Reigning ASP world champion Mick Fanning lost out to eventual winner Andy Irons as the final of the Billabong Pro Tahiti was played out in 1.5-metre waves at Teahupoo on Friday.
A hard-fought fourth round match-up saw Irons (14.17) edge Fanning (14.07) on the scores. Three-time ASP world champion Irons also saw off the legendary Kelly Slater and C.J. Hobgood in the final to record his first win in over three years.
“I feel like I’m back,” Irons said. “I have to thank ASP for giving me the wildcard back here. My whole dream was to come back and just win one contest, and I’ve done that now. I want more. And to win at Teahupoo, it’s my favourite wave in the world. It’s a very special win.”
Irons, who moves up from 18th to seventh in the world tour rankings, has a way to go to catch Jordy Smith, who retains his number one ranking despite suffering a surprise exit to Manoa Drollet in Round Three.
Slater moved into second place in the rankings, 250 points behind South African Smith. Slater scored the only perfect 10 of the competition in his quarter final win over Adrian Buchan and the 38-year-old now has Smith very much in his sights.
Fanning, meanwhile, will hope to get his own challenge back on track.
The next stop on the 2010 ASP World Tour will be the Hurley Pro Trestles in Southern California from September 12-18, an event Fanning won en route to his 2009 title win.
Head to our dedicated event page for more information about the sixth stop on the ASP World Tour.
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI FINAL RESULTS
1. Andy Irons (HAW) 14.67
2. C.J. Hobgood (USA) 8.33
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI SEMI FINAL RESULTS
SF 1: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 15.00 def. Jeremy Flores (FRA) 12.93
SF 2: Andy Irons (HAW) 13.57 def. Kelly Slater (USA) 10.26
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI QUARTER FINAL RESULTS
QF 1: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 14.53 def. Tiago Pires (PRT) 6.23
QF 2: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 11.80 def. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 11.33
QF 3: Kelly Slater (USA) 18.67 def. Adrian Buchan (AUS) 12.77
QF 4: Andy Irons (HAW) 16.44 def. Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 11.00
BILLABONG PRO TAHITI ROUND 4 RESULTS
Heat 1: C.J. Hobgood (USA) 13.50 def. Dane Reynolds (USA) 9.67
Heat 2: Tiago Pires (PRT) 14.83 def. Adriano de Souza (BRA) 12.83
Heat 3: Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 10.00 def. Owen Wright (AUS) 1.10
Heat 4: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 10.00 def. Manoa Drollet (PYF) 5.37
Heat 5: Kelly Slater (USA) 17.70 def. Adam Melling (AUS) 8.43
Heat 6: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 16.67 def. Michel Bourez (PYF) 8.83
Heat 7: Andy Irons (HAW) 14.17 def. Mick Fanning (AUS) 14.07
Heat 8: Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 17.00 def. Damien Hobgood (USA) 13.66
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