THE GREATEST HEAT EVER? John John Florence VS Kelly Slater '14 Tahiti Full Heat Replay | WSL REWIND

semifinal number two features of rematch from last year's Pipe Masters final John John Florence from the North Shore of Oahu taking on the best of all time Kelley Center from Cocoa Beach Florida currently ranked number six in the world paddling into the first wave it's John John Florence free Falls let's go on the rail the wave on John John Florence starts with an insane one at Mike Kelly he's going on the next one big freefall he grabs his rail pulls into a huge cavern and he flies out back-to-back insane rides to start off semifinal number two two of the best regular foot tube rides on the planet just going head to head here pot have we just started the heat with two tens that's all I've gotta say have a look at this one from John standing tall in there driving driving you can see how when you grab that rail you don't have that ability John comes flying out at the end and you can tell he doesn't claim at all have a look at the next one Kelly Slater paddles in he goes okay well I know John just got a barrel let's see what I can do here is Kelly bottom turns he opted for the other option there grabs look at hi he's on that wave driving through that barrel and comes flying out of the end Kelly Slater John John Florence is just both of them have just posted in my eyes 10-point rights but so the judges might have something else to say about that as one of the best opening exchanges in a long time in pro surfing Kelly Slater 42 years of age the oldest surfer on tour with 11 world titles the winningest surfer in Teahupoo history now coming head to head with one of his favorite surfers he start hearing him last year and the year before when John John came on tour that he wanted to have big finals with John John Florence he wanted that heat last year with them at the pipe masters Kelly got the chance to have that final last year he was able to beat John John at the end of the season and it meant so much to him now again a rematch in perfect conditions you couldn't ask for a better battle and waves like this well you know Kelly set up I'm not going to be happy retiring until I have a final add pipe with John and you know he got that wish and it was just enough to keep Kelly going for another year and that's what we want we want to see Kelly find those things to just keep him going because I mean look look at the way Cerf and 42 years young and he's still mixing you know John's half his age and these guys are going head to head out here popping chopping well those scores are still yet to come in the screen let's now hear from world number one Gabriel Medina out in the channel with Rosie Hodge thanks joy yes Gabriel Medina what an incredible day of surfing you know there's been a few questions about you surfing in big barreling waves does that add to pretty much the prestige of making it into the final just because of the way the conditions are and you're kind of answering a lot of those questions yeah it's just too good you know I've been having fun out there and I think everyone is having fun right now and I'm Cristin to be in the final you know it's my turn fine this year and yeah I can't wait to defend your third final for the year like you said you are in the yellow jersey that puts your world number one at this current moment obviously this is huge gains in the rankings for you is that playing into your mind at all going into the final no I'm not trying to think about it you know just serve and have fun and that's how I've been doing it it's been working so I will keep like this all right well Gabby thank you so much for catching up with us right now it is Pete Mel in the channel with B beverage yeah thank you very much Pete well be with me here first of all let's talk about that heat a bit you know the start of the heat you and Gabriel were kind of going deep you know playing into that game a little bit huh yeah and I definitely sucked me into his his game plan and yeah it just took me out of my positioning and I was too deep on both my waves and especially the second one felt like could have been attentive for closing a little bit further over over been able to make it but ya know he's very tactician 'el and in his approach and yeah work perfect for him and they're such a bummer but yeah I'm pretty stoked to be a part of this day life the heat before was yeah pretty special and never forget that was surfing with one of my best mates women surfing each other since real 13 so yeah it's pretty pretty cool [Music] but yeah the the next level those two first ways Wow yeah they just they're back in bow riding this is just second to none and yeah and the other guys really know me and Kelly is dandy so yeah it's uh yeah they're pretty exciting to watch sitting here in the channel and yeah just such a great date by his opinion just like to be the part of it and yeah copy love in this day we're right there with you he'd beat herbage holding his head high for one of the best performances we've seen at Teahupoo back to the replay cuz John John got a wave during the interview where he let go the rail again Potts