UNCASVILLE, Conn. (October 1, 2010) – Fall is creeping into New England but as the regular season of the PBR’s Built Ford Tough Series is coming to a close, things in the arena are only getting hotter.
In round one of the three-day event at the Mohegan Sun Casino, in Uncasville, 22 of the 45 riders out at the Mohegan Sun Invitational put up scores to build solid foundations for a weekend full of bulls.
Some are riding for the World Champion race. Others to secure a ticket to the PBR World Finals, later this month in Las Vegas, Nevada. For others, it’s simply riding for the win and enough points to stay on or close to the Built Ford Tough tour next season, which kicks off in January in Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Whatever the reason, many of the riders brought their A-games, fighting for the 8-second mark, taking a beating in a shot at beating the clock, or hanging on for every second they could.
When the books were closed on round one, it was Brazilian Robson Palermo who took the lead early in the weekend, with the only 90-plus point ride of the night.
Palermo sent the confetti cannons firing toward the rafters with a powerhouse ride on “Real Moody” (Jeff Robinson/Cappello).
Not only was the ride important to Palermo for the weekend standings, but also reversed a trend where Palermo has been sliding in the standings, from top 5 to 7th, after bucking off 7 straight bulls.
Palermo’s ride late in the round bumped two-time world champion Chris Shivers to second in the round, after he held the lead most of the night.
Shivers rode “Artic Circle” (C’N Stars Bull Company) for 89.75 points early in the night and the rest of the riders spent the next few flights chasing that score.
Third in the round was Jordan Hupp, with 88.0 points on “Bird Creek” (Jeff Robinson/Leon Frakes).
Behind him, splitting fourth through sixth place, were 2002 World Champion Ednei Caminhas, Pistol Robinson and Shane Proctor, each with 87.5 points.
Caminhas, who needs to win an entire event – either this weekend or Columbus – to have any shot at qualifying for the World Finals, rode “Vortex” (Sonny Williams). Caminhas broke a lengthy streak – the kind bull riders don’t want – of buck offs last week in Charlottesville, Va.
Robinson took “Goose Bumps” (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve) to task, while Proctor was solid aboard “The Bug” (Hebert Bucking Bulls/Georgia Akers). Both riders can count on trips to the PBR World Finals, but at 29th in the points standing, Robinson has no shot at the world championship this year. Proctor, at 11th, would have the slimmest of shots, needing some type of mathematical miracle to snag the title for 2010.
In 7th in the round was Ryan McConnel, at 87 points on “Mr Sam” (Hebert/Akers). McConnel entered the weekend in 6th in the World championship points race, and knows he has a spot in Las Vegas.
Sharing 8th and 9th place, at 86.75 points, were Stormy Wing and Renato Nunes. Wing rode “Roll On” (Dakota Rodeo/Berger/Struve), while Nunes took on “Short Notice” (C’N Stars/Prohaska Livestock).
Nunes is fighting to regain – or at least gain ground – on his former number one spot in the PBR World Championship race, having slipped to third with a cold streak in the past few months. He came into the weekend 698.5 points behind leader Austin Meier.
Meier didn’t let Nunes gain much ground. He took the tenth spot, with 86.5 points, in the round on “Justin’s Pet” (Buckin’ B Cattle Company). Heading into Mohegan Sun, Meier had only a 64-point lead on number two man, JB Mauney, but round one helped open that up ever so slightly, as Meier gained the 86.5 points, and 10 points for finishing tenth in the round. Mauney bucked off “Red Ears” (Hebert Bucking Bulls) at the 5.1 second mark.
After last weekend in Charlottesville knocked both Travis Briscoe and Ross Coleman out of competition with concussions – Coleman’s was particularly ugly as he had to be carried from the arena – thankfully all the riders left the arena under their own power on Friday night and no injuries were reported.
It wasn’t for a lack of trying on the bulls’ part, though. Sevi Toturo opened the night on “Aerial Assault” (Sonny Williams), but at 4.3 seconds the bull leapt in the air, and came crashing down on its side, taking Toturo with it. Sevi managed to scramble out unscathed, and returned to try Jeff Robinson’s “Didn’t Feel a Thing” later in the night. The reride didn’t help Toturo though, as the high flying bull put the rider in the dirt at 2.8 seconds.
Caleb Sanderson had a wild ride going still in the chutes aboard “Liquid Ice” (C’N Stars Bull Co.), when the bull first lunged forward, sending Sanderson in to the cross bar, and then reared up, pinning Caleb to the back of the chute. The gate was bulled, and “Liquid Ice” basically rolled out of the chute, onto its side, as Sanderson scrambled up inside it. “Liquid Ice” strolled out of the arena, and Sanderson returned later in the round, when “Alejandro” (Jeff Robinson) bucked him off at 7.2 seconds.
Other qualified rides in round one at Mohegan Sun were:
11th, Harve Stewart, 86.25 points, “Nasty Town” (Dakota Rodeo/Berger/Struve/Rosen);
12th / 13th, Cody Nance, 86.0 points, “Deadliest Catch” (Derek Bevington), and Cody Campbell, 86.0 points, “Party Time” (Hebert/Akers);
14th, Ben Jones, 85.75 points, “Copper Shine” (Buckin’ B Cattle Company). Jones, who has absolutely endeared himself to fans over the past few months, got some of the loudest cheers of the night, both for his ride and his wild dance that follows.
15th, Valdiron de Oliveira, 85.25 points, on “Wicked Cool” (Cornwell Bucking Bulls). The score will keep Oliveira, who is fourth in the World Championship hunt, from losing any ground, but it didn’t help him gain any on the three riders ahead of him.
16th, Sean Willingham, 85 points on “Jocko” (Robert Melton Bucking Bulls);
17th, Wiley Petersen, 84.5 points on “Man to Man” (Sonny Williams);
18th, Silvano Alves, 84.25 points on “Uncle Carl” (Chad Berger/Dan Herner);
19th, Zack Brown, getting a nice welcome back to the BFTS tour with 83.5 points on “Happy Cow” (Callaway Cattle Company);
20th, Ned Cross, 82.25 points on “Bad Juan” (Buckin’ B);
21st, Jason O’Hearn, 82 points on “Stiffler” (Robert Melton);
22nd, Skeeter Kingsolver, 80.25 points on “The Wizzard” (Chase Gabriel).
Round two, and the “Top Ten Showdown” will take place Saturday night in the arena at Mohegan Sun Casino, beginning at 7:50 p.m. The event will conclude Sunday afternoon, with round three followed by the championship round.
The regular season of the PBR’s Built Ford Tough Series 2010 season concludes next weekend in Columbus, Ohio.
Story and all photographs ©2010 Mary Rudloff
