Brian Joubert of France finished first in the men's short program at the NHK Trophy on Friday, edging Jeremy Abbott of the United States.
Joubert opened his routine with a quadruple toe loop, triple toe loop combination and received 85.55 points to finish ahead of Abbott, who was second with 83.00 points. American skater Johnny Weir was third with 78.35 points.
Joubert, the 2007 world champion, stumbled on the landing of a triple lutz but otherwise skated a clean program.
Abbott, the U.S. champion skating in his first GP of the season, opened with a triple flip, triple toe loop combination and hit all his jumps.