again yeah well let's um look at that first exchange we saw the replays on him Kelly dropping a perfect ten and when I say perfect that means every judge gave Matt and John every judge while three judges gave a nine point nine one gave me ten one government nine point eight averaged out to a nine point nine zero twenty eight and a half to go John's just dropped another score and that looks like it's going into the nine point range again let's have a look at this wave right now as John pumping this was wave number one this was the nine point nine zero now he came flying out of that that's it that's a John claim right there and then Kelly right behind falling out of the sky grabs around look how high he gets on the face of the wave and somehow manages to come out of that one so we are in for an unbelievable semi-final John Stehr sloppy in the 9.10 Kelly meeting at nine to get himself back into the heat in seen starts John John Florence already with an nineteen point total against Kelly Slater Kelly with the ten and he needs a nine as you see what the panel thought five judges on and all were quick to react with the perfect number once again and compare billabong Pro Det the perfection continues we're still seeing sets above the 12-foot range and that's always a modest number when they talk about the size here in Tahiti it's backless it's coming out of Deep South Pacific and unloading on such a shallow reef that's so much power you could probably keep the lights on in Tahiti for about a year with one of these waves it's exactly Roger the just the amount of you know power that unleashes on that reef and that's what amazes me how these guys can actually handle that you know the body gets twisted and torn and ragged old like in five different directions and you know it's amazing that there's no broken limbs and torn ligaments and busted knees and stuff like that and just test them in here how strong these guys are John I mean two nines already Kelly sided with a ten and you know we heard beador say these two guys are the best back side two brothers second to none and the only one really both parties is the like right hand yards well we always like keeping up with progression movement when it comes to any type of surfing more waves on the way first priority's with Kelly he needs a nine to take the lead glides in beautiful stall of it wave unloads and Kelly comes out looking for a nine-point ride to take the lead off of John John Florence a fair answer back clean ocean surface on the face a clean read and maxed out the two-time pots well you see that little bit of onshore breeze that we were experiencing through the day that is gone now it's gone back to that beautiful clean texture look at the clean that wave is Kelly just driving up into the barrel nice and deep again it just comes flying out after the spit right there nothing threw up twice Oh Kelly Slater super deep on that one and well looking for a 9.0 to take the lead from John have a look at this one right now perfect positioning from Kelly about as deep as you could possibly get here at Teahupoo on that wave especially as he comes out and now still 25 and a half remaining starting with near-perfect scores for Florence a 99 and then a 9 1 0 Kelly already had a 10 as you think about this year for Kelly in the world title race the odd part about our top 5 picture was not having him in the top 5 before this event started but already getting some serious points to move up into that top 5 picture as we head to lower trestles we're seeing the ocean pick up John John floor deciding not to go here and it looks like priority is sitting with John John for the time being let's get more insight on Kelly's role this season with the desk with Ronnie Strider iñaki the only thing keeping Kelly from right up the top end of the writings of this stage I was the fact that he hasn't made a final he's got his work cut out in this heat despite opening up with a 10-point ride the best matchup you could have asked for on paper rock but you were just absolutely loving Kelly's backhand to Brighton technique on that last what exchange yeah especially on this wave I noticed something really different that no one's done yet and if he can replay this 10-point ride for you look at Kelly look how big this wave is but what he does he goes high and he gets himself so high here that's where there's no phone ball up there if he was down but the bottom see the fine ball would have got him but he went high he went up and around the phone call no one's done that yet boys such amazing barrel awareness strata that was that was one of the most amazing techniques I think I've seen you're right I haven't seen anybody do that yet and Kelly Slater showing us something new again out here at Teahupoo historical day just bringing us everything we wanted to see and now we're getting more notes on the books I can't believe it Kelly's got the ten point Robert John John with two nine still holds the lead at this stage boys this could be one of the greatest sights of all time Kelly shaping up for perhaps a perfect eight already Ronnie I think that's a really fair call watching the start of this sheet with