This past weekend gave us the final two contenders who will make up the men’s draw for the Billabong Pro, Tahiti, which begins August 20th and runs until August 31st. It is event 5 of 10 on the 2011 ASP Men’s World Tour.

The Air Tahiti Nui VonZipper Trials, which ran from August 14-17, decided the final two wildcard positions: Brazilian Ricardo Dos Santos (Guarda Do Embau, BRA) and local Heiarri Williams (PYF) finishing first and second respectively.

Santos and Williams competed in the 25-minute decider to finish ahead of 30 other international invitees to claim the coveted wildcard spots in the event that is considered the most prestigious of its kind on the annual pro surfing calendar.

These two are now given a shot of taking on Kelly Slater (USA), current world number 1 Joel Parkinson (AUS), recent ASP Tour winner and world number 2, Jordy Smith (ZAF), and world ranked no. 3 Adriano de Souza (BRA), among other elite surfers. The top 32 rated surfers from the ASP Men’s World Tour plus four wildcards will now be take on the waves at Teahupo’o (pronounced “Chee-yow-po”), one of the “most intimidating and awe inspiring left hand tubes in the world.”

The winner will receive: US$75,000 / 10,000 ratings points from a $425,000 total prize pool.

We’re stoked on the action!