Torres Looks To Become First Mexican Iron Cowboy Winner
By: Justin Felisko
PUEBLO, Colo. – 2017 PBR Mexico champion Francisco Morales put his arm around Francisco Garcia Torres and pointed at Torres’ chest.
The elder statesman of PBR Mexico then leaned back in his chair inside Qudos Bank Arena last June and looked at Torres.
“He’s pretty good,” Morales said. “He can be in the Top 35. He’s pretty young, but he is riding like one of the Top 25 guys on tour, so he needs to try his best to get better. He’s got a lot of talent. He got a lot of passion. He’s really dedicated. He can be a good bull rider.”
Torres smiled bashfully once Morales translated what he had said in English.
A month earlier, Torres made his PBR premier series debut as a Hispanic invite to Last Cowboy Standing, bucking off Mean Face in 1.69 seconds.
Morales, though, said in Sydney, Australia, to be patient with Torres, and that within due time Torres will adjust and be ready for the United States.
The two were sitting by themselves inside the locker room during the second leg of the Global Cup, and Morales could not stop talking about the young kid from Saltillo, Mexico.
Torres, 21, is one of the most decorated young bull riding champions in Mexico with back-to-back national titles in the Federación Mexicana de Rodeo in 2015 and 2016, a PRCA Mexico championship in 2016 and a 2016 tour victory in the Cuernos Chuecos.
Following his 1-for-3 showing for Team Mexico at the Sydney Global Cup last summer, Torres went on to hold off Morales for the 2018 PBR Mexico championship.
It was the latest championship for the bull rider who grew up on a ranch with 50 head of beef cattle about 30 minutes outside of the capital of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila.
“When I was a kid, I started riding sheep and little calves at my grandfather’s ranch,” Torres said with the help of Morales translating. “I’m a first generation bull rider. All my family were cowboys. They’re ranchers. They’ve got cows and sell beef cattle.”
Torres attempted his first steer at 6 years old and studied videos of two-time World Champion Justin McBride as a kid. He considers himself a primarily self-taught bull rider.
“I try to ride with an American style, so I’m trying to learn by watching videos and rides from Justin and watching other professional cowboys in Mexico,” Torres said.
Six days after he won the 2018 PBR Mexico championship, Torres rode Valentine for 86 points at the 2018 Velocity Tour Finals in Las Vegas to earn himself the Wild Card bid for the 2018 PBR World Finals.
Torres had qualified for the PBR World Finals five months after Morales’ comments.
The rankest bulls in the world got the best of Torres, though, as he went 0-for-5. It did not take away from his happiness of reaching the pinnacle event of the sport so quickly.
Torres’ struggles have him motivated for 2019.
“It was a dream come true, and that is the biggest accomplishment I have had so far,” Torres said. “If you truly believe in something, you can accomplish it. I realized that last year and I am going to try and do it again.”
Torres next big test comes this weekend in Los Angeles at Iron Cowboy, presented by Ariat.
He is a Hispanic invite and will be one of 40 riders competing for a minimum payday of $100,000 and potentially 1,250 points toward the world standings.
Torres takes on Honey Man (0-0, UTB) in Round 1 on Friday night at STAPLES Center.
It will be the second consecutive marquee event for Torres after he went 1-for-4 for Team Mexico at the WinStar World Casino & Resort Global Cup USA, presented by Monster Energy, in Arlington, Texas, two weeks ago.
“I’m happy to represent Mexico, especially with all the best bull riders in Mexico,” Torres said. “I’m very young, so I want to prove how good I am to all these people.”
No Mexican-born bull rider has won a PBR Major since the PBR began the series of events in 2015.
In fact, it has been almost 13 years since a Mexican rider won a PBR premier series event. Rocky McDonald won the 2006 Built Ford Tough Series event in Greensboro, North Carolina.
“Well, it would be an honor and a satisfaction to win an event of this level,” Torres said. “I dreamed of someday being able to ride in PBR in the United States, and thank God I am doing it now and I hope God allows me to achieve it.”
Team Mexico coach Gerardo Venegas has the only other victory for a Mexican native in PBR history with his 2003 victory in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Venegas said in Arlington that he sees plenty of potential in Torres, but he hopes the young bull rider can stick with the sport that can quickly humble a non-native rider in the United States.
“He has a lot of future ahead of him if he keeps his head straight,” Venegas said. “It is just a matter of sticking with it. Stay here. They all have the talent to put it together. The hard part is this caliber of bulls, they won’t give you a second chance. A little mistake and it is done.”
Torres rode Uncle G for 86.75 points at the Global Cup. He bucked off Million Dollar Baby in 7.54 seconds, Short Pop in 7.4 seconds and Losing My Religion in 3.09 seconds.
Nine-time World Champion Ty Murray was impressed with Torres’ ride in Round 3.
“He really taps off,” Murray said on RidePass. “It looked like he could have sat up there and ate a sandwich. He couldn’t hardly make that look much easier.”
Torres heads into Los Angeles following a 5.65-second buckoff against No Excuses at last weekend’s Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour event in Jacksonville, Florida.
He is 4-for-24 in 13 events on U.S. soil.
“It has been a bit difficult to excel in a country where the level of bull is very different from my country, but it is a matter of time to be able to adjust to the level here,” Torres said.
Torres is hopeful that his time is coming, potentially as soon as this weekend in Los Angeles.
“I am a lot better now that I have been riding more bulls in the United States,” Torres concluded. “I feel a lot more relaxed now and have more confidence in myself now that I have been in the States.”
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
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