a 10 from Kelly a 9 9 from John John to start and I love how Aki reacted to that too of riot I mean that's what Aki was expecting from him if cloud Rick was pumping and that's why he ended up having to shave his head and introduce the dreadlocks because he was waiting for Kelly to showcase that Bob Rankin now he gets to do it with a pumping so I like this into eating exactly right Jose we have a look there our past winners out here at Teahupoo he spoken last year with an 18.9 for 200 total Mick Fanning the year in 2012 18 point 87 some pretty high-scoring heats there 18.43 for Kelly against Owen in the Code Red swell Andy Irons Bobby Martinez Bruno Santos and Damien Hobgood so Kelly Slater backed up his tent with an eight point one seven that's not enough to get the lead Kelly still looking for that 9.0 Barrel awareness Joe from Kelly Slater that's something that it can't be taught can it it's just something that naturally happens that's just his reaction in a situation like that we can tell that Kelly rises to the occasion when the swell picks up he started missing events in the last few years because he was chasing waves on other sides of the planet showing up sometimes in round two to compete in WCT events he wants to get barreled that bad you can see him all day on finals day he is so driven by swell and it's impressive for how long he's been in the game to be able to redefine his surfing and always comparing him to the best that's why he always wants to have John John Florence and his heats John John said the guy now that people are saying they're the best at pipeline but you look at Kelly matched up against John John at piping Kelly's never lost to John John at the pipe master Kelly went to the next level last year in the pipe masters John you know John was probably the only guy that could have really matched Kelly out there and Kelly just really stepped it up and and just did some stuff out there took one drop that I just thought was impossible to make and he's doing exactly the same here starting off for the 10 point right showing a point of difference in those big barrels going up and around the phone ball instead of trying to go over it as Mark oka looper pointed out well as Pete Mel knows back in the day it used to just be like making a wave out here was incredible now it seems like what are they doing inside of the tube that's making the big scores really effective Peter you're getting a good vision on kind of contrast john-john's approach to Kelleys or is it too close to tell it's not so close I mean they're both just firing off each other and they were so relaxed before their heat I'm just sorry but look at you guys got to check this out John John Florence takes off walks in he'll let go deep the way breathes in John John Styles his way out of another bomb he takes out the cheers in the channel there's one going below sea level but Kelly's gonna hold back his last wave came in in an eight one seven so Kelly was still second John John trying to better a 9-point once one Sarah had that one looked for you Peter Oh incredible I mean I didn't think it was actually gonna make it I mean he's somehow able to do the same thing where you just stable the board over the foam ball and just or just actually where he's positioning his board he's completely behind five you and I'm looking straight in the hole and he was gone pizza with John not grabbing the rail as we're gonna watch the replay right now it's it's giving him that ability to pump inside the barrel and avoid that foam ball as we see it right there just come flying out but just a little bit of a different technique to Kelley as we saw Kelly's ten he went really high in the barrel to to avoid that foam ball as we see John sliding in and he watching me once he sets the rail Joe he lets go and then he starts using that rail work he starts maneuvering that board inside the bow those little check turns those little idiosyncrasies that we don't see as he comes out just perfect style right there from John Florence what a barrel and another big score just about to be locked in Kelly Slater commits to this next wave will touch the rail for a moment stands tall foam ball right under his board and he makes it we could be witnessing one of the best heats of all time we're still 1930 to go Wow look at the conditions conditions are absolutely perfect these guys are just slutting themselves deep inside the barrel and just shooting for that channel hopefully they come out yes they do Kelly Slater another beautiful barrel there and 8.17 he's trying to better he's looking for a 9.0 I think John's gonna better his two-wave turtle he's looking to replace that 9.10 Joe I'm sitting on the edge of my seat I'm about to stand up right now jump up and down because this is absolutely crazy big numbers coming in for John John Florence on wave number three he hasn't scored anything under a nine point one zero in this semifinal bash we saw John John go down to Cali at pipe a couple of times in the past he was able to beat Kelly Slater this year at Belles remember you had that ten that full rotation air you can see him inspired as well to get a chance to beat Kelly