It's been two years since Owen Wright surfed a heat at Cloudbreak. The last time he visited Thundercloud reef -- during the Final of the 2015 Fiji Pro -- he surfed his way to a perfect 20-point total heat score (his second of the event) on the way to victory over Julian Wilson. For the current world No. 2-ranked surfer, there's little, if any, sign of rust. He was dominant in his Round One heat, taking down a pair of powerful rookies, Zeke Lau and Leo Fioravanti.
But, like many of his Championship Tour compatriots, Owen expressed a common refrain after his heat win: just the opportunity to surf pumping Cloudbreak with a couple other surfers makes the trip worthwhile. With a free pass into Round Three, he's already done that one better, with no rust in the gears to slow him down.