INTERNATIONAL NEWS - Another exciting day of action took place as the event's top seeds hit the water on Day 3 of the 2016 WSL QS1500 Maui and Sons Arica Pro Tour.
The surfers put on a show as heavy barrels in the 8-10 foot range (2.5-3 meters) plowed through the El Gringo reef-break.
The current WSL South America rankings leader, Leandro Usuna (ARG) brought his A-game to Arica and let it be known that he's as big a threat in powerful barrels as he is above the lip in beach-break conditions.
In the early morning conditions, Lucas Silveira (BRA) advanced in 2nd place in Heat 1 of Round 2 when he showed his go-for-it attitude by paddling into the biggest sets of the heat, but Usuna showed superior wave selection, earning a 7.00 and a 5.67 (12.67) on his two best rides compared to Silveira's 7.94 total.
"This is the third time I'm competing at the event," said Usuna. "I like big, powerful, barreling waves like El Gringo because there's nothing like this at home in Argentina.
"This is the third time I'm competing at the event," said Usuna. "I like big, powerful, barreling waves like El Gringo because there's nothing like this at home in Argentina.
I've been pretty anxious for the last two or three days. I've been psyching to put my jersey on and each day has been bigger than the last, so I've had some sleepless nights (laughs).
Now that I made it passed my first heat, I'm not going to put too much pressure on myself, but I'm definitely hoping to do well here."
Usuna is focused on claiming this year's WSL South America title, which will automatically place him into all of the 2017 QS 10,000 competitions - and an opportunity to qualify for the Samsung Galaxy Championship Tour.
In Heat 2 of Round 2, Lucas Chianca (BRA) stole the spotlight as he exhibited textbook frontside tube-riding to earn two scores in the excellent range (8.00 + 8.70) for the highest total heat score of the event so far of a 16.70.
In Heat 2 of Round 2, Lucas Chianca (BRA) stole the spotlight as he exhibited textbook frontside tube-riding to earn two scores in the excellent range (8.00 + 8.70) for the highest total heat score of the event so far of a 16.70.
The young Brazilian from Saquarema has already shown a knack for threading his way through some of the biggest barrels in competition.