Slater and John John's looked up to him he's known him his entire life when Kelly used to come back to Hawaii John John was about five years of age in the shore break at a hookah and they started a lifetime relationship you know Kelly used to talk about this little blonde kid eight-year-old blond kid that was surfing Piper ready six to eight foot pipe you know he got he was in the Triple Crown at 12 years old surfing 8 to 10 foot Holly ever you know John was destined to be a great surfer especially in radical conditions like this and you know I can tell you right now this this kind of heat means more to John than anywhere else in the world you know obviously we'd love to beat Killian high but in these kind of conditions on this stage this is Kelly's background this is Kelly's home pretty much he's won this event more than anyone else is nowhere better for John right now to take Kelly down and at the moment he's got Kelly against the ropes a 9.4 but Kelly has just about to lock in a pretty massive score Joe there it is at nine point seven seven for Kelly Slater he takes the lead off of John John Florence last for Florence a 9.40 John and second now needing a nine-point eight eight to come back massive numbers continue both in the nineteen plus range once again still seventeen thirty on the clock John John does have first priority that's it up standing on so he can't then answer back pots we're expecting a big bomb to come through well you know what you look at that the school required from John and nine point eight are you thinking okay anywhere else in the world that's going to be a really tall order out here at Teahupoo on today's conditions taking note taken into consideration what we've already seen is such a sort such a short space of time John is pretty much destined to get that nine point eight I reckon John's got a three on a ten here any minute Joe I think the next big set that comes through he's gonna have to go a little deeper on the reef and he's gonna have to make sure he comes out well and truly after that spit well John John's been setting the pace on what to expect as far as tube riding is concerned we always talk about the best natural footers in the world at tube riding he's among the guys like Jamie O'Brien Jeremy Flores Kelly Slater you know the irons brothers kind of defined how you slow down and speed up in the barrel that technique is insane to watch it's an art form to watch them do it in waves this kind of power how would you explain what Kelly's doing when he's slowing down in a pit like this well there like I said I mean that what Kelly did on that ten point ride it's not something you can teach anyone you know that's something you've either you read the born with or you're just never going to get it you know that's that's barrel awareness that's just the ability to to know exactly what to do at that point in time and you know things are happening so quick and you know Kelly said you've got to take those slow breaths you know you've got to calm yourself down and allow yourself to think slowly through those kind of situations you know it's it's really hard to explain you know obviously there's a technique that these guys use you drag half your body in the way of slow yourself down and then you use your arm in the wave to sort of guide you through it but it's saying that that what Kelly's doing out here today is is something that most surfers on the planet will never ever ever get well now a 1540 to go pots you've been loving the kick-outs throughout this entire event from round one all the way to finals day we've seen claims in the past and it's a big topic of conversation when you come to Teahupoo how do you think it affects the panel that are watching the tube ride and then the kick-out and the claims thrown hands above their head how does that affect the score well you know I like the Flyway kick-out I used to do that when I was paired up I think so far John is winning in my eyes oh and he came out and have any sort of motion like he was walking on water which he can pretty much do you know it's a it's an interesting part of the way but I think you know to really show the judges that you were in control of that whole ride I like the fact that you kick-out with control you know these guys have all been doing that John very rarely does he spin out on his kick-out scene with Kelly Slater he makes sure he just trims out of the wave and what that does is it gives him speed to then get back on his board and get out as quick as possible you know the guys that have been spinning out you know we saw Brett Simpson go over the falls we saw beard herbage skip like a rock at the end of the his wave and get picked up and slam so you know you've got to be kind of graceful in that exit as well as we have 14 30 to go John John needs a nine point eight eight to come back against Kelly Slater we'll find out [Music] Kelly Slater and John John Florence two of the best tube riders in the world to the best surfers on the planet going head-to-head for a spot in the final at the Billabong Pro 2 he D Kelly started with a 10 John John started with a nine point nine John's on set three nines of this heat