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Boardfolio.com >> ASP World Tour News >> Brazilian Wildcards Dominate Round Two

Occy clinched his maiden crown in Brazil four years ago, but was stopped by former WCT surfer Marcelo Nunes this morning in round two. Nova Schin Festival WCT Brasil 2003 (Oct 27 - Nov 4) www.waves.com.br Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) www.aspworldtour.com World Championship Tour (WCT) Press Release Brazilian Wildcards Dominate Round Two October 30, 2003 (Joaquina, Florianopolis, Brasil) Brazilian wildcards today dominated the Nova Schin Festival WCT Brasil at the main site of Joaquina. Remaining round two heats of the US$250,000 ASP World Championship Tournament (WCT) were completed, with major upsets giving the thousands of spectators plenty to get excited about. With the entire Island of Florianopolis suffering a power blackout, all school children and most workers had the day off and came to enjoy the surfing action on the beautiful sunny day. Clean 3-4 ft (1.3m) waves were on offer at the main site of Joaquina, with peak conditions allowing competitors to choose between right and lefthanders. Dean Morrison (Gold Coast, Aus) was the day's first casualty, losing to event Trials winner Tanio Barreto. Last night Morrison and roommate Mick Fanning's hotel room caught alight after a candle fire caused the evacuation of theirs and surrounding rooms, but his misfortune continued this morning. The current ratings #9 rode a surfboard still baked in black soot and was unable to secure any high scoring rides, being forced to accept his second 33rd place result this season. Barreto, meanwhile, used local knowledge to slightly edge out his opponent. The 24-year-old moved to Florianopolis seven years ago and acknowledged the advantage this played. He'll next face reigning world champ Andy Irons (Kauai, Haw) in round three. "It's so good to beat him," began Barreto. "I live here and surf these waves everyday, so I'm very happy. I know Dean is a great surfer, but I'm staying at my house and am so relaxed, with all my friends here. I can't believe it, but next heat I have Andy Irons, so I need to just stay relaxed (laughs)." Current ratings #10, #15, #16 and #17 - Danny Wills (Byron Bay, Aus), Damien Hobgood (FL, USA), 1999 world champion Mark Occhilupo (Gold Coast, Aus) and Phil MacDonald (Aus), respectively - were also eliminated from the Nova Schin Festival WCT Brasil by event wildcards. 'Occy' clinched his maiden crown in Brazil four years ago, but was stopped by former WCT surfer Marcelo Nunes this morning. The Brazilian opened his account with a good lefthander and boosted a big forehand aerial for an 8.83 and commanding lead, and ultimately left his Australian opponent requiring another ride worth 7.5-points. "I'm so happy because I've surfed against Occy a couple of times before and lost," said Nunes. "This is my first win against him. I'm trying so hard to re-qualify for next year's WCT, but this is a very big contest for me. "I learned on the WCT it's very important to start the heat with a good wave," he added, of his opening ride. "I was very happy to get that wave and win." Shane Powell (Avoca, Aus) collected the best scores of the day to eliminate local hero and event license holder Flavio Padaratz. The Australian opened with an 8.83 lefthander, and then sealed victory with another 7.83 ride. Despite losing, Padaratz was still swarmed by adoring fans as he made his way up the beach. "To come up against any of the local Brazilian guys is hard cause of all the crowd support," reasoned Powell. "Luckily we were a long way out and I couldn't really hear them all (laughs). In these conditions anyone is tough though, as there aren't many good waves in a heat. I was lucky to get two good rides, as I needed a result and when I heard my scores I was pretty stoked." Kalani Robb (Haw) also posted big scores to eliminate Luke Stedman (Avalon, Aus). The Hawaiian trailed for most the heat, but then came back with a 7.1 and an 8 towards the end for his round three spot against Brazilian Guilherme Herdy. The current #25 won his only WCT title in Rio back in 2000. "I couldn't hear what I needed out there, but I just surfed as well as I could on the waves I got and hoped for the best," explained Robb. "I really love being here in Brazil. The crowd is so supportive and I look forward to coming here because of it." Tom Whitaker (Bronte) continued the trend of lower seeds eliminating those rated higher by accounting for fellow Australian Nathan Hedge (Narrabeen). The current #45 won the low scoring heat, and will now face Kieren Perrow in round three. "It's so hard out there and comes down to whoever gets a lucky wave and does a turn," explained Whitaker, surrounded by young autograph hunters. "Brazil is really fun, and there's thousands of people on the beach, so I'm just enjoying being here." Another decision will be made tomorrow morning at 7am (local time), with organizers gearing up for a possible move to nearby Praia Mole.

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