Kolbaba Leading in Denver following Night One
By: Darci Miller
January 14, 2019
Derek Kolbaba rode Red Sails In The Sunset for 88.5 points in Denver. Photo: Andy Watson/BullStockMedia.com.
DENVER – According to Derek Kolbaba, it all started in Denver.
Fresh off his first PBR World Finals appearance in 2015, Kolbaba won the Velocity Tour event in the Mile High City for his first victory of 2016.
That would go on to be his first full year on the premier series, and a successful one at that: he finished the year ranked No. 17 in the world standings, with seven event wins at all levels of competition.
Kolbaba could be well on his way to notching another win in Denver, as he is leading the Denver PBR Chute Out at the National Western Stock Show Velocity Tour event.
“It all kind of started here in Denver,” Kolbaba said. “I had lots of success (in 2016) and kind of carried it through the season. It’s a great event that I’m excited to be here for.”
Kolbaba rode Red Sails In The Sunset for 88.5 points to finish Monday night atop the leaderboard.
“That was a great bull,” he said. “I’ve seen him a lot. I knew he’d be either way and really good to ride if you can kind of get tapped off on him, and it felt great away from my hand. I’m just excited to keep the ball rolling.”
Kolbaba leads Chase Robbins and Stormy Wing, who are tied for second place with 87 points apiece. Robbins made the 8 seconds on Slow Hands, while Wing did so aboard A Man.
Koal Livingston sits in fourth place with 86 points on Cheese Bandit, and Scottie Knapp rounds out the Top 5 with 85 points on Suspicious Minds.
While Denver is a sentimental place for Kolbaba, his will to win is driven by entirely non-sentimental motivations.
“It would mean a lot. It pays a hell of a lot of money, that’s always good. And the points are awesome,” Kolbaba said. “Nowadays the Velocity points are so huge, it’s hard not to go to them. You can’t be sitting at home and let someone else go out there and snag all these extra points. I mean, they could make the difference in your year. This is a great start and I’m excited to be doing well.”
The three day-event featured 45 riders on Monday night. A different set of 45 riders will be competing on Tuesday night.
The Top 30 riders from the two-day long round advance to Wednesday’s final night of competition.
Some of the riders expected to compete on Tuesday include world No. 1 and 2017 World Champion Jess Lockwood, three-time World Champion Silvano Alves, Cody Nance, 2012 PRCA champion Cody Teel, Claudio Montanha Jr. and Joao Ricardo Vieira.
Kolbaba is coming off a win at the WCRA Windy City Roundup in Chicago on Friday, where he went 2-for-2. He then placed 11th at the Unleash The Beast Chicago Invitational, going 2-for-3.
It’s a strong rebound following a lackluster performance at the first premier series event of the season, the Monster Energy Buck Off at The Garden, presented by Ariat, where he failed to reach 8 seconds.
Kolbaba is currently 12th in the world standings. He trails Lockwood by 1,387.5 points.
One rider can earn a maximum of 270 points in Denver this week.
Kolbaba is focusing on his mental game this season. With a strong finish to 2018 – 3-for-6 at the 2018 PBR World Finals, with all three rides north of 90 points – he knows the physical ability is there.
Now it’s just a matter of dialing it in.
“It’s all mental. That’s the biggest thing to this game,” Kolbaba said. “Your body already knows how to do it. You’re riding at this level for a reason, and you’ve got to get your mind focused back up and believing in yourself and having that confidence to push you to that next level.
“Everybody that’s at that level has the ability to be a Top 10 bull rider, but it’s what’s in between your ears that separates the good from the best.”
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