2014 Ring of Honor Inductees Announced

By: Jordan Marie Johnson June 03, 2014@ 02:15:00 PM

Gilbert and Adam Carrillo will be inducted into the PBR Ring of Honor on Oct. 21 in Las Vegas.

PUEBLO, Colo. ― Professional Bull Riders co-founders Adam Carrillo and Gilbert Carrillo, as well as bull riding legend Bobby Berger, will all be inducted into the PBR Ring of Honor this October.

The ceremony will be part of the PBR Heroes & Legends Celebration on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa in Las Vegas. The Sharon Shoulders Award, the Brand of Honor and the Jim Shoulders Lifetime Achievement Award will also be presented at this time.

The Carrillo twins retired from the PBR in 2006, competing at the Built Ford Tough World Finals from 1994-2004 and earning more than $1 million between them. Adam Carrillo picked up four event wins during his career, including back-to-back victories in 1999 at Louisville, Kentucky, and Tunica, Mississippi. He also qualified for the World Finals nine times (1994-2001, 2004). His highest-recorded score, 94.5 points, was earned twice, once atop Jit in 1999 at the Louisville event and again aboard Washita Mud Slinger in Columbus, Georgia, in 2001.

Gilbert Carrillo collected eight event wins throughout his 12-year PBR career, as well as 29 Top-10 finishes and 14 Top-5 finishes. He competed at the World Finals 10 times (1994-2003). He is one of six PBR bull riders to earn 96 points or higher during a ride and he accomplished this feat twice. In 2001 at the PBR St. Louis event he rode Perfect Storm and a year later at the Ty Murray Invitational in Albuquerque, New Mexico, he rode Blueberry Wine for the high-marked rides of his career.

Berger qualified for the National Finals Rodeo 22 times, including eight times for bull riding. He is the 1979 PRCA World Champion of Saddle Bronc Riding and a three-time National Finals Rodeo Average Champion earned in Saddle Bronc Riding (1980) and in Bull Riding (1969, 1971). Berger is also one of only six men to qualify for three events at the NFR in one year (1971) – bareback, saddleback and bull riding.

The PBR Ring of Honor was created in 1996 to recognize those who have had the most profound impact on bull riding, both in and out of the arena. The 38 members share a common bond of courage, strength and victory. They have shown their dedication and support while playing a significant role in helping professional bull riding become what it is today. Honorees include the great Jim Shoulders, PBR founding fathers Ty Murray and Cody Lambert, three-time PBR World Champion Adriano Moraes, two-time PBR World Champions Justin McBride & Chris Shivers and PBR World Champions Tuff Hedeman, Troy Dunn and Michael Gaffney. The Ring of Honor, the PBR’s equivalent of a Hall of Fame, is more than a fellowship: Each inductee is presented with a ring handcrafted of diamonds and gold bearing the PBR logo, the recipient’s name and the year he was honored.

The Brand of Honor and the Jim Shoulders Lifetime Achievement Award were each presented for the first time in 2011. The Brand of Honor is awarded to a bull for his exemplary performance throughout his career. This year the award will be given to Bones, and David Allen will receive the Jim Shoulders Lifetime Achievement Award, which recognizes a non-bull rider who has made a significant contribution to the sport.

2010 World Champion Bull Bones, owned by Tom Teague, bucked in the PBR from 2007-2010. He made 34 outs on the Built Ford Tough Series and was ridden only four times for a buckoff percentage of 88.24 percent and a ranking of 15th overall in BFTS history. Bones qualified for three PBR World Finals in his four years, with an average bull score of 45.56 points on the BFTS. 2013 PBR World Champion J.B. Mauney covered the bovine for 93.50 points during the 2009 Oklahoma City event for the highest-combined score of the bovine’s career.

Bones will receive the 2014 Brand of Honor. Photo by Andy Watson / BullStockMedia.com.

Allen, a man who has supported the PBR since its beginning, was behind the PBR’s first event in Kansas City, Missouri, and also hired PBR Entertainer Flint Rasmussen to work a PBR event for the first time. Although he was asked to help the organization with sponsorship, the PBR, as a startup, could not afford Allen’s services. Instead, Allen was offered the opportunity to co-promote select PBR events, which included bringing and establishing the Ty Murray Invitational in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Created by the PBR Board of Directors in 2009 to honor women who have made a difference in the life of a bull rider and contributed to the sport, the Sharon Shoulders Award honors its namesake for her support and encouragement of her late husband, Jim Shoulders, the celebrated cowboy and bull rider who was inducted as a member of the first class in the PBR Ring of Honor in 1996. This year, Stacey Custer, wife of PBR co-founder Cody Custer, will be honored by the PBR. Not only has Stacey been a strong supporter of her husband during and after his bull riding career and their family, Sharon Shoulders states she is also a “good Christian role model for younger wives and an exemplary person.”

PBR Heroes & Legends Celebration ticket packages are now available for $150, a savings of $105. The package includes tickets to the PBR Heroes & Legends Reception, the PBR Heroes & Legends Celebration and the PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals Kickoff Party, as well as tickets to the Wednesday, Oct. 22, and Thursday, Oct. 23, performances of the PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals.

Fans who have already purchased their World Finals events tickets but are interested in attending the Heroes & Legends Celebration festivities can purchase the Heroes & Legends Celebration Upgrade Package for $75.

South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa is the Official Host Hotel of the PBR Heroes & Legends Celebration. This special event on Oct. 21 will again officially begin the PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals and includes a reception with drinks and hors d’ oeuvres prior to the induction ceremony. While all of the past PBR Alumni will be invited to attend, this year will not include a formal alumni reunion. The PBR Legends Reunion will return in 2018 and take place every five years thereafter.

The richest bull riding event in the world, the 2014 PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals will take place Oct. 22-26 at the Thomas & Mack Center. Bull riding begins at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday and at 1 p.m. on Sunday. The five-day event will not only crown a $250,000 event champion, but also determine the overall 2014 PBR World Champion, who will receive a $1 million bonus and the coveted world championship belt buckle.

Tickets are available now for both the World Finals and the Heroes & Legends Celebration through the Thomas & Mack Center box office, www.UNLVTickets.com, and by telephone at (866) PBR-SHOW.

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