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Morrison ends champion's Rip Curl Pro Search
by George Mojo
27/06/2007:// A perfect ten wave score saw Australian Dean Morrison end eight times world champion Kelly Slater's run in the Rip Curl Pro Search Chile today.
Slater was on the first plane out of Arica after earning his second equal 9th place finish of the season.
Morrison walked away with the highest two-wave heat total of the event - 18.83 out of 20.00 - and a quarter-final place.
"Every time you come up against Kelly, it's easy to play mind games with yourself," Morrison said. "Luckily enough, I was able to stick to my game plan and not worry about him. That's what I was able to do in that heat and I came out on top."
Morrison's victory over Slater today was his first since 2003 when he beat Slater on the Gold Coast of Australia and went on to win the contest.
"It's been a long time since I've beat Kelly so I'm just stoked I got to surf against him and have a good heat," Morrison said. "I'm really proud of it."
Morrison and Slater went wave for wave, before Morrison made it out of an almost impossible looking barrel to post a perfect 10 - the second of the event.
"It stood up nice," Morrison said. "It had a nice line on it and I knew it was going to taper off and I was able just to hang in there and keep that line and it let me out. It's the second 10-point ride I've ever had so it means a lot."
Slater fought back until the final seconds but couldn't find a wave offering the 9.37 scoring potential he needed.
"Dean's 10 looked kind of like a closeout to me," Slater said. "There was a little too much bend on the end of it, but obviously it held open and there you have it. I probably got the second best wave and he got the third. I was going to need the second and third to catch him and just didn't quite have it."
The reigning world champion is currently sitting sixth on the Foster's ASP World Championship Tour ratings.
"At this point, it's not feeling like a World Title year for me so far," Slater said.
"To lose out here, that's the fourth event that Mick has bettered me in and it's going to be really hard to catch him. If he stays somewhat consistent at all, he is going to be hard to catch this year. If he were to better me in just two more events this year, I don't think I could catch him. That's a fact of life and that's the reality of where we're at right now."
Current ratings leader Australian Mick Fanning defeated American Chris Ward in his round four heat and will now meet Bobby Martinez in Quarter-final 2.
World number four Joel Parkinson was eliminated by Andy Irons in Quarter-final 1.
Competition was called off after that heat due to unfavorable wind conditions.
Irons and Damien Hobgood (USA), rated 7th and 3rd in the world respectively, are still in Rip Curl Pro Search Chile contention. Irons will finish with an equal 3rd or better result.
Twin brothers CJ and Damien Hobgood are through to the Quarter-finals and will meet each other in the Semifinal 2 should they win their heats when competition resumes.
Damien, who won the last event on the Foster's ASP World Tour in Tahiti, indicated that he is less worried about matching his brother's world title success (CJ was ASP World Champion in 2001) and more focused on winning events.
"I just like to win," Hobgood said. "That globe trophy that Rip Curl gives out is pretty sweet and I'm just trying to go for that."
Damien will meet wildcard Bruno Santos in Quarter-final 4. Santos eliminated 2006 Rip Curl Pro Search runner-up Taylor Knox.
"I'm so lucky because I fell three times in my last heat and I still made it - I've had a lot of good luck this contest," Santos said. "The heat before mine had so many waves but me and Taylor waited so long for waves; there were not many sets in our heat, but I'm stoked I made it."
[Carissa Moore (in yellow) receiving the winner's prize]
[The number of high-rated Australian surf competitions are set to increase]
[Pablo Gutierrez winner of the Superbock Pro]
Hawaiian Carissa Moore won the Roxy Pro Junior surfing in her first ever contest in France
ASP International has announce the inception of their fourth regional branch, ASP Australasia
Twenty-six-year-old Pablo Guitierrez took top honours in the Superbock Pro in Portugal after defeating fellow Portugeuse surfer Eduardo Fernandes in the final
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