FLORENCE 3RD IN THE WORLD AFTER BILLABONG PRO TAHITI
TEAHUPO’O, Taiarapu/Tahiti (Monday, August 27, 2012) – Hawaii’s John John Florence, 19, has climbed to third in the world after a semi-final finish in the Billabong Pro Tahiti, held in excellent overhead waves. Florence is 7,300 points off the world title race lead of Mick Fanning (Australia), who won the event. Joel Parkinson was event runner-up and is second on the ASP World Tour rankings. The Billabong Pro Tahiti is the 5th of 10 stops on the 2012 ASP World Championship Tour.
Competing in his first-ever Billabong Pro Tahiti, Florence led the rookie charge at this year’s installment, confidently cruising into the Semifinals where he matched up with Parkinson. Despite locking in an impressive 9.67 out of a possible 10 for an impressive backhand tube, Florence was deserted by an ocean lull and was unable to find a solid backup score.
“I’m stoked to have made the Semifinals,” Florence said. “I would have loved to make the Finals and it’s not the funnest way to lose without a lot of waves in the heat, but it’s still a good result for me. Thanks to all the Tahitians for letting us come here and surf their wave for the week. It’s a beautiful place and I always love coming here.”
The Billabong Pro, Tahiti is made possible with the valued support of international partners Air Tahiti Nui, Sony, Xperia Sony Smartphone and Red Bull, along with our friends at Nixon, VonZipper, Mana and Hyundai.
The next stop on the 2012 ASP World Championship Tour will be the Hurley Pro at Trestles from September 16 – 22, 2012.
For more information, log onto www.ASPWorldTour.com
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI FINAL RESULTS:
1 – Mick Fanning (AUS) 18.87
2 – Joel Parkinson (AUS) 18.37
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI SEMIFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Mick Fanning (AUS) 18.93 def. Owen Wright (AUS) 18.10
QF 2: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.14 def. John John Florence (HAW) 15.17
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI QUARTERFINAL RESULTS:
QF 1: Mick Fanning (AUS) 19.07 def. Ricardo dos Santos (BRA) 18.64
QF 2: Owen Wright (AUS) 18.90 def. C.J. Hobgood (USA) 15.60
QF 3: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.50 def. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 16.43
QF 4: John John Florence (HAW) 16.17 def. Gabriel Medina (BRA) 4.17
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI ROUND 5 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Ricardo dos Santos (BRA) 16.17 def. Taj Burrow (AUS) 10.27
Heat 2: Owen Wright (AUS) 18.96 def. Julian Wilson (AUS) 10.70
Heat 3: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 15.66 def. Kieren Perrow (AUS) 9.50
Heat 4: John John Florence (HAW) 16.66 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 14.64
CURRENT ASP WCT TOP 5 (After Billabong Pro Tahiti)
1. Mick Fanning (AUS) 34,750 pts
2. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 31,700 pts
3. John John Florence (HAW) 27,450 pts
4. Kelly Slater (USA) 25,450 pts
5. Taj Burrow (AUS) 24,950 pts
Category: All ASP News, ASP Hawaii News, ASP Prime News
