Surf legend Bruce Irons tells TMZ Sports he's confident he will beat the DUI Drug allegations against him -- claiming the field sobriety showed he was "fine."
As we previously reported, the 39-year-old surfer was arrested in Newport Beach last week when cops claim they found him passed out behind the wheel of a car with the engine running.
He was booked for driving under the influence of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance without a prescription.
Now, Irons tells us ... he's confident he'll be cleared -- and called the whole thing a "hiccup in the road."
"I did the sobriety test and I was fine," Irons told us at LAX on his way back to Hawaii.
Irons admits he was driving on an expired license -- but says he had planned to go back to Hawaii and fix that situation before the arrest.
Bruce also had a message for his fans -- "Innocent until proven guilty."
The surfer has previously acknowledged issues with substance abuse -- but makes it pretty clear in this clip he believes the DUI allegations are BS.