Heitor Alves and Bede Durbidge advance to Round 3 of Rip Curl Pro Portugal – 2011 ASP World Tour
The 2011 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour, Rip Curl Pro Portugal, kept delivering a heavy dose of thrilling action as Brazil’s Heitor Alves squared off with Portugal’s Tiago Pires in the seventh, while Australia’s Bede Durbidge took
on his compatriot, Kieren Perrow, in the eighth heat of Round 2 that went down at the iconic beach-break of Supertubos in Peniche, Portugal, on Monday, October 17.
The seventh heat saw Alves come back with an impressive performance to take Pires down and advance through into Round 3, bringing the competition to a premature end for his opponent in the process.
Perrow and Durbidge fought tooth and nail until the very end in the eighth heat, with both the surfers putting up a determined performance. In the end, however, it was the latter who managed to capture the win and successfully extend his life in the competition
by going through into Round 3, eliminating his rival from the competition in the process.
The clean six-to-eight foot waves on offer at the event site on Monday promised an intense battle between the world’s best surfers from all around the globe as they looked to save themselves from getting ejected from the competition.
As the seventh heat got underway, the 29-year-old Alves wasted no time in putting the crowd-favourite, Pires, under pressure. Going through a series of average scores to warm up to the conditions, the Brazilian eventually made a charge by locking a wave
to unload a series of exquisite tricks, earning 8.93 points for the effort. Adding another 6.57 points to his account, he finished with a heat-total of 15.50 points.
Pires got off to a shaky start, but gradually built momentum to make a charge in the late stages of the man-on-man battle. Earning 7.60 points off his first business wave, the Portuguese found himself requiring a big score off for the win. However, the task
proved to be too for much for him and he was eventually finished with a heat-total of 13.20 points. The outcome of the heat sent Alves through into the third round, while pushing Pires out of the competition.
The eighth heat featured an intense contest between Durbidge and Perrow, with both the surfers nothing back during the 30-minute contest. Losing was not an option as failure to secure a win meant elimination from the competition.
The pressure brought out the best in both the Australians, but it was the 28-year-old Durbidge whose vast experience allowed him to collect a two-wave total of 16.04 points against Perrow’s 15.87, consequently sealing the fate of the contest in his favour.
For more updates on Round 2 of Rip Curl Pro Portugal, stay tuned to bettor.com.
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