Matt Wilkinson shows what he is capable of during Quiksilver Saquarema Prime Final
Australia’s Matt Wilkinson put on a phenomenal performance to take out the Quiksilver Saquarema Prime Title after taking down his fellow Kai Otton in the Final that went down at the primary event site of Itauna Beach in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
on Sunday, May 27.
The two Australians had been exhibiting a promising form since the very first day of the latest event on the 2012 Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) PRIME calendar. The competition field comprised of the best surfing talent from around the globe,
with each surfer equally determined to get his hands on victory, which was accompanied by $US 40,000 in prize money and 6,500 ASP ranking points.
The intensity throughout the competition had been high, with one thrilling battle getting followed by another. With majority of the surfers putting on charged-up performances, the road had not exactly been a walk in the park for Wilkinson and Otton.
Otton in particular had an extra pressure on him as he had emerged victorious in the event last year and was definitely determined to retain the title. The left-hand point-break of Itauna Beach had been his playground last year, but other surfers were showing
a lot of promise this year and posed a strong threat to his chances of executing a successful title defence.
Wilkinson had been putting on an impressive show since the very first round and kept the momentum going to eventually reach the Final. Despite being high on confidence after defeating Brazilian powerhouse Gabriel Medina in the Quarter-finals and Hawaii’s
Keanu Asing in the Semi-finals, there was a huge question mark on how the Australian would fare in the Final due to the health issues that he had been dealing with. It was difficult to ignore the possibility of this factor playing a determining role in the
outcome of his face-off against Otton.
As the Final got underway, the 23-year-old Wilkinson hardly seemed anything less than 100 percent fit. The Australian sensation seemed as dangerous as ever, charging towards a juicy left-hander in the opening minutes to pull off a series of powerful turns.
The effort got an average score of 9.50 from the judges, allowing him to gain control of the heat right from the start.
Keeping the momentum going, he selected another promising wave and this time utilised it to add an additional 8.93 points to his account, thus moving to a heat-total of 18.43 points. The score seemed was without any doubt an intimidating one, one that was
bound to test the nerves of his rival.
Otton struggled to find rhythm since the very first minute of the Final. Plenty of bad wave selections and failure to make the most of whatever potent scoring opportunities came in his direction, the 32-year-old Australian only managed to get to a heat-total
of 8.63 points, which comprised of a 5.33 and 3.30-point ride. The lacklustre performance by Otton allowed Wilkinson to walk away with a comfortable win, taking with him more than just the event title.
“I’m so stoked and now I’ve got a hard on for Brazil,” joked an ecstatic Wilkinson. “No, I’m just kidding around, but I really am almost crying from all of the emotion. I’m really happy with what I was able to accomplish in the Semis and the Final. I had
a lot of fun, my board felt really good under my feet and now Saquarema is my favourite place in the world!”
The consistency and skills exhibited by Wilkinson in nearly all his heats at Itauna Beach has definitely earned him a lot of respect and reminded everyone just what the Australian sensation is capable of when he is in the groove.
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