Kolbaba Wins Round 1 in Uniondale

UNIONDALE, N.Y. – Derek Kolbaba (Walla Walla, Washington) entered the PBR’s (Professional Bull Riders) Buck Off the Island, presented by Cooper Tires event, mired in a slump and in need of points to keep up in the increasingly tight World Championship race. He came through in a big way with a Round 1-win Saturday night at NYCB Live, home of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Kolbaba rode Loan Shark (JQH Bucking Bulls/Bar 3D/Wallgren) for 87.25 points to win his fourth Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) round of the season. The ride broke a 0-for-13 streak for the sophomore bull rider, who last recorded a ride back in August during Round 2 of the Music City Knockout in Nashville, Tennessee. For the Round 1 victory, Kolbaba earned 100 world points and $3,580.

Ranked No. 5 in the world, Kolbaba currently trails No. 1 Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil) by 1,180 points heading into Championship Sunday. Pacheco recorded a qualified ride in Round 1 but did not place high enough to earn any world points.

World No. 3 Eduardo Aparecido (Gouvelandia, Brazil) finished in second place on Saturday night, gaining crucial ground on Pacheco. Aparecido covered Black Ice (Broken Arrow Bucking Bulls) for 86.5 points on his way to 60 world points and $2,750.

Aparecido trails Pacheco by 100 points heading into the last day of competition in Long Island.

Stetson Lawrence (Williston, North Dakota) came in third place after turning in an 85.5-point trip aboard Southern Wind (Torres Brothers). The ride was Lawrence’s third in his last 10 outs and it helped him net 50 world points and $2,000.

A pair of rookies tied for fourth place as Brennon Eldred (Sulphur, Oklahoma) and Jordan Hansen (Okotokos, Canada) turned in matching 85.25-point rides. Eldred reached 8 seconds aboard Trick Shot (Deer Prairie Creek Bucking Bulls) while Hansen covered Road Rage (Broken Arrow Bucking Bulls) for his second career BFTS ride.

Each rider earned 35 world points and $1,075 for the effort.

Brazilian Ramon de Lima (Sao Paolo) rounded out the Top 6 when he rode Ram It (K-C/Josie McElroy Bucking Bulls/Sparklin’ Acres) for 85 points. Lima pocketed 15 world points and $600 heading into Championship Sunday.

The Top 35 bull riders in the world will return to Nassau Coliseum for Championship Sunday. Each rider will face one more bull in Round 2 before the Top 15 move on to the Built Ford Tough Championship Round where a winner will be crowned.

Sunday’s action will begin at 1:30 p.m. ET Sept. 24 on PBR LIVE and the PBR LIVE app, which are both free to fans. CBS Sports Network will also broadcast the action starting at 6 p.m. ET.

PBR Digital Editor Kristian Limas contributed to this report. 

Professional Bull Riders Built Ford Tough Series
Buck Off the Island, presented by Cooper Tires
Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale, New York
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)

1. Derek Kolbaba, 87.25-0-0-87.25-100 Points.
2. Eduardo Aparecido, 86.5-0-0-86.50-60 Points.
3. Stetson Lawrence, 85.5-0-0-85.50-50 Points.
4. Brennon Eldred, 85.25-0-0-85.25-35 Points.
(tie). Jordan Hansen, 85.25-0-0-85.25-35 Points.
6. Ramon de Lima, 85-0-0-85.00-15 Points.
7. Chase Outlaw, 84.75-0-0-84.75-5 Points.
8. Luciano De Castro, 84.25-0-0-84.25
9. Dener Barbosa, 83.25-0-0-83.25
10. Stormy Wing, 82.75-0-0-82.75
11. Guilherme Marchi, 82-0-0-82.00
12. Brock Radford, 81.75-0-0-81.75
13. Emilio Resende, 81.25-0-0-81.25
14. Claudio Montanha Jr., 72.75-0-0-72.75
15. Luis Blanco, 72.5-0-0-72.50
16. Kaique Pacheco, 71.75-0-0-71.75
Jess Lockwood, 0-0-0-0.00
Cooper Davis, 0-0-0-0.00
Matt Triplett, 0-0-0-0.00
Joao Ricardo Vieira, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Teel, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Nance, 0-0-0-0.00
Rubens Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Marco Antonio Eguchi, 0-0-0-0.00
Shane Proctor, 0-0-0-0.00
Silvano Alves, 0-0-0-0.00
Gage Gay, 0-0-0-0.00
Mike Lee, 0-0-0-0.00
Koal Livingston, 0-0-0-0.00
Dakota Buttar, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Campbell, 0-0-0-0.00
Nathan Burtenshaw, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Rodeo Tyler, 0-0-0-0.00
J.W. Harris, 0-0-0-0.00
Lachlan Richardson, 0-0-0-0.00
Colten Jesse, 0-0-0-0.00