and he's still losing he needs a nine point eight eight to come back was still 12 50 on the clock Florence holding first priority as the oceans gone just a little bit quiet adding to the drama in this matchup pots absolutely right Joe I think John's going to have to get a ten by the end of this heat if he wants to walk away with it you know Kelly's got a ten and a nine point seven seven and I guarantee you Kelly's looking at replacing that nine point seven seven why because he's got John John Florence in his heat he knows what John is capable of doing John's been posting tens through this entire event so Kelly's got a really you know surfer a really smart back part of this heat as we see the inside West for unloading and John John and Kelly know exactly what they're waiting for he talked about those early starts for John John back at the triple crown at about 12 years of age that's when he was making his first trip to Teahupoo to surf this wave as just a grommet it's been a familiar routine for him no wonder he's one of the best tube riders in the world pots yeah well you know you've got a you don't need to do that when you go to places like Brazil or snapper or bells you know those are ways that you kind of get used to and you know they sort of and handle those kind of ways but you know Cloudbreak Teahupoo pipeline you know those are the kind of waves of consequence waves it that will take a fair number of years to get used to so John's done that at an early age and you can really tell because he's looked altra comfortable from the from the get-go here in this event well Kelly Slater is undefeated in the quarterfinals out here in Tahiti history when it comes to the semifinals he's made the semis eight times with five wins the last time he didn't win a semifinal was against Andy Irons back in 2010 pots that was one of the greatest rivalries in professional surfing history must have been pretty fun for you to watch that one go down absolutely I mean I've experienced that many heats with these two guys going head-to-head you know pipe masters I saw them go hammer and tong in Japan and you know just you know two amazing athletes and you know it took Andy eyes to bring Kelly back on to and you know Kelly's got to thank any for those extra world titles that he's got because it hadn't have been for someone like antion's Kelly probably probably would have given it away it was kind of rare to see anyone with Kelly's number because it was unheard of when Kelly took a brief hiatus back in 99 2000 in 2001 a guy named Andy came around and won three consecutive world titles became one of the most successful pro surfers in such a short time and it wasn't always easy for Andy he came on tour fell off had to wreak Walla Phi and he had this new presence about him on tour he's very intimidating not only in the free surface out here but whenever this place came to life in competition I think with Andy's you know he he was a complete package from you know from big gnarly waves I mean he was you know pulling into the barrel and the shovel break at Waimea Bay Pipeline he had wide he surfed that place like a beach break you know then you take him to the beaches in France where he wasn't you know one of the most winningest surfers in the southwest of France all the way through to Australia I mean the guy was just amazing in all types of conditions and that's what you know that's what Kelly found hard was the fact that he wasn't just this guy that performed good in certain waves he performed good in everything and that really is a challenge to try and be a massive challenge on paper also for these guys to outdo each other when you look at their numbers from round three John John and Kelly had a lot in combo common comboing they're competitors from round three to round four to the quarterfinals and now they're matched up together it's hard to come with each other John his name in the game he just needs a nine point eight eight pots yeah he just needs a nine point at it that's all I mean it's that's nothing for John John and and that's why Kelly sort of you know he's not taking a deep breath right now he said he's got to make sure he keeps on his game he's got to make sure he tries to replace that nine point seven seven that's what he's got to do that's in the back of Kelly's mind Kelley's thinking I need a perfect heat to try and win this heat against John it's 8:52 go here Potts Kelly say to Reno how close he is in the world title race John John Florence out little outside the top ten picture which was a surprise as we look at the career of John John last year top ten in the world best result just one win his career in Rio de Janeiro ver Joel Parkinson four years on tour averaging results just outside the top ten his average is solid when it comes to heat wins over fifty percent with 117 heat surfed so far remember when Yadin Nicol is hurt he came up on the midseason rotation we compare that to the career of Kelly Slater yep currently last year's ranking number two best results he's got 54 WCT wins that is crazy 22 years on tours average Ralph is seventh he's over three million dollars in prize money winning Heat winning