Byrne and Buttar Record Qualified Rides in Round 3 of the 2018 PBR World Finals

By: Kacie Albert  Saturday, November 10, 2018 @ 1:52 AM

The three Canadian riders were joined by nine Canadian bucking bulls in the draw. Photo: Andy Watson/BullStockMedia.com

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Round 3 of the 25th PBR: Unleash The Beast World Finals was a successful night for Canadian athletes, both riders and bulls.

Tanner Byrne (Prince Albert, Saskatchewan) improved to 2-for-3 overall at the 2018 edition of the most prestigious event in bull riding, riding Stage Fright (Windy Valley Buckers) for 86.75 points. The 26-year-old got off to a hot start in Round 1, marked 86.25 points on Concealed Carry (Rockin R Bucking Bulls).

The score, which marked the first qualified ride, tied for tenth in the round, netting the 2015 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Canada Champion 2.5 world points.

He will attempt Mind Freak (D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle Co.) in Round 4.

In the overall World Finals event standings, Byrne, the No. 31 ranked rider in the world, is eighteenth.

At his third appearance in the season culminating event, Dakota Buttar (Kindersley, Saskatchewan) earned his first qualified ride, covering Milky Jones (Phenom Genetics/JCL Bucking Bulls/Waller Brothers Cattle Co./Goods Bucking Bulls).

Buttar will look to continue his ride streak when he faces Ol’ Boy (Dakota Rodeo-Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Ken Barnhard) in the fourth round.

Making his World Finals debut in place of Koal Livingston (Burleson, Texas), sidelined by injury, Brock Radford (De Winton, Alberta) was faced with an all Canadian showdown, attempting the Byrne family’s Finning Milky Chance (Flying Four Bucking Bulls).

Radford, however, fell just short of the 8-second mark, bucked off by the bovine athlete, who earned a 43-point bull score, in 6.02 seconds.

Finning Milky Chance will return for Saturday night’s Round 4 set to take on world No. 1 Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil).

He will attempt his second bull of the World Finals in Round 4 when he climbs aboard Bandit (Halpain & Roth).

Joining the three Canadian riders on the dirt for Round 3 where nine bucking bulls from the nation, including Finning Milky Chance.

The bovine athlete contingent was led by Brahma Boots Chrome (Outlaw Buckers Rodeo Co.) who was marked 44.25 points. The bull was ridden by Cody Teel (Kountze, Texas) for 90 points to finish third in the round.

The ride, Teel’s first of the 2018 PBR World Finals, earned Teel $15,000 and 125 world points. The top ranked American rider in the world rankings, Teel remains No. 5 but closed the gap on No. 4 Luciano De Castro (Guzolandia, Brazil). Beginning Round 3 175.84 points behind De Castro, Teel enters Saturday’s round just 50.84 points back.

Close behind was Hanna Motors Two Point Oh (Skori Bucking Bulls), scored 44 points, for his 3.94-second buckoff of two-time PBR World Champion J.B. Mauney (Statesville, North Carolina).

Other notable scores included Nickle Package (Outlaw Buckers Rodeo Co.) who sent Cody Nance (Paris, Tennessee) to the dirt in 3.15 seconds to earn a 43.75-point bull score, and Happy Camper’s (Two Bit Bucking Bulls) 43-point bull score after he was ridden by Dener Barbosa (Paulo de Faria, Brazil) for the second consecutive year during Round 3 of the World Finals, this year for 84.75 points.  

Since making his PBR World Finals debut in 2017, Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil) has been flawless inside T-Mobile Arena, extending his consecutive-ride streak during Round 3 of the 25th PBR: Unleash The Beast World Finals, tying for fourth.

Leme is now a perfect 9-for-9 at the most prestigious event in bull riding. His latest ride came aboard a familiar foe, Bottoms Up (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.), for 89.75 points. Leme is now 3-for-3 against the bovine athlete having ridden him twice earlier in the season, first at the WCRA Rodeo Showdown in Las Vegas and again at the PBR Elite tour event in Tulsa, both 90-point efforts.

Leme earned $8,000 and 85 world points. He is second in the overall World Finals event standings. 

Set to attempt South Texas Gangster (Dakota Rodeo/Julie Rosen/Clay Struve/Chad Berger) in the fourth round, Leme will look to become just the second rider in league history, joining Robson Palermo (Rio Branco, Brazil), to capture the World Finals event win in back-to-back seasons.

In the world title race, Leme gained ground on current No. 1 Pacheco, who after electing to take a re-ride with a seriously injured knee despite making the 8 aboard Humdinger (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Heald Pro Bulls), was bucked off in 5.6 seconds on Cut The Cord (Broken Arrow Bucking Bulls). Leme now trails the world No. 1 by 1,262.5 points.

For the second consecutive night, Marco Eguchi (Poá, Brazil) used a spectacular 90-point ride to win the round, splitting the top spot with Derek Kolbaba (Walla Walla, Washington) after both riders recorded 91-point scores.

