Fantasy Focus: Sacramento

THE SACRAMENTO INVITATIONAL: The Built Ford Tough Series resumes this weekend in Sacramento, California, with the Sacramento Invitational. Don’t forget to set your lineups for Ultimate PBR Fantasy, and if you haven’t already, sign up now for your chance to win.

TIER A: Lima brings consecutive ride streak into Sacramento

Paulo Lima was a Tanner Byrne and Robson Palermo buckoff away from winning his second BFTS event of the season after going 4-for-4 in Anaheim.

Lima’s performance helped him hold onto the world No. 1 ranking for another week and he now will get a familiar foe in Sacramento.

The 28-year-old has a rematch against Mortimer in Round 2 after previously covering Julio Moreno’s bull for 85 points at the Ontario, California, BlueDEF Tour event. Lima, who has ridden five of his last six, will first face Bobby (12-3, BFTS) in Round 1.

Robson Palermo once again finished in second-place for the second time this season despite going 4-for-4 in Anaheim.

Palermo has the third-highest riding percentage (71.43 percent) among BFTS riders and his 10 qualified rides is second-most on tour. The three-time World Finals event winner has drawn Heart Break (1-0, BFTS) in Round 1.

Joao Ricardo Vieira will look to earn a BFTS-best 15^th qualified ride when he squares off against Yahoo (0-1, BFTS) in Round 1.

Wallace de Oliveira continues to surprise others with his strong start to 2016. The 36-year-old rookie has already set career highs in qualified rides (seven) and Top-10 finishes (two) through just four events. He faces Big Enough (3-2, BFTS) in Round 1. Cooper Davis won Round 2 in Anaheim with an 87.25-point ride on Big Enough.

Fabiano Vieira enters Sacramento with three consecutive buckoffs. He will attempt to end the streak against Americana (10-9, BFTS) in Round 1.

TIER B: O Canada

Tanner Byrne heads into Sleep Train Arena fresh off his first career win and has brought his riding percentage back above 50 percent. Byrne is a career 45.98 percent rider on the BFTS, but the problem is his tall, lanky body sometimes can cost him a few points. He may not be a rider who can single-handedly carry your fantasy team to victory, but he is certainly a very strong partner in crime to have on the roster.

Byrne has drawn Wired Crazy (1-0, BFTS) in Round 1.

Derek Kolbaba was a perfect 4-for-4, including his 89.75-point winning ride during the 15/15 Bucking Battle, last weekend in Anaheim before being bucked off by Moving On Up in the Built Ford Tough Championship Round.

The 19-year-old will hope to get another stab at his first-career win in Sacramento when he takes on Blowing Smoke (2-1, BFTS) in Round 1. He then gets a familiar foe in Round 2 on Saturday against Bottom’s Up, who he rode for 87 points in Anaheim.

Two-time World Champion J.B. Mauney returns to competition after missing the final two rounds of Anaheim because of an illness. Mauney had ridden three straight before bucking off in Round 1. He has drawn Hash Tag (1-0, BFTS) in Sacramento.

TIER C: Proctor a strong option

Shane Proctor continues to make the 8-second whistle on the BFTS this season and he is 7-for-13 (53.85 percent) through the first four events. Proctor is tied for sixth on the BFTS in qualified rides.

Proctor has drawn Spin City (1-0, BFTS) in Round 1, while he has a rematch against Fire & Smoke (22-8, BFTS) in Round 2. Fire & Smoke bucked off Proctor in 2.35 seconds last season in Springfield, Missouri. Chad Berger’s bucking bull has been ridden in two consecutive outs, most recently by Joao Ricardo Vieira last weekend for 85 points.

While it is still hard to trust Lachlan Richardson to consistently make the 8-second whistle, the 23-year-old has a favorable Round 1 matchup and is coming off a season-best 2-for-4 performance in Anaheim. It was Richardson’s first two-ride weekend since last February in Kansas City, Missouri.

If fantasy players are willing to roll the dice, Richardson has drawn El Capitan in Round 1. El Capitan has not bucked off a rider on the BFTS level in five career outs.

Three-time World Champion Silvano Alves heads into Sacramento with three consecutive buckoffs. He will try to reverse his fortunes in the first round against Jump Street (1-0, BFTS) before getting a rematch against Mr. Clark. Alves, who has a career-low 46.15 percent riding average so far this season, rode Mr. Clark for 87.75 points at the 2014 World Finals during his 6-for-6 event winning run.

Be wary of Stormy Wing. The 26-year-old has bucked off 11 in a row to start the season and 14 overall dating back to last year. Yet it is hard to criticize Wing’s competition level this season, he just simply hasn’t been able to break out of his funk, and five of his buckoffs have come past 7 seconds.

Wing has drawn Legacy (6-2, BFTS).

Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko

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