Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach Preview

It is around 4:30pm here on the East Coast on March 29th but it is right around 7:30am on March 30th in Victoria, Australia, which means that the second contest of the year is soon to kick off it’s waiting period. The Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach is sure to be quite the contest this year, especially with how the year has started off already.

There are a lot of interesting first round matchups, a standout being Andy Irons, Dane Reynolds, and rookie Nate Yeomans in the first heat along with another classic Occy vs Curren showdown in the second round. These two guys have been battling it out since the 1980s, including their 1986 heat at Bells which some might say is the best heat ever surfed. Curren went on to win that heat in 1986 and they met each other again last year at the Billabong Pro at J-Bay, where they surfed two heats against each other. They each took down one heat a piece and are back this year to settle the score at Bells. It should be an action packed heat to see these two guys at it again.

Other things to look out for is whether or not Taj Burrow can keep his winning momentum going throughout this event. Another win could be the push he needs to achieve the title of world champ in 2010.

Then again we say Parko start off with two wins last year, only to fall out of the groove and loose the lead to Mick Fanning which eventually lead to Mick being our 2009 world champ. Will either of these guys show up at Bells and get things moving for them?

How about Slater, is he going to kick it up a notch and prove that he has was it takes to get the unheard of 10th world title?

The Hobgood brothers are also guys to keep an eye on here at Bells. They are both surfing extremely well and have what it takes to take out anyone in any heat.

Then you have all the younger guys. Dane showed some ridiculous surfing during the first event and Jordy Smith let everyone know he is figuring out the ins and outs of competitive surfing.

All the first round matchups are below and be sure to keep checking the site as we will be keeping you updated on the contest.

RIP CURL PRO BELLS BEACH ROUND 1 MATCH-UPS:
Heat 1: Dane Reynolds (USA), Andy Irons (HAW), Nate Yeomans (USA)
Heat 2: Damien Hobgood (USA), Luke Stedman (AUS), Matt Wilkinson (AUS)
Heat 3: Bobby Martinez (USA), Jeremy Flores (FRA), Tanner Gudauskas (USA)
Heat 4: C.J. Hobgood (USA), Tiago Pires (PRT), Travis Logie (ZAF)
Heat 5: Kelly Slater (USA), Mick Campbell (AUS), Marco Polo (BRA)
Heat 6: Adriano de Souza (BRA), Kekoa Bacalso (HAW), Blake Thornton (AUS)
Heat 7: Taj Burrow (AUS), Daniel Ross (AUS), Neco Padaratz (BRA)
Heat 8: Mick Fanning (AUS), Kai Otton (AUS), TBA
Heat 9: Joel Parkinson (AUS), Chris Davidson (AUS), TBA
Heat 10: Bede Durbidge (AUS), Adrian Buchan (AUS), TBA
Heat 11: Jordy Smith (ZAF), Patrick Gudauskas (USA), Jay Thompson (AUS)
Heat 12: Taylor Knox (USA), Michel Bourez (PYF), Adam Melling (AUS)
Heat 13: Tom Whitaker (AUS), Jadson Andre (BRA), Brett Simpson (AUS)
Heat 14: Kieren Perrow (AUS), Ben Dunn (AUS), Dusty Payne (HAW)
Heat 15: Fredrick Patacchia (HAW), Owen Wright (AUS), Drew Courtney (AUS)
Heat 16: Dean Morrison (AUS), Luke Munro (AUS), Roy Powers (HAW)

More info and live webcast for the contest at Bells Beach can be seen on the Rip Curl Pro website.