percentage seventy five point zero two that is through the roof he'd served just over a thousand so Kelly Slater ranked number six coming into this event I'll tell you what he's going to be do some moving and he is his year pretty much has just started Joe you know you can tell by his attitude here he's he's in it to win it every year Kelly Slater is on tour there's no doubt in his mind that he's going to be there at the end be a big congratulations for Kelly sweater passing the thousand heat mark at the Billabong Pro - he D heats he'll probably never forget to make it extra special Kelly is quite a numbers guy I think any remembers every single one of those hates to guarantee you could ask him about you know his first heats back in the early 90s against some of the legends that came before ask him about it hated the loss of each Pro in 1990 in California who better remembers that one 7 on the clock John John still needs a night 88 for more insight will check in with Ronnie Strider iñaki thanks John Kelly Slater as I said amazing amazing results he's had in the past he's chasing his 57th World Tour victory incredible stuff but what's really blow my mind at the moment is Kelly is now surfing in his fourth nineteen plus heat in a row he's already put together an amazing heat score combination as has John John Florence the two highest scoring surfers in the draw on paper an amazing matchup and from the very first set wave it blew our minds blew our minds at the best I've ever seen it has to be like it just culminated in this you know they had to meet unfortunately before the final but Strider it's the best surfing I've ever seen at Teahupoo their best surfing I've ever seen anywhere well we heard Kelly talking about it in his post t2 interview he was gonna have to go out there and get you know a 19 plus total and he's got that on the board right now but John John you know he's got a tenant and he's just sitting out there waiting for it he's got priority I mean this thing is way is not over and it's far from over I just it's like the best thing I've ever seen and I were like little kids over here watching it we're so excited it's really cool we thought we were gonna say these two just go at it in in the final depart masters last year it ended up being a bit of a one-sided battle this one however has just played out beautifully a lot of big set waste love to see another flurry in the final five and a half minute minutes of this hey boys thanks a lot Ron Aki and Strider amazing heat we're already starting to call this maybe the best event ever with Aki confirming what Kelly said earlier in the channel but maybe one of the best starts ever with Kelly verse John John you put two of the best in the world out in conditions like this they're gonna throw you near-perfect scores and with John John needing a nine eight eight it doesn't feel like that big of a task with conditions like this yeah you know absolutely right I mean anyone else you kind of go okay it could be could be over but with John you know you know he's got a tenant him as Ronnie said but I tell you what let's give these guys another half an hour let's extend this heat let's have a look at the recap there Joe so far there's been fireworks from the get-go and this was the opening way of John took off on wave number one I thought that was going to be a ten it became close at a nine point nine zero John made it quite clear that he was not going to lie down for Kelly Kelly right behind him though there was this trim really high up and around the foam ball came flying out blocked in a perfect tent on wave number on all five judges gave that attend John came back he ever scored anything under nine points so far in this heat Joe it's been fireworks from the get-go styling his way out of the tube the Hawaiian John John Florence putting together a super heat but Kelly keeps answering back a nine point seven seven on his last wave puts John John in that second spot each to bride it's just a little bit different for Kelley Center and where he's taking off and what he's doing in the ground but the one thing that stays consistent is his excitement let a little to compete in perfection four minutes to go for John John to try to make a comeback yeah I wish there was 40 more minutes in the sea that's just amazing to watch and as Stratos said we're all like kids you know in a candy store watching these two guys go about it you know head to head in you know epic conditions here it's been such a good day of surfing and we're not finished yet we've still got the finals to come and whoever makes it to this heat at the moment Kelly's hanging on to that lead is going to come up against their world number one Gabriel Medina and that is gonna be a great heat as well a big matchup Medina standing by it's either gonna be a guy in his generation with John John Florence or the best surfer of all time Kelly Slater 320 will tell if another set will come through for John John to make this comeback perfection like this remember back in the day Callie and Shane Dorian were sitting together trying to think of a series called vs. because they loved competing against each other they