Eguchi, competing at the sixth World Finals of his career, is now also 3-for-3 in Las Vegas. He surged to the top of the event leaderboard in scoring his second consecutive 90-point ride of the World Finals, making the 8 aboard Stuntman Ray (Broken Arrow Bucking Bulls). Last night, in Round 2, the 29-year-old recorded the high-marked ride of his career, and the 2018 season, when he covered Spotted Demon (Julio Moreno/Dallas Schott) for 94 points.

Matching Eguchi’s score, Kolbaba’s 91-point effort came atop Biker Bob (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/H&C Bucking Bulls). The qualified ride, just the third in 23 attempts across all levels of competition, snapped the bovine athlete’s 15-out buckoff streak.

For sharing the round win, each rider netted $27,500 and 240 world points. In the standings, Eguchi rose from No. 17 to No. 15. Kolbaba gained one position, now No. 13 after beginning the round No. 14.

Tied with Leme for fourth on Friday was 2016 PBR World Champion Cooper Davis (Buna, Texas). Davis’ 89.75-point score, his first qualified ride of the event, came after he reached 8 seconds on High Razor (Humpz and Hornz/Sis ‘N’ Stan Bucking Bulls).

He leaves T-Mobile Arena following the third night of action with $8,000 and 85 points. Davis will begin Round 4 the No. 7 ranked bull rider in the world after leapfrogging Cody Nance (Paris, Tennessee) in the rankings.

Joining Leme and Eguchi, Eduardo Aparecido (Gouvelândia, Brazil), Chase Outlaw (Hamburg, Arkansas) and Guilherme Marchi (Três Lagoas, Brazil) also improved to 3-for-3 on Friday night.

Aparecido tied for eighth in the round, earning 17.5 points, compliments of his 87-point trip on Peep Show (Cornwell Bucking Bulls), while Outlaw tied for twelfth after riding No Prisoners (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Heald Pro Bulls) for 86 points. Marchi’s 83.5-point trip, the seventeenth best score of the 21 qualified rides seen during the round, was scored on re-ride bull J.T. (Curtis Mendell).

For Marchi, the ride is his 635th on the premier series, the most of any rider in PBR history.

In the Rookie of the Year race, Colten Jesse (Konawa, Oklahoma), the No. 2 contender for the title, gained ground on No. 1 first-year rider Keyshawn Whitehorse (McCracken Springs, Utah). Riding Jungle Can Do (Owens/Wyatt/Smith) for 87 points, Jesse collected 17.5 world points, shrinking Whitehorse’s lead to 18.33 points.

Fans can relive all the action from Round 3 on-demand on RidePass tomorrow morning, Saturday, November 10, at 8:00 a.m. ET.

The 2018 PBR World Finals will continue with Round 4 tomorrow with action beginning at 7:40 p.m. PT.

The fourth round will feature 22 ABBI Classic Bulls competing for the titles of ABBI Classic Champion and ABBI World Finals Classic Event Champion with more than $500,000 set to be awarded, including two $100,000 bonuses.

The ABBI Classic Champion bull will be determined from his Top 6 scores headed into the finals, in addition to his two performances at the PBR World Finals. The ABBI World Finals Classic Event Champion will earn the title from his two performances at the PBR World Finals.

CBS Sports Network will televise the action LIVE beginning at 7:30 p.m. PT, accompanied by RidePass’ listen LIVE stream starting at 7:10 p.m. PT.

25th PBR: Unleash The Beast World Finals

T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, Nevada

Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Round 4-Round 5-Round 6-Event Aggregate-Event Points)

