Current points leader Stephanie Gilmore has advanced to the third round of the Rio Pro in Brazil with a win over surfing young guns Taina Hinckel and fellow Australian Keely Andrew.
Gilmore, who has kept the yellow jersey since winning the season-opener on the Gold Coast, advanced from her opener with ease in messy, changing conditions.
Gilmore's one wave of 6.33 was enough to get her the win and the Australian was relieved to advance.
"You can have a strategy and try to stick to it, but things can change a lot," Gilmore said.
"I just wanted to sit out the back and get into one of the bigger waves a bit earlier, but those bigger sets stopped. It felt good to get on a bigger board out there and there is so much power out there."
Joining her in the third round was Sally Fitzgibbons, who staged a late run to win her heat over Hawaiian Tatiana Weston-Webb and Frenchwoman Pauline Ado.
The world No.2 waited to drop a 6.77 on her penultimate wave of the day to claim her heat.
Fitzgibbons admitted she is still struggling with the foot injury she suffered at the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach in April.
"The waves were definitely challenging, but you have to have those heat smarts and know you are in the battle," Fitzgibbons said.
"It was a bit of a rollercoaster ride out of Bells to get that kind of fin-chop to the foot. There is a little more nerve-damage than I thought, but it is good because the cut sealed."
Joining them in the third round is American Sage Erickson , who upset Carissa Moore in the opening heat, Courtney Conlogue, who won heat two from Australia's Nikki van Dijk, Hawaiian Coco Ho and Frenchwoman Johanne Defay.
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