Much to their credit, losing in round one at the Lowers Pro did not sit well with either Julian Wilson or Kolohe Andino. All they could do was swallow the bitter pill and wait until Rio.
The Billabong Pro Rio began Wednesday and Wilson wasted no time shaking off the angst. In the wonky, semi-closed out wave at Arpodor, Rio De Janeiro, he pieced together the highest heat score of the day.
"I think after that heat at Lowers where I had the interference today was a bit of redemption," Wilson said. "To come down here, I still had a bit of frustration and I just wanted to come out of the gates strong and get a good solid start. The waves were really fun in that heat, so it was exciting to do well."
Meanwhile, Andino's education continues. Locked into a slow heat with Jeremy Flores and Heitor Alves, it was a demonstration on how having no priority changes a game. With a small, limited takeoff zone, competitors were relegated to jostling and pushing one another deeper. Flores, who finished in the semifinals at Bells and the quarters at Lowers, picked the eyes out of the two best waves of the heat and left Andino scratching his head.
All told, it was a rough day for the teen phenoms, and if redemption was the theme of Wilson's win, Ace Buchan followed suit as he upended last week's Lowers champ Gabriel Medina.
"There's a rivalry between Gabe (Medina) and (me) for sure," Buchan said in his post-heat interview. "He spanked me at Lowers five days ago. I didn't get going in that heat and I knew when the draw changed that there was going to be another match-up. I was definitely fired up. Gabriel and I have a little rivalry going and I have a lot of respect for the kid. He's going to do some amazing things and I'm sure this week he's going to put in some big performances."
And while Brazil cried for Medina, Adrian De Souza, Miguel Pupo and Alejo Muniz restored their much flaunted pride. Muniz put the wood to John Florence in the final men's heat of the day, while Pupo came from behind against Tiago Pires and Michel Bourez, and De Souza handled Kai Otton and Willian Cardoso.
"It feels good to be here at Arpoador," said De Souza afterward. "I just love this place. I've been competing here since I was an amateur and I always love to come back. It's good to see the WCT here again and it's got me excited and motivated as well."
The next call for the Billabong Pro Rio will be Thursday morning.
BILLABONG RIO PRO MEN'S ROUND 1 RESULTS:
Heat 1: Josh Kerr (AUS) 11.86, Bede Durbidge (AUS) 11.23, Jadson Andre (BRA) 9.56
Heat 2: Jordy Smith (ZAF) 13.57, C.J. Hobgood (USA) 13.24, Patrick Gudauskas (USA) 11.53
Heat 3: Owen Wright (AUS) 13.60, Raoni Monteiro (BRA) 9.20, Taylor Knox (USA) 6.03
Heat 4: Adriano de Souza (BRA) 14.80, Kai Otton (AUS) 14.53, Willian Cardoso (BRA) 11.40
Heat 5: Taj Burrow (AUS) 16.16, Kieren Perrow (AUS) 11.20, Tomas Hermes (BRA) 9.53
Heat 6: Joel Parkinson (AUS) 16.00, Matt Wilkinson (AUS) 10.23, Peterson Crisanto (BRA)
Heat 7: Julian Wilson (AUS) 17.14, Fredrick Patacchia (HAW) 13.74, Brett Simpson (USA) 11.56
Heat 8: Adrian Buchan (AUS) 15.00, Gabriel Medina (BRA) 14.24, Yadin Nicol (AUS) 11.30
Heat 9: Mick Fanning (AUS) 16.34, Travis Logie (ZAF), 13.87, Damien Hobgood (USA) 13.53
Heat 10: Miguel Pupo (BRA) 13.90, Tiago Pires (PRT) 13.17, Michel Bourez (PYF) 11.57
Heat 11: Jeremy Flores (FRA) 13.84, Kolohe Andino (USA) 10.17, Heitor Alves (BRA) 9.37
Heat 12: Alejo Muniz (BRA) 14.93, Adam Melling (AUS) 12.57, John John Florence (HAW) 9.16
UPCOMING BILLABONG RIO PRO ROUND 2 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Gabriel Medina (BRA) vs. Peterson Crisanto (BRA)
Heat 2: Michel Bourez (PYF) vs. Tomas Hermes (BRA)
Heat 3: John John Florence (HAW) vs. Willian Cardoso (BRA)
Heat 4: Heitor Alves (BRA) vs. Taylor Knox (USA)
Heat 5: Damien Hobgood (USA) vs. Patrick Gudauskas (USA)
Heat 6: Brett Simpson (USA) vs. Jadson Andre (BRA)
Heat 7: Bede Durbidge (AUS) vs. Fredrick Patacchia (HAW)
Heat 8: C.J. Hobgood (USA) vs. Yadin Nicol (AUS)
Heat 9: Raoni Monteiro (BRA) vs. Travis Logie (ZAF)
Heat 10: Kai Otton (AUS) vs. Tiago Pires (PRT)
Heat 11: Kieren Perrow (AUS) vs. Kolohe Andino (USA)
Heat 12: Matt Wilkinson (AUS) vs. Adam Melling (AUS)