2012 RIP CURL PRO, BELLS BEACH – DAY THREE

The Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach today saw its most dramatic and, we gotta say, entertaining day of the 2012 event so far. Kelly Slater didn’t disappoint. He admitted to feeling the pressure during his battle against wildcard Nic Muscroft (whose power and silkiness Stab couldn’t find any more endearing if we tried.) And, Nic had the champ on the ropes! But in true Kelly style, the Floridian scooped a wave with five seconds on the clock and spun a full roter over the shorepound to advance. Joel Parkinson and Mick Fanning both posted frequent 9-point rides. Kai Otton, who eliminated Jules Wilson yesterday, took down another major entity in the form of Taj Burrow. John Florence went loony, again. CJ Hobgood dispatched Gabs Medina. Jordy Smith did a very big superman. The swell didn’t drop off. Can tomorrow be any better than today? Stay tuned to find out.

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 3 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 12.33 def. Yadin Nicol (AUS) 9.60
Heat 2: John John Florence (HAW) 13.97 def. Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 9.63
Heat 3: Owen Wright (AUS) 13.77 def. Jadson Andre (BRA) 7.17
Heat 4: Josh Kerr (AUS) 15.17 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 9.07
Heat 5: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 14.10 def. Bede Durbidge (AUS) 12.83
Heat 6: Kelly Slater (USA) 17.00 def. Nic Muscroft (AUS) 16.30
Heat 7: Kai Otton (AUS) 11.83 def. Taj Burrow (AUS) 6.54
Heat 8: Mick Fanning (AUS) 18.46 def. Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 15.20
Heat 9: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 16.70 def. Gabriel Medina (BRA) 15.60
Heat 10: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.53 def. Travis Logie (ZAF) 10.96
Heat 11: Brett Simpson (USA) 15.54 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 12.53
Heat 12: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 18.94 def. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 17.37

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 4 RESULTS (NO-LOSERS ROUND):
Heat 1: Owen Wright (AUS) 15.87, John John Florence (HAW) 15.00, Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.93
Heat 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 18.50, Josh Kerr (AUS) 13.10, Jeremy Flores (FRA) 12.94
Heat 3: Mick Fanning (AUS) 18.20, Kai Otton (AUS) 14.07, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 10.83
Heat 4: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 17.27, Jordy Smith (ZAF) 15.60, Brett Simpson (USA) 7.00

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 5 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: John John Florence (HAW) v. Jeremy Flores (FRA)
Heat 2: Josh Kerr (AUS) v. Adriano De Souza (BRA)
Heat 3: Kai Otton (AUS) v. Brett Simpson (USA)
Heat 4: Jordy Smith (ZAF) v. C.J. Hobgood (USA)