ASP GRADE 2 OAKLEY PRO JUNIOR SURF CONTEST RETURNS TO
NEWPORT BEACH SEPTEMBER 21 AND 23, 2007
Second Stop of the Macy’s California Trifecta Surf
Series Presented by Jeep® to
Set the Tone for the Season Ender in Santa Cruz
DANA POINT, Calif., Aug. 22, 2007 – Action Sports
Group (ASG) is pleased to announce the return of the Association
of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Grade 2 Oakley Pro Junior
to Newport Beach’s 54th Street Break, September 21
- 23, 2007.
Held in conjunction with the Oakley Newport Beach Pro presented
by Jeep®, the event is the pivotal second stop of the
Macy’s California Trifecta Surf Series (an ASP North
America Specialty Series) and boasts a $10,000 prize purse
for the juniors, as well as an additional $5,000 purse and
points bonus for the top points winner for the series. 48
of the leading Juniors (under the age of 20) will compete
for the cash and valuable points in hopes of qualifying for
the annual Billabong ASP World Junior Championships.
“Come September, there will only be two more opportunities
for ASP North America’s top Juniors to earn a result,
which as we saw at Trestles is no easy task at this level
of competition,” says ASG Director of Events Sean Nielsen. “The
Oakley Pro Junior in Newport will set the stage going into
the ASP North American Championships in October, where the
Macy’s California Trifecta Series Junior title, ASP
North American title, and qualifying seeds for the Billabong
ASP World Junior Championships will be decided. A solid performance
in Newport is critical for competitors sitting in the top
of the ratings.”
After stop one of the Macy’s California Trifecta at
Lower Trestles, the current Macy’s Pro Junior race
looks like this: Brent Dorrington (Gold Coast, AUS) 500 pts,
Eric Geiselman (New Smyrna Beach, FL) 430 pts, Cory Arrambide
(Ventura, CA) 365 pts and Nick Rozsa (Oxnard, CA) 335 pts.
A breakdown of the current leaders in the Macy’s Trifecta
Oakley Pro Junior race is as follows:
Brent Dorrington - Australian sensation and current Macy’s
Trifecta Oakley Pro Junior points leader, Dorrington, will
return to Newport to compete in the second stop of the Macy’s
Trifecta as a wild card for the Oakley Pro Junior. "Brenno",
as he is affectionately referred to, shook things up this
season at April’s Oakley Pro Junior at Lower Trestles
when he scored a come-from-behind victory in the dying moments
of the final against top North American juniors Eric Geiselman,
Cory Arrambide and Nick Rozsa. If Brenno is in town,
he should be considered one of the most dangerous competitors
in the event.
Eric Geiselman – The 2006 ASP North America Pro Junior
Champion and current No. 3 on this year's ratings, Geiselman
has already scalped one ASP Pro Junior Title this season
at March's ASP Grade-1 Ezekiel Pro Junior and will be looking
to back it up with another win to further cement his standing.
A tenacious competitor, Geiselman has added an explosive
new flair to his well-rounded act in 2007, punting massive
airs and pushing the progressive envelope.
Cory Arrambide - One of the most competitive young surfers
to come out of the North American region, Arrambide is hungry
for his first professional win. Already an amateur record-holder,
Arrambide has been extremely consistent this season on the
ASP North America Pro Junior Series (even holding the ratings
lead at one point), but has yet to find a victory. The determination
is more than there, and no one will be surprised to see the
intense goofy-footer come out on top in Newport.
Nick Rozsa - The uber-talented Rozsa has been a bit of a
non-entity on the 2007 ASP North America Pro Junior Series.
Although one of the regional qualifiers for last January's
Billabong ASP World Junior Championships, Rozsa has been
absent from several Pro Junior events this season as the
result of trying his hand in international ASP WQS events
as well as nursing himself back from a nasty illness. Currently
sitting at No. 22 on this season's ratings, Rozsa is going
to have to blow up in the remaining Pro Junior events if
he's to return to Narrabeen next January.
Aligning the top-rated international junior competitors
against the highest-rated ASP North American Juniors, the
Oakley Pro Junior’s small field and competitive draw
demands each surfer perform at the top of his ability. There
are a total of 10 ASP North America Pro Junior events in
2007, three of which are part of the Oakley Pro Junior series.
Each event offers the domestic competitors important points
toward the year-end standings and a chance to receive entry
into the ASP North America Pro Junior Championships, which
plays a key factor in deciding who will qualify for the 2008
Billabong ASP World Junior Championships. The Billabong ASP
World Junior Championships has crowned past champions such
as Foster’s ASP World Tour pros Joel Parkinson (AUS),
Andy Irons (HAW), Adriano de Souza (BRA) as well as reigning
ASP World Junior Champ Jordy Smith (ZAF).
Following Newport, the series will conclude with the ASP
Grade 3 Oakley Pro North American Junior Championships at
the 2007 O’Neill Coldwater Classic presented by Jeep
at Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz, Calif., October 9-14, 2007.