Sunday 24 July 2011
Jubilation rocked the Billabong Pro as Jordy Smith claimed his second consecutive victory in arguably one of the worst-weathered final days in WCT history. Paul van Jaarsveld and Cristina Rovere report from ground zero.
Hard-core supporters at the Billabong Pro, armed with vuvuzelas and rain coats, braved extreme conditions, with howling onshores, driving torrential rain and pummelling 3-5' ocean bumps that burped across the fabled reef in random chunks.
That morning (birthday of the late Andy Irons), the onshore was already blowing hard, and showers had fallen overnight. There was still some grunt in the wave, but things had gone pearshaped, with conditions looking like a sinking-ship drama. Event organizers were forced to run the event no matter the conditions. It was the final day.
Quarter Finals
The first quarter final between Jordy Smith (ZAF) and Damien Hobgood (USA) started at 07:30. Camera crews and photographers found it increasingly difficult to cover the event, with pouring rain that started about half way through the 30 minute heat.
From the onset, Smith looked calm and not very phased by conditions and did not find it very difficult to rack up a total heat score of 15.10 leaving Hobgood with very few options.
In Quarter final number two, Adrian Buchan (AUS) was pitched against Julian Wilson (AUS). Wilson had a strong start with a 7.32 opening ride, and a follow up ride of 7.67 but Ace replied with a 8.87 and and another 8+ ride which gave him the victory.
The third quarter final was totally dominated by Joel Parkinson (AUS) as Alejo Muniz (BRA) fell on the closing maneuvers of his two rides. Parko on the other hand, showed commitment and flow, connecting all his moves and sticking a very big lay back tail release among things.
The last quarter final saw Mick Fanning (AUS) beat Josh Kerr (AUS) easily, with Kerr going for big airs similar to what he did in previous heats but not being able to stick any.
Semi Finals
Smith steam rolled over Buchan in the first Semi final by getting an early lead, with a solid 7.5 ride. With 19 minutes left on the clock, Smith posted a 9.63 which was incredible looking at conditions. Buchan did not manage to get many high scoring waves and found himself in a combo situation until the end of the heat, with Smith eventually lifting the bar to a 17.47 combo requirement in the last 60 seconds.
The second Semi final saw Fanning and Parko wrestle it out till the last moment. Fanning got an early 6.0 and was still leading with 23 minutes to go. Parko eventually answered back with 7.6 ride on his third wave, putting him momentarily in the lead. Parko also opted to run the beach rather than paddle back to hear his score and to preserve some time and energy.
With 18 minutes left, Fanning was in need of 4.44 and waiting his moment to strike, he pulled a roundhouse and smashed through the top followed by a super fast whip off the lip, closing with a cutback on the crumbling wave, posting a 7.67. Parko tried to respond with another ride, but Fanning put the nails in the coffin with an amazing 9.80 ride, leaving Parko in need of a 9.87 which he could not achieve.
The Finals
During the break, a little drama played off, as the replacement NSRI ski was abandoned due to engine failure after the previous one ran on the rocks due to a monster foamie that washed it ashore. There was also a sea otter playing in the shallows, chomping fish on the rocks, oblivious of the inherent carnage and seriousness of the hour.
Nobody could have scripted a better final with Jordy Smith (ZAF) and Mick Fanning (AUS) going head to head like two pirate ships in stormy grey seas.
Smith posted an early high score of 8.60 which included a flawless front side rail grab air. There was a bit of a lull, but fanning answered back with an 8.0 point ride and was sitting with priority with 18 minutes left on the clock. Making use of his priority, Fanning proceeded too smash the top of the lip, doing a carve and a huge free-fall floater, posting a 6.83 for the effort to temporarily take the lead.
Attention was quickly turned towards Smith who answered back with a clean swoop and a carve, landing a perfect double rail grab air to conclude his ride earning him 7.00 putting him in the lead by a mere 0.77 of a point.
In the end, Fanning needed to replace his best ride with a 7.61, but could never find a good enough follow up wave. With 2 minutes left on the clock, Smith scored another 5.17 and Fanning was left sitting in the lineup, coming to terms with the fact that he would not be the 2011 Billabong PRO J-Bay champion.
In his winning speech, Smith said: "It's been an incredible week for me. All the support of the people at Jeffreys Bay, Garth (Tarlow), Steve (Smith), my girlfriend Lyndall (Jarvis), my mom and dad and everyone else. It's been a really
special week for me and I'm so happy right now." Smith also remarked: "Mick. He's always an inspiration and he's right there with everyone in the hunt for the title. Today's a huge win for me. Last year it was very emotional. To back it up this year just feels really, really good. It's huge for my confidence and I'm looking forward to the rest of the year."
Smith earned $75 000 with his win, but more importantly, moved up in the rankings to second place with a 10 000 points boost to his campaign for the world title.
A daily 15 minute TV highlights package from the event will be broadcast on the channels of SuperSport with the premiere at 19h45 and multiple repeats. Check Your TV schedule for updated broadcast times.
The Billabong Pro J-Bay 2011 was proudly presented by South Africa's adventure province Eastern Cape Parksand Tourism Agency and further supported by Carling Black Label, Monster Energy, Coca Cola, Amarok, Vida e Caffe, Tavcor, VonZipper and Nixon.
From wavescape.co.za we would like to thank and congratulate Billabong and all the sponsors for putting up a great event and hosting the media in such a cordial and professional manner. We will see you again next year, come hell or high water.
Slideshow of the day. (Thanks to the JBU for making their stand available as a shelter against the rain!)
BILLABONG PRO JEFFREYS BAY FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.60
2 – Mick Fanning (AUS) 14.83
BILLABONG PRO JEFFREYS BAY SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
SF 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 17.46 def. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 11.87
SF 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) 17.47 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 11.93
BILLABONG PRO JEFFREYS BAY QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.10 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 8.94
QF 2: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 16.77 def. Julian Wilson (AUS) 14.90
QF 3: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.83 def. Alejo Muniz (BRA) 8.16
QF 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 15.40 def. Josh Kerr (AUS) 5.43
ASP WORLD TITLE TOP 10 (After Billabong Pro Jeffreys Bay):
1. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 25700 pts
2. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 24750 pts
3. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 22250 pts
4. Mick Fanning (AUS) 19500 pts
5. Taj Burrow (AUS) 18250 pts
6. Kelly Slater (USA) 16950 pts
7. Michel Bourez (PYF) 16000
8. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 15000
9. Josh Kerr (AUS) 13900 pts
9. Owen Wright (AUS) 13900 pts
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