Semis Set at the Oi Rio Pro

In a short day of competition on the sandbars of Barra de Tijuca, the quarterfinals ran before handing the jerseys over to the ladies. In the first heat of the morning, Filly Toledo continued on with his electrifying act, taking down Ricardo Christie on his first rookie roll. Filipe kicked tail and threw in some layback flair for versatility’s sake, nearly getting mobbed in the shore-break as he finished his rides. The kid’s a damn rockstar, and he’s surfing like he knows it. Still, though, he stayed cucumber-cool in his interview with Pete Mel. “I wanna be in the top five at the end of the year, fighting for a title.” You go, Filly…you go! The second quarter was an all Brazilian affair, which meant a total froth-fest on the Rio sand. Italo took down Jadson, mentor and pal, with some fancy footwork and feline reflex, making his first semi on home turf. He’ll face Flying’ Filly in the first Semi. Jadson, despite a loss, was clearly fired up for his rookie apprentice. “I was definitely looking for the win, but I’m really stoked for Italo. As you guys know, he’s like my little brother…but he’s not little anymore! He just beat me, so he’s a big guy right now. I’ll be rooting for him.” Rounding out the quarters, Durbo took down Kerzy with some solid rail-work and Wilko got all sortsa squiggly on his back-hand to take down Owen. The two Aussies will match up in the second Semi.