Jeremy Flores may face disciplinary action for storming the judging tower after losing his Round 2 heat against Sebastian Zietz at Jeffreys Bay.
It was just another Round 2 heat. Jeremy Flores and Sebastian Zietz had beautiful clean lines to display their surf talent.
With three minutes to go, Zietz needed a 6.54-point ride to grab first place. Judges took their time comparing all waves ridden so far, but the Hawaiian ended up getting a 6.67 wave.
Flores had two minutes to change the course of the heat. As he waits for a set to turn the heat, the French rebel starts applauding the judges in a sarcastic way. Watch the video at 32 minutes and 35 seconds.
The horn sounded. Jeremy Flores walked to the judging tower and got really angry with the professionals up above. Forbidden words included.
"It's in the hands of the disciplinary committee and the lawyers. We've made our deposition, and the case has been transferred to our Santa Monica office," says Richie Porta, ASP head judge.
"There has been a verbal assault and also a physical one, it could have turned into a fight, so I imagine the sanction will be heavier than normal. From my memories, the only time a suspension has been made was with Victor Ribas after throwing stones at the judges in the Maldives," Porta tells our friends at Surf Europe.
The 2014 ASP Rule Book tells us that surfers using "profane or abusive language at event venues" or "directly or indirectly verbally assault (...) any ASP Representative" face monetary fines ($1,000-$50,000), disqualification, suspension or expulsion.
Jeremy Flores has had one of the worst semesters of his pro surfing career. His best results are 13th places (Gold Coast and Fiji), and he has lost many decisive heats by very narrow margins.
In 2011, the French surfer and Sunny Garcia had a fight with an Australian free surfer during the Burleigh Breaka Pro. They faced disciplinary actions from the ASP.
In that same year, Bobby Martinez was suspended from the ASP World Tour after an (inf)famous beach interview.