Top 17 Rides of the First Half: No. 12

PUEBLO, Colo. – The first half of the 2017 Built Ford Tough Series season was a five-month stretch filled with everything from surprise surges, comeback victories and continued excellence from the world’s best bull riders.

The 2017 World Championship race is far from clear, but the first half provided an insightful preview of what’s to come in the homestretch to the 2017 Built Ford Tough World Finals.

The first half featured dominance from the future stars of the sport, an amazing run from a veteran Brazilian, an unexpected rise and a ride the etched a legend’s name into the history books. Over the next few weeks, PBR.com will countdown the top rides from the first half and look forward to the second half where a World Champion will be crowned.

With 17 days remaining before the return of the BFTS in Tulsa, Oklahoma, PBR.com will countdown the Top 17 rides of the first half.

You can witness that next great moment by purchasing tickets for the 2017 World Finals, where the PBR’s best will return to T-Mobile Arena Nov. 1-5.

Chase Outlaw: 90.5 points on Cooper Tires Brown Sugar (Sioux Falls, South Dakota)

Chase Outlaw was all smiles once he knew he would be facing Cooper Tires Brown Sugar as his re-ride bull at the 15/15 Bucking Battle in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. After Jess Lockwood’s 90.25-point ride on BC Circular Insanity, Outlaw knew he had to deliver to secure a victory.

He delivered with a 90.5-point ride on Chad Berger’s bovine athlete, the first time in three tries that Outlaw managed to reach the 8-second buzzer against the bull.

 
“I was excited as could be when I found out I had Brown Sugar for the re-ride,” Outlaw said. “That bull just feels good and rides good. If you stub your toe on him, he is going to buck you off.”

The ride was a big step for Outlaw, who had come up just short of event victories on multiple occasions this season. Now solidly in the Top 10 of the world standings, Outlaw is in the hunt for his first World Championship.