ARLINGTON, Texas (February 17, 2010) - One was known for being tough and gritty. The other is simply remembered as the Champ.
J.W. Hart, who set the first record of competing in 197 consecutive Built Ford Tough Series events, and Adriano Moraes, the only three-time World Champion in PBR history, both wish they were taking their gear bags with them to Arlington, Texas, this weekend.
“As I said, I wish I was 10 years younger so I could be there,” said Moraes of the historic Iron Cowboy Invitational taking place this weekend at Cowboys Stadium.
“They would have needed to do it 15 or 16 years ago,” added Hart. “Then I might have had a chance of winning it.”
The tournament-style bracket will feature 24 of the top bull riders in the world matched up in head-to-head competition on some of the rankest bulls on the planet.
The Top 8 seeds, who qualified based on their finish in the world standings last year, will have four rounds, while the other 16 riders will attempt five rounds. The winner claims $260,000, with $40,000 going to the second-place finisher and $25,000 to the average leader.
“Of course, you have to be an Iron Cowboy to ride four or five bulls in one night,” said Moraes.
Moraes went on to say that it will be important to focus not on the other riders in the bracket, but on each bull.
“Don’t think about the money,” he said. “Don’t think about four bulls. Don’t think about wife, kids, tomorrow, yesterday. Think about right now.
“It’s only three hours, so it’s going to be the most intense, most excruciating physical and mental strain that you’re ever going to have to endure, so it’s going to be hard.”
Hart agreed, adding that it will “take a raw-boned guy” accustomed to getting on multiple bulls in a single day. But that’s where the agreements between the two rival World Cup captains end.
Hart said he likes J.B. Mauney in an event like this, but that there’s also something he likes about Austin Meier, who like Mauney was member of last year’s U.S. Cup team that defended its title in Brazil.
That something, according to Hart, is that Meier has increased his cardio workouts to increase his stamina.
“He’s been preparing for it,” Hart said.
Moraes, on the other hand, believes fellow Brazilian Valdiron de Oliveira has what it takes to win the first Iron Cowboy competition.
In either case, both look at the historic event for what it means as a whole to the PBR.
“We’re well established and we’re not overaggressive,” said Moraes, who called the event “a dream come true” for the 24 riders who qualified. “We are doing what we think is right to do when it’s the proper time, proper moment.
“The PBR is continuing to grow and there is no telling how many more of those paydays we are going to have.”
“It’s the biggest, nicest, most state-of-the-art sports facility in the world,” said Hart, before adding: “It’s a big deal. This is a premier market.”
The Iron Cowboy Invitational is Saturday at Cowboys Stadium.
NEWS and NOTES
PBR NOW on RFD-TV: Hosted by J.W. Hart and Justin McBride, “PBR NOW” is a weekly live one-hour TV series that airs every Thursday on RFD-TV at 10 p.m. ET. Fans are encouraged to call in with questions at 866-547-9696, or email them to pbr@rfdtv.com.
This week, in addition to the Thursday night broadcast, PBR NOW is televising a special one-hour edition Saturday at 5 p.m. ET. The guys will be broadcasting live from their RFD stage located in the Fan Zone area outside of Cowboys Stadium, and fans are encouraged to come by for the taping.
Event Center: Follow all the action from Cowboys Stadium, by logging on to www.pbr.com and entering the “Event Center,” which is accessible from the tab located at the top of the main Web page. The Event Center provides live scoring, live blogging and event-related Podcasts and interviews.
