The Morning Line – Medicine Hat Round 1

MEDICINE HAT, Alta. – Just two Cup Series, presented by Wrangler, events remain before the Top 17 riders in the nation earn berths to the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals.

And this weekend, Medicine Hat, Alberta, and Co-op Place will play host to the penultimate regular-season event.

With No. 1 Dakota Buttar and No. 3 Nick Tetz both sidelined due to injury, the door is open for No. 2 Cody Coverchuk, No. 4 Coy Robbins and No. 5 Aaron Roy to make significant moves at the PBR Medicine Hat Classic, presented by Art’s Excavating.

One rider has the chance to earn 120 national points, in addition to ride score points, making this a crucial stop not only for the riders atop the standings, but also those on the bubble fighting to earn a berth to the National Finals.

Below are bullfighter Tanner Byrne’s bets for Round 1 of the event from Medicine Hat. Let us know your thoughts and your picks for the Cup Series event by tagging @PBRCanada on Twitter.

The PBR Medicine Hat Classic, presented by Art’s Excavating, inside Co-op Place gets underway Saturday, Oct. 14 at 7:00 p.m. MDT. Tickets for the event are still available and can be purchased at the Co-op Place Box Office, and online at Tixx.ca.

Weston Davidson vs. Black Mamba

Weston Davidson has really come into his own this year, staying up in the Top 10 for a little while, bumped back a few spots now in the No. 16 spot. Its crunch time at these Cup events. The race to the Canadian Championship is one thing, and the race to get to the Finals is another. There are a few guys in Medicine Hat that are in that race to get themselves to Edmonton in November. This is a great matchup for Weston. Aaron Roy rode this bull the other weekend for a good score, and Weston should do the same. Away from his hand, right in the gate to the right, should be 85-86 points. Weston likes them away from his hand, just as much as he does into his hand. This should be a really good matchup for Weston to set himself up good for the short round.

Coy Robbins vs. Run It Up

Coy Robbins is one of the hottest bull riders going not only in Canada, but in North America right now. Riding bulls either way, up and down, doesn’t matter what they’re doing, he’s locked in and looking for a Canadian Championship on both sides of the sport, whether it be rodeo or PBR. This is a great bull for him to bump himself up further in the standings. Run It Up, this bull has a couple different trips to him, but at the end of the day should be right in the gate to the left. They have been 89+ on this bull before. This could be a round win for Coy if this bull has his day. Away from his hand, Coy should style him up really good. And it’s time for Coy to take advantage of a couple of our top guys being out with injury and rack up some of those points to set himself up good for Edmonton in November.

Chad Hartman vs. High Voltage

Chad has been on High Voltage before, rode him right to the whistle in Maple Creek. He knows what this bull is all about. Knows what he feels like. Chad usually has a lot of confidence once he knows that he can stay on these bulls. And this is one that he’s really looking forward to. Nick Tetz has rode this bull a couple of times for good scores, 85-86, and mark Chad down for an 87-point score here to set himself up good for the short round as well as bump himself up in the standings and get in the hunt for a Canadian Championship this year.

Stefan Tonita vs. Allemand Left

Stefan Tonita is another guy needing to make up some ground, get some points racked up to make an appearance in Edmonton. And this is a good bull for him to do it on. Away from his hand. Stefan really has good style if he can stay in control, he can ride those bulls good away from his hand. Got some sense knocked into him the other weekend at his birthday and look for him to keep that momentum rolling and get a good score on Allemand Left, 85-86-point score. And bump himself up into that Top 20.

Aaron Roy vs. Hanna Motors Sure Shot

This is a fifth time rematch for Aaron Roy. He hasn’t gotten the job done yet on Sure Shot, its been a bit of ups and downs for Aaron with this bull. There’s been a few wrecks and there’s been a few he’s ridden right to the whistle. He knows exactly what this bull’s going to do, what he feels like, Aaron just needs to finish and take redemption on Sure Shot like we all know that he can. The position that Aaron’s in, he needs to get that done. With the last couple regular-season events, he’s in the running for his fourth Canadian Championship and it all starts right there in Medicine Hat on Sure Shot.