two resulted in the elimination of both the surfers from the competition.
The latest Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) PRIME event of the year was featuring a large competition field comprising of surfers from around the globe. With the availability of an opportunity to get their hands on a share of a $US 250,000 along
with coveted ASP ranking points, there was ample motivation for the surfers to put their most stylish skills on display. The four-to-six foot waves gracing Itauna Beach furthered contributed to the excitement present in the atmosphere as the Round 2 battles
of the competitions continue to cut off heads.
The eighth heat of Round 2 saw Medina take on Toth, Toyon and Ho in a four-man battle for the Round 3 spot.
Despite being relatively young as compared to his rivals, Medina proved wise beyond his years. Putting his experience of surfing the point-break to use, the 18-year-old Maresias-based surfer caught plenty of waves while hunting for a couple of good scores.
Scoring a 5.67 and 5.90 off his best-two waves, he finished with a heat-total of 11.57 points. While the two-wave total hardly seemed like an intimidating one, it proved adequate to earn him a convincing victory.
Toth finished in runner-up place after collecting a couple of scores in the four-point range to finish with a heat-total of 9.74 points. As a result, his place in the third round also got confirmed.
A two-wave total of 8.93 points forced Toyon to settle for third place, while Ho finished fourth after scoring a 3.50 and 5.00 off his best-two waves. The ordinary performance put on by the two surfers resulted in their elimination from the contention for
the Quiksilver Saquarema Prime Title.
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