Jack Robinson has booked a mouth-watering, third-round battle with surfing's GOAT Kelly Slater, who has found inspiration in his doubters to wind back the clock at the Tahiti Pro.
The Australian will next face 54-year-old Slater, the event's five-time champion who has lit up the event after being handed a polarising wildcard into the field.
Robinson advanced after winning a high-scoring, all-Australian battle with Callum Robson, 18.20 to 17.40.
But their heat was eclipsed by 11-time world champion Slater's ousting of Brazil's three-time tour king Gabriel Medina.
In pumping conditions, the American was twice hammered by waves early in his heat and broke a board.
But he kept charging, plunging over the falls and into a deep barrel, coming out with the spit to score a then competition-best 9.73 ride.
Slater backed it up with a 9.33 (19.06) in a near-perfect heat, 26 years on from his first Teahupo'o title, leaving Medina (16.10) with too much to do.
It was the latest chapter of a storied rivalry - the Brazilian leads 8-3 in career head-to-heads - stoking memories of Medina's 18.96 to 18.93 win in an epic 2014 Teahupo'o decider.
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"That was a very emotional heat. I almost started crying afterward," Slater said, tipping his cap to "good friend" Medina.
"You see the comments; a lot of people doubting me or saying they should've given the wildcard to a local, and I get why people say that.
"Without pressure, you've got no diamonds. It fired me up, and even after all this time, yeah, I have something to prove."
Two heats later, an inspired Griffin Colapinto scored a perfect 10 and gave an in-water interview before the clock had even expired on his 19.60 to 8.50 beat down of Rio Waida.
"It feels magical," the American said after just the second 10-point ride of the season.
"This place has a lot of spiritual energy, and it's really fun to tap into that and play around with it and imagine what's possible out here.
"You're playing on the borderline of life and death, moments where it's just so scary."
Australia's George Pittar also eased into the third round while Ethan Ewing and Liam O'Brien will meet to ensure at least one Aussie reaches the quarter-finals.
Ewing (14.17) - the highest-ranked Australian at sixth with six events still to come - scored an early eight-point ride to take control of his all-Australian heat with Joel Vaughan (12.33).
A 9.33 total was enough for O'Brien to progress ahead of the next call on Wednesday morning (AEST).
