PUEBLO, Colo. (October 17, 2010) - Adriano Moraes. Justin McBride. Chris Shivers.
They’re the only three riders in PBR history to win more than one world title, but they have something else in common. None of them were able to do it in back-to-back seasons.
One week from today, the PBR will crown a World Champion for the 17th consecutive year, and for the 16th time, it will be someone other than the reigning title holder.
“It’s tough to get up for two championships in a row unless you’re just unbelievably dominant,” said Jerome Robinson, a veteran of the sport. Robinson was inducted into the Ring of Honor in 1999. “Quite frankly, with bull riders today, there’s a lot of parity out there.”
Robinson thinks Guilherme Marchi has a good chance of repeating as a World Champion, if he remains healthy.
He also mentions last year’s winner Kody Lostroh as another rider with the potential of pulling off title runs in two consecutive years. Lostroh missed much of 2010 while recovering from surgery.
One reason it hasn’t been done is because of what it takes mentally and physically to make it through an entire Built Ford Tough Series. Moraes, McBride and Lostroh all required surgery after winning the gold buckle.
“It’s such a mental game,” Robinson said, “and it’s tough to keep it up that many times, and like I say, I think Lostroh would have had a shot because he rides as good as anybody, but he finished the year last year crippled.”
This year, Austin Meier goes to Las Vegas with a 241.5-point lead over J.B. Mauney.
Meier has had a relatively injury free season, but Mauney has said that if he were to win the title this year, he’ll take time off to have some of his injuries repaired. He’s been competing for the better part of two years with a torn medial collateral ligament in his right knee.
Dr. Tandy Freeman said the tear is located where the ligament attaches to the femur. Mauney also suffers with scar tissue, calcified cartilage and a buildup of excess bone.
It’s an especially painful injury, because as Freeman pointed out, “It’s the part of the knee that sits against the bull.”
Mauney has not said whether he’d have the problem fixed if he were to finish second for a third year in a row. He finished just behind Lostroh in 2009, and finished second to Marchi in 2008.
In addition to Meier and Mauney, Renato Nunes and Valdiron de Oliveira also have a realistic chance winning it all.
Nunes, who passed on competing Friday in Times Square, is 1,300.75 points back. Oliveira is 1,500 points off the lead.
“Believe me, it could go three or four different ways,” Robinson said, “but if somebody said you have $1,000 and you have to put it on somebody, right now I’d put it on J.B. Mauney.”
Robinson shared his thoughts on the current Top 4 riders in the world standings.
Valdiron de Oliveira, 4: “It wouldn’t surprise me at all. I would say he has a pretty decent shot if he has a great Finals, and who’s to say he’s not going to have a great Finals?”
Renato Nunes, 3: “If you were to have told me he’s going to go in the slump that he’s gone in, I would have never have guessed it. I always thought he rode well, and I just didn’t think he was prone to the slump that he’s been in. … But he rides so well that it would not surprise me if he went to the Finals and rode all six head at the Finals either. You ride into a slump and you ride out of it.”
J.B. Mauney, 2: “If I were picking one thing for J.B. to do, I guess it would be not to pick so macho—not be afraid to pick bulls that fit him instead of bulls that are rank and everything. Instead of drafting for the top bull every time I would draft for a bull that fit my style.”
Austin Meier, 1: “I think Austin has done what he needs to do. He’s trained and obviously he and Oliveira are probably the two most physical, best in shape. What he’s going to have to do is rely on his try. You’ve seen that the last three or four bulls – he’s not going to let go until his head hits the ground. Austin has to hope his physical talent prevails.”
NEWS AND NOTES
RIDING HIGH MINISTRIES will host Faith & Family Night at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, immediately following Round 2 of the 2010 Built Ford Tough World Finals on Thursday, Oct. 21. The event will feature Christian artist Jeremy Riddle, PBR Champions sharing stories of faith, and a unique horse-breaking demonstration by PBR Chaplain Todd Pierce. Everyone with a ticket for Round 2 is invited to attend.
LOS DE SONORA, an up-and-coming Mexican band and YouTube sensation, will perform on the Cooper Tires stage in the Fan Zone outside the Thomas & Mack Center immediately following Round 1 of the World Finals on Wednesday, Oct. 20.
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