Aussies forced to wait as Canadian stars at Fiji Pro
Canadian teenager Erin Brooks has continued her charge up the World Surf League rankings by defeating American star Caroline Marks at the Fiji Pro to secure a spot in the quarter-finals.
Only three heats were completed at Cloudbreak on Friday, with Brooks defeating Marks 10.83-6.00 to secure a spot in the final eight.
That result lifted Brooks into 10th on the live rankings as the 19-year-old looks to back up her Tahiti Pro win with another big showing in Fiji.
The three-to-five foot conditions that greeted surfers on Friday didn't last long, meaning Australians Molly Picklum and Isabella Nichols didn't get the chance to compete in their round-of-16 heats.
Hawaiian Bettylou Sakura Johnson, who arrived in Fiji sitting 13th in the rankings, kicked off the day with a convincing win over Brazilian Luana Silva.
"I was really hungry for that heat," said Sakura Johnson, who will take on five-time world champion Carissa Moore in the quarter-finals.
"I've got to make heats if I want to stay on tour, and I really want to keep surfing and complete my surfing."
"Coming up against Sawyer, I knew she's incredible in lefts and has been doing so well, but I also knew I could use my strength, and in this heat it paid off.
There will not be any action on Saturday with the next call to be made on Sunday morning.
Picklum will face Costa Rican Brisa Hennessy, while Nichols is up against Spain's Nadia Erostarbe.
Australia only have two competitors remaining in the men's draw as well, with Morgan Cibilic to go up against Italian Leonardo Fioravanti in round three, while Callum Robson faces American Jake Marshall.
5News aggregated this summary from the outlet’s public feed. The full article, with all the context, is on www.perthnow.com.au — the content belongs to PerthNow.