Cerqueira Earns First Velocity Tour Win in Charleston

By: Easton Colvin

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C.– Before a capacity crowd inside North Charleston Coliseum, Brazil’s Alex Cerqueira (Iguatemi, Brazil) was the only rider to go a perfect 2-for-2, winning the one-night-only North Charleston Invitational.

After taking care of business in Round 1 aboard Space Plane (Mike Miller Bucking Bulls) for 84 points, Cerqueira was in a tie for seventh place heading into the 10-man championship round.

A newcomer to the U.S. in 2020, Cerqueira dueled with Jaywalker (Torres Brothers Bucking Bulls LLC) in the championship round, making the 8-second whistle and the pair were marked 88 points.

As the only rider to go a perfect 2-for-2, Cerqueira earned his first Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour (PWVT) win, taking home 37 world points and the top prize of $7,900. Cerqueira is now the No. 40 rider in the world, and earned an automatic bid to the elite Unleash The Beast (UTB) event in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in April.

Fellow Brazilian Amadeu Campos Silva (Atair, Brazil) earned second place, getting the crowd going in Round 1 with an 89.5-point trip aboard La Grande (Davis Rodeo Ranch/Speers), earning him the round win.

Round 2 ended in disappointing fashion for Silva, as he hit the deck in 5.87 seconds on Just AL (Rickey West Bucking Bulls).

The second-place finish earned Silva $4,700 and 27 world points, bumping him to No. 24 in the world.

Mauricio Gula Moreira (Gaviao Peixoto, Brazil) took home the honor of third place, covering Blue Print (Mike Miller Bucking Bulls) for 87 points in Round 1, placing him in second for the round. The championship round ended in 4.28 seconds for Moreira, when he was bucked off of Choctaw Bingo (Rickey West Bucking Bulls/Hatcher Porter).

The Brazilian earned $3,000 on his trip to the East Coast, and took home 14 world points. Another newcomer to the U.S., Moreira is now the No. 43 rider in the world rankings.

The highest-marked American at the event, Cody Dollins (Waco, Texas) was cool and collected in Round 1, as he took Freaked Out (Davis Rodeo Inc.) to the whistle for a ride marked 86 points.

Monsoon (Rickey West Bucking Bulls) proved too much for the Texan during the championship round, dispatching Dollins in 3.73 seconds.

Dollins earned $1,570 for his fourth-place finish, and 7.5 world points. The world points pushed him inside the Top 100, to the No. 91 spot in the world standings.

Junio Quaresima (Meridiano, Brazil), who was an UTB regular during the 2019 season, finished tied for fourth on the night as Zacchaeus (Davis Rodeo Ranch/Fogle) provided the bull power for an 86-point ride in Round 1.

Quaresima’s championship round draw Pneu-Dart’s Big Time (Miller/Halpain) was too hot to handle, slinging the Brazilian to the ground in under two seconds.

Along with 7.5 world points, Quaresima took home $1,570 on Saturday night.

Previous PWVT winner in 2020 Joseph McConnel (Bloomfield, New Mexico) was fifth on the night. Matching Boosie (Deer Prairie Creek Bucking Bulls/5S Bucking Bulls) move for move in Round 1, McConnel was marked 85 points on his only ride of the night.

Millennium’s Buck (Torres Brothers Bucking Bulls LLC) was the New Mexico native’s opponent in the championship round, which lasted 3.71 seconds.

McConnel took home four world points along with $560 for his performance.

Fans can relive every out of the 2020 North Charleston Invitational on Sunday, March 1 at 8 a.m. ET via RidePass.com or the RidePass mobile app.

The PWVT returns to action in six days with a three-night event in Bangor, Maine, on Friday, March 6.

Professional Bull Riders Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour
North Charleston Invitational
North Charleston Coliseum – North Charleston, South Carolina
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Event Aggregate-Event Points)

1. Alex Cerqueira, 84-88-172.00-37.5 Points.
2. Amadeu Campos Silva, 89.5-0-89.50-27 Points.
3. Mauricio Gula Moreira, 87-0-87.00-14 Points.
4. Junio Quaresima, 86-0-86.00-7.5 Points.
(tie). Cody Dollins, 86-0-86.00-7.5 Points.
6. Joseph McConnel, 85-0-85.00-4 Points.
7. Brady Fielder, 84.5-0-84.50-3 Points.
8. Dylan Smith, 84-0-84.00-0.5 Points.
9. Andrew Alvidrez, 83.5-0-83.50
10. Eli Vastbinder, 82.5-0-82.50
(tie). Eli Byler, 82.5-0-82.50
12. Leandro Machado, 81.5-0-81.50
Cody Casper, 0-0-0.00
Dakota Louis, 0-0-0.00
Wallace Vieira de Oliveira, 0-0-0.00
Lindomar Lino, 0-0-0.00
Junio Patrik Souza, 0-0-0.00
Paulo Ferreira Lima, 0-0-0.00
Tyler Werner, 0-0-0.00
Romildo Rodrigues, 0-0-0.00
Venn Johns, 0-0-0.00
Lucas Fideles Souza, 0-0-0.00
Ouncie Mitchell, 0-0-0.00
Keith Hall, 0-0-0.00
Gage Gay, 0-0-0.00
Alex Cardozo, 0-0-0.00
Kyle Jones, 0-0-0.00
Lawson Nobbs, 0-0-0.00
Carlos Garcia, 0-0-0.00
Seth White, 0-0-0.00
Ueberson Duarte, 0-0-0.00
Thor Hoefer II, 0-0-0.00
Triston Dean, 0-0-0.00
Alex Marcilio, 0-0-0.00
Paul Knight, 0-0-0.00
Devin Hager, 0-0-0.00
Eli Miller, 0-0-0.00
Jake Goodson, 0-0-0.00
Sean Willingham, 0-0-0.00
Jacob Dunning, 0-0-0.00

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