Eight Claims from Day Eight of the Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach

All photos ASP/Cestari Mick Fanning just won his third Rip Curl Pro, Bells Beach. He took down Owen Wright in the quarters, then once the event moved to Winki Pop, he beat Julian Wilson in the semis and Taj Burrow in the final. “After that 13th in Margaret River I went home and worked really hard and I’m so pleased that the hard work paid off,” said Mick. Congratulations to Taj, I’ve never been so nervous for nine minutes of my life, he surfed amazingly. We got to surf everywhere at this event which was awesome, we got to surf the Bowl, Rincon and to finish at Winkipop. It’s always been my dream to surf a Heat at Winkipop. This is such a special event for me and I feel comfortable here. With the calibre of surfers on Tour at the moment there’s never an easy Heat and it keeps it so exciting.” And now, here’s eight observations from a-Saffa-we-love and fired commentator, Dooma Fahrenfort… 1. The judges need a check up from the neck up, f’real. Jordy spanked Jules and Freddy P spanked Owen. Kelly said that Jordy’s wave was one of the best waves he’s ever seen ridden. (Also see Jordy’s post-heat interview after he lost, where he talks about getting judged against his own ability, not the person he’s surfing against.) The opening combo of Jordy’s final wave at this event was the best we’ve ever seen from him in a jersey. (ASP/Cestari/Getty Images)   2. The paddle battle is the lamest thing in surfing. Hype it up as much as you want, it still sucks. While no such need for hustle befell Freddy P today, he ain’t one to back down when challenged from, like, anything. (ASP/Cestari/Getty Images)   3. If Gabs wins a title, his shitty priority tricks will be forgotten. No one cares about Kelly snaking Shane Beschen anymore except Shane Beschen. Gabs giving a speech at the ASP awards in an ill fitting suit while holding a world title cup in his hands next March is absolutely not outta the question. (ASP/Cestari/Getty Images)   4. Carissa, Tyler and Steph surf better than the men’s World Tour bottom 10 out at Bells. Carissa, who won the women’s event, was a straight-up powerhouse. (ASP/Cestari)   5. The judges don’t judge style at Bells, unless they’ve have taken “flow” out of the criteria. Too many double pump bottom turns. Watch old footage of Occy and Curren and you’ll see what I’m talking about. Jordy is not a man who struggles with flow at a place like Bells or, really, anywhere. (ASP/Cestari/Getty Images)   6. Adriano will place fifth or better at Bells for the next three years. He might not have much flow but his turns are huge. Overzealous? Fuck no. Just right. (ASP/Cestari/Getty Images)   7. The judges pick and choose how they want to use priority. At Snapper, priority was given to whoever rode the last wave, regardless of who was further out. At Bells, it was given to whoever was further out. Otherwise, we would’ve had a Mick and Julian final. Julian was in some kinda zone today. (ASP/Cestari/Getty Images)   8. The squat snap off the lip is the new layback. Which are really ugly unless you’re doing ‘em like Mick. This is quite a throw above a squat snap (see fins), but they sure did feature heavily in this event. (ASP/Cestari) Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Final Results:Final: Mick Fanning (AUS) 16.83 def. Taj Burrow (AUS) 13.46 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Semifinal Results:Semifinal 1: Taj Burrow (AUS) 14.43 def. John John Florence (HAW) 13.43Semifinal 2: Mick Fanning (AUS) 18.20 def. Julian Wilson (AUS) 17.36 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Quarterfinal Results:Quarterfinal 1: Taj Burrow (AUS) 15.50 def. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 13.16Quarterfinal 2: John John Florence (HAW) 13.13 def. Kelly Slater (USA) 11.10Quarterfinal 3: Julian Wilson (AUS) 17.53 def. Joel Parkinson (AUS) 15.34Quarterfinal 4: Mick Fanning (AUS) 13.16 def. Owen Wright (AUS) 11.37 Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach Round 5 Results:Heat 1: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 16.27 def. Gabriel Medina (BRA) 13.33Heat 2: Kelly Slater (USA) 15.26 def. Adam Melling (AUS) 12.44Heat 3: Julian Wilson (AUS) 17.30 def. Jordy Smith (ZAF) 17.26Heat 4: Owen Wright (AUS) 13.37 def. Fred Patacchia (HAW) 13.10