want to do strike missions and just maximize swell windows and you see who could outperform each other in perfect waves see how hard it is to score swell like this when you have an event window on tour you can start to see realizing how much we're scoring right now it waves this big with buttery certain conditions as we've been calling it on final step yeah you know normally when you have events like this you get one or two days maybe through the period where you know it's epic I mean this thing started off with a bang we had incredible conditions in round 1 round 2 was unbelievable and we reconvened yesterday instead of growing swell started off buttery perfect conditions in the morning and then just started getting bigger and better through the day and then this morning we rocked up to to 6 to 8 foot with 10 foot 12 foot sense coming through the occasional 15 footer that no one wanted so you know to finish on a day like today is just phenomenal semi finals action and ten point rides getting thrown down by the world's best surfers courageous performances from all the guys you know these guys have been hammered ho and right just really thrown throwing the gauntlet down to Kelly unfortunately you know not taking that one so incredible day of surfing Thunder still in the lineup with two minutes on the clock time ticking away for John John Florence but he does have priority and it only takes one bomb to make the difference against Kelly Slater many rivalry between these two trying to decide who's the undisputed best tube writer in the world if you could dream up a heat you'd say I want to see Kelly and John John a 10-foot Shope weave going head to head we're seeing it right now still a minute 30 on the clock we are seeing it right now you know back in the old system top three riots you know John's got three nine three nines Kelly's got a ten an eight and a nine 77 so even in the three best rewrites we're still looking at a very tight heat so you know John obviously needed in that nine point eight eight which is a huge score but in conditions like today that's one roll of the dice has got it time tick time is ticking away can't really see too much at the moment coming through he's looking for one wave and time is the enemy right now for Jonathan was a mystical look on the lineup right now as looks a bit gray a little more cloud cover out the back over the line up at Teahupoo we've had a serious law on a massive day and now the horizon jumps John John Florence needs in nine point eight eight he locks in let's go on the rail still sliding and he'll hop out the other end after a serious way the wave he was waiting for it came through Wow and it was a one-way I've said - now with 30 seconds to go if John has got that 9.8 a Kelly's going to need a score he's 20 seconds remaining so it's in the judges hands right now did John get it let's have a look at the replay here he takes off late as usual grabs that rail pulls straight up and then stands tall in the barrel he's gone he's gone he's disappeared it starts to unload on the reef again John paddles powering through that section that was maybe a little bit longer than his other ones Joe let's have a look again from a different angle as he slides into the barrel he lets go the rail it grabs it again now that's a critical wave if John let go the three grab the rail a bigger pardon and comes out flying he looks at the judges saying okay a nine point eight eight required is that going to be enough well we've run out of time in this second semi-final johnson florence has taken four waves Kelly has taken three they were battling on every single set exchange there was nothing left out the back for Kelly to answer back he's still smiling he has a nineteen point seven seven total can John John get a number to move into the final for the first time this season it's up to the panel as they look at the video replay Wow well I tell you what if Kelly loses with a nut with a ten and a nine point seven seven that is going to be for the record books as well John looking for a nine point eight eight to go alongside he's nine point nine zero let's have another look at it as he takes off slides down into it just an absolute perfect technique right there he lets go and then regrab the route just to make sure he comes out he knows he's got to make this one count he needs a big score trying to maximize the time then let's go again and gets that bonus section there was a long barrel in the scheme of things compared to his nine point four that's and that's what the judges are going to be doing they'll be gauging in between Kelly's 977 as well look at that nice and deep disappeared he was completely gone for quite a period of time look at that thing regurgitating unloading on the reef and John comes flying out of the end so perfect technique there from John Florence perfect timing perfect positioning and I'll tell you what with only seconds remaining on the clock so was it a buzzer beater Joe a huge moment for all John John Florence fans out there as he prepares to have a chat with Peter Mel in just a moment but they're anticipating the numbers to come through there you know the whole