1. Marco Antonio Eguchi, 85.5-94-91-0-0-0-270.50-540

2. Jose Vitor Leme, 88.75-91-89.75-0-0-0-269.50-390

3. Matt Triplett, 89.25-0-86-0-0-0-175.25-300

4. Eduardo Aparecido, 89-87-87-0-0-0-263.00-247.5

5. Derek Kolbaba, 0-0-91-0-0-0-91.00-240

6. Cody Teel, 0-0-90-0-0-0-90.00-125

(tie). J.B. Mauney, 0-90.5-0-0-0-0-90.50-125

8. Kaique Pacheco, 87.25-88.75-0-0-0-0-176.00-117.5

9. Chase Outlaw, 88-85-86-0-0-0-259.00-100

10. Cody Nance, 88.5-0-0-0-0-0-88.50-95

(tie). Paulo Ferreira Lima, 0-89.5-0-0-0-0-89.50-95

12. Cooper Davis, 0-0-89.75-0-0-0-89.75-85

13. Guilherme Marchi, 86.5-86.75-83.5-0-0-0-256.75-60

14. Juan Carlos Contreras, 0-0-89-0-0-0-89.00-50

15. Lachlan Richardson, 87.25-0-0-0-0-0-87.25-42.5

16. Cody Jesus, 0-0-87.5-0-0-0-87.50-35

17. Colten Jesse, 0-0-87-0-0-0-87.00-17.5

18. Tanner Byrne, 86.25-0-86.75-0-0-0-173.00-10

19. Joao Ricardo Vieira, 86.25-0-81.75-0-0-0-168.00-7.5

20. Jess Lockwood, 84.75-0-86.75-0-0-0-171.50-2.5

21. Ramon de Lima, 0-0-85.75-0-0-0-85.75-0

(tie). Luis Blanco, 0-0-85.75-0-0-0-85.75-0

23. Dener Barbosa, 0-0-84.75-0-0-0-84.75-0

24. Silvano Alves, 84.5-0-0-0-0-0-84.50-0

25. Dakota Buttar, 0-0-82.75-0-0-0-82.75-0

26. Ryan Dirteater, 0-0-81.75-0-0-0-81.75-0

(tie). Alex Marcilio, 0-0-81.75-0-0-0-81.75-0

Claudio Montanha Jr., 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Luciano De Castro, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Fabiano Vieira, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Valdiron de Oliveira, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Keyshawn Whitehorse, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Stetson Lawrence, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Nathan Burtenshaw, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Brennon Eldred, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Koal Livingston, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Sean Willingham, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Alisson De Souza, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Gage Gay, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Lonnie West, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Brock Radford, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Michael Lane, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

Francisco Garcia Torres, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00-0

 

2018 PBR World Finals Standings

(Place, Rider, Events, Wins, Top 5's, Points, Total Winnings)

  1. Kaique Pacheco, 47, 10, 18, 5,444.16, $516,094.62
  2. Jose Vitor Leme, 40, 5, 15, 4,181.66, $284,175.66
  3. Claudio Montanha Jr., 48, 2, 13, 3,313.33, $260,405.51
  4. Luciano De Castro, 38, 3, 11, 3,122.50, $248,730.17
  5. Cody Teel, 42, 2, 13, 3,071.66, $290,008.78
  6. Ramon de Lima, 45, 3, 9, 2,887.50, $305,365.74
  7. Cooper Davis, 37, 1, 11, 2,687.50, $245,525.17
  8. Cody Nance, 42, 3, 7, 2,633.33, $218,317.66
  9. Eduardo Aparecido, 40, 2, 9, 2,519.99, $185,555.89
  10. Fabiano Vieira, 43, 2, 9, 2,100.83, $158,561.00
  11. Jess Lockwood, 33, 4, 9, 1,970.00, $224,301.75
  12. Dener Barbosa, 41, 1, 14, 1,931.66, $153,030.11
  13. Derek Kolbaba, 46, 2, 13, 1,920.00, $231,177.39
  14. Matt Triplett, 31, 1, 15, 1,780.00, $114,131.32
  15. Marco Antonio Eguchi, 42, 2, 5, 1,720.00, $73,504.50
  16. Dakota Buttar, 41, 1, 6, 1,592.50, $106,353.78
  17. Ryan Dirteater, 32, 3, 4, 1,552.50, $109,995.00
  18. Valdiron de Oliveira, 39, 0, 6, 1,285.82, $64,520.66
  19. Joao Ricardo Vieira, 42, 3, 10, 1,224.16, $97,660.06
  20. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 43, 2, 7, 1,198.33, $83,523.15
  21. Colten Jesse, 41, 4, 8, 1,180.00, $104,377.87
  22. Chase Outlaw, 22, 3, 9, 1,167.50, $83,874.19
  23. Guilherme Marchi, 23, 1, 2, 1,070.83, $77,833.98
  24. Alex Marcilio, 29, 1, 4, 1,030.00, $97,474.61
  25. Stetson Lawrence, 44, 1, 7, 977.50, $72,825.92
  26. Nathan Burtenshaw, 40, 2, 7, 972.50, $63,628.98
  27. Lachlan Richardson, 68, 3, 23, 970.00, $90,024.88
  28. J.B. Mauney, 27, 1, 5, 959.16, $48,920.69
  29. Brennon Eldred, 37, 0, 5, 957.50, $114,961.31
  30. Koal Livingston, 30, 1, 12, 947.50, $88,635.26
  31. Tanner Byrne, 37, 2, 4, 937.50, $71,956.60
  32. Silvano Alves, 38, 2, 5, 893.32, $82,595.24
  33. Sean Willingham, 41, 2, 9, 891.66, $70,036.17
  34. Alisson De Souza, 43, 2, 10, 790.00, $150,113.90
  35. Gage Gay, 20, 1, 2, 772.50, $116,868.13
  36. Lonnie West, 47, 4, 10, 752.50, $84,056.29
  37. Cody Jesus, 12, 1, 4, 745.00, $48,144.72
  38. Marcos Gloria, 26, 2, 5, 700.00, $116,698.43
  39. Brock Radford, 52, 3, 14, 695.00, $81,255.06
  40. Cannon Cravens, 20, 1, 6, 680.00, $42,624.51
  41. Rubens Barbosa, 53, 3, 12, 604.16, $68,362.33
  42. Emilio Resende, 15, 0, 2, 600.00, $37,827.86
  43. Cody Heffernan, 26, 3, 9, 585.00, $29,208.25
  44. Paulo Ferreira Lima, 31, 2, 8, 548.33, $46,925.87
  45. Juan Carlos Contreras, 49, 2, 7, 517.50, $45,855.43