Florence camper saying you got the score no doubt about it everyone in Kelley's camp is probably going the other way it's that tight right now we're comparing perfection with tube writers to the best in the world well it's anyone's game I'll tell you what to me there's no losers they both came into this heat absolutely swinging and both guys locking in big scores John John's actually going to post four ways in the nine-point range it's just about how high this nine is going to be it could maybe even a couple of judges might even throw a ten at it they're taking a bit of a bit of a time right now to assess that wave they know how important this is and they want to get it right so Pete mills in the channel are waiting to have a chat to both these guys that's your own pod suite insane to see the score starting to drift in now for John John Florence the first time point nine nine point eight I'm just gonna let them chat so they let listen up cuz that's what you want to hear right they paid early paid paid early indications early indications saying that one judge locked in 29.91 just locked into 9.81 third nine nine one seven nine eight and the other three I was still waiting well three were waiting on yep so those are the Shona what do you think of that last weight comes nine eight seven nine point eight seven Kellie win a tie-break situation Kelly Slater moves on since he had the perfect ten better like scenario though guys I mean seriously you guys we're so relaxed before you heats and then you go out there and it's like are you shattered are you good I mean that's like it's got to be some of the best times your life yeah I'm still so stoked you know like I've got one my first try that's so good I'm so psyched and I kicked out and he was on the next one it was just insane and then Kelly you I mean your thoughts I don't know it's crazy we just had a sigh that means there was a surf off right here we're gonna get cleaned up how's that sounds yeah go for I'm gonna take a 15-minute break [Music] yeah thanks John tell you what about John's performance unbelievable the guy's crazy like I mean I was looking at the draw going man if I do good I'm gonna get on I'm gonna get John John and now you got Gaby I mean yeah no I got Gaby so it's a whole different battle and we're in the pit again I'm just I'm so so like this is dream day this is one of the best days of my life competitively I mean I know it's been a foodie for John I know he's gone but he was stoked yeah I mean you stoke - it's cool it's there's nothing worse than when you don't have an opportunity and he got one in the end and and I honestly would have been super stoked to be gotta score I mean I feel like kind of bittersweet right now I think I got to go psych myself back realize they still got it sir yeah well I mean what against Gabe was what are your thoughts there I mean Vicki yeah I don't know I mean we have a little bit different approaches out here he's gone those deeper kind of small runners and I'm trying to stay on the corner and wait for one that's not quite it's always and we'll see it's you know top real slow in the back half our heat a little bit but I mean there's 20 there's all you want out there still and it's coming right now huh taking away boys guys moving out of position a great read therefore Peter Mel and Kelly Slater giving us that final moment right after the buzzer sounded a tie-break situation with a nineteen point seven seven total we know pro surfing is progressing maybe they'll have an overtime rule now to give these guys more time in the lineup they couldn't split the difference the only way they'd break that ties they go to the highest single wave score Kelly had the perfect 10 over John John's a nine point nine yeah they go back to their single high scoring ride and obviously the 10 win so you know back in my day I had a surf off with Michael Howe with the I made the semi-finals of pipe they couldn't break the tie so they sent us back out for a fresh sheet maybe they should have done that with John and Kelly just give us another 30 minutes of that kind of surfing you know John posted four waves over the nine point range Kelly got that single highest scoring right of the ten and that was the difference Joe but I tell you what we were the winners there everyone out there in you know watching us watching this event has got to be pretty stoked with what they've just seen now let's prepare for the moment we've been waiting for Gabriel Medina takes on Kelly Slater in the final enjoy the mid show on the desk Retta do you like that well if so subscribe over there and then watch more videos over there and then tell us your 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Channel: World Surf League

Views: 1,051,216

Keywords: wsl, world, surf, league, pro, surfing, surfer, beach, wave, waves, action, sports, world surf league, john john florence, kelly slater, john john florence vs kelly slater teahupoo 2014, kelly slater vs john john florence 2014 tahiti, 2014 tahiti pro semi final, best of teahupoo, john john teahupoo, kelly slater teahupoo

Id: qjqg27QDKi0

Length: 40min 38sec (2438 seconds)

Published: Sat May 09 2020