Chiseled Heading into World Finals Full of Momentum and Fresh off Second Consecutive PRCA Bull of the Year Title

By: Justin Felisko

PUEBLO, Colo. – H.D. Page knows he has quite the lottery ticket in his pocket with reigning PRCA Bull of the Year Chiseled. It can be easy to wonder about what could potentially happen at the 2021 PBR World Finals next month with his YETI World Champion contending bull.

However, it is just conversation fodder for D&H Cattle Company.

There are so many variables out of Page’s control, including what world No. 1 Woopaa may do at the Finals, that all he can do is trust his bovine superstar and be proud of all he has already accomplished this year.

“You can’t do anything about things you can’t control,” Page told PBR.com on Monday. “All I can do is keep Chiseled in good shape to buck, and hopefully he performs at his best, and that is about all I can do. Everything else I am not really concerned about. I try not to give it any thought. It is just a conversation piece is all about what it amounts to. It is kind of like buying a lottery ticket. You talk about what you are going to do if you win, but at the end of the day, you don’t do anything different.”

Chiseled has certainly been a good ticket to have this season.

The 6-year-old was most recently named the 2021 Pendleton Whisky Let ‘er Buck PRCA Bull of the Year last week. PRCA bull riders determine the PRCA Bull of the Year award via a vote, whereas the PBR crowns its World Champion Bull using a points system. Chiseled (29 points) beat out Smoke Stack (23 points) and Resistol’s Cliff Hanger (16 points) for the PRCA’s top bovine honor.

The 6-year-old bull is the first back-to-back PRCA Bull of the Year in 13 years and seventh since the mid-1970s. Voodoo Child was the last back-to-back PRCA Bull of the Year (2007-08).

“It is cool,” Page said. “There are not a lot of back-to-backs. There was a good bull in the race (Smoke Stack) that I was hearing about, so I wouldn’t say I was confident. I was just hoping for the best, but I was expecting to probably win second.”

 
In the late spring, there was a moment where it could have been hard to envision Chiseled making a run at the 2021 YETI World Champion Bull title or the PRCA’s Bull of the Year honors.

Chiseled seemed a little bit sluggish and softer compared to his first two outs of the year in February when he began the 2021 season with 46.5 and 47-point outs in Texas. Chiseled was ridden in four consecutive outs in March and April, all for 89.5 points or higher, and Page wondered if maybe his bull needed some time off.

Page believed Chiseled, who was expected to be a YETI World Champion Bull contender in the PBR, had what it took to also make a run at a second consecutive PRCA Bull of the Year title. He wasn’t truly concerned, but he also wondered how Chiseled could handle a summer rodeo run.

The longtime stock contractor doubled down on his bull, though. Page gave Chiseled a well-deserved month off, and that certainly seemed to do the trick. Chiseled returned on June 24 with a monstrous 46.5-point bull score for bucking off Trey Benton in Greeley, Colorado.

A few trips outdoors during the summer run would help Chiseled turn the corner and get his season back on track.

Page’s instincts were correct. Chiseled slowly began to re-emerge as one of the best bucking bulls in the world, posting a 5-2 record (46.25 points) in the PRCA on his way to being named the 2021 Pendleton Whisky Let ‘er Buck PRCA Bull of the Year.

“He got seasoned,” Page said. “I have always felt those bulls are better with more outs. I don’t know how to get one in what I call hauling shape without hauling them. That is just kind of the way it is. If you are going to make a run at the PRCA Bull of the Year, you have to be prepared to buck them more. There is a lot more traveling, and you are in and out of facilities.”

Chiseled will have the next two weeks off before bucking at the 2021 PBR World Finals on Nov. 3-7 at T-Mobile Arena. The No. 2-ranked bull in the YETI World Championship race trails No. 1 Woopaa by 0.56 points.

The 2021 YETI World Champion Bull will be the animal with the highest average bull score from their top eight regular-season outs and two outs at the PBR World Finals.

Chiseled has a World Champion Bull average of 46.38 and is 10-4 overall in PBR competition with an average bull score of 45.38 points.

 
The 2019 ABBI Classic champion lost about 150 pounds during the summer run, and the leaner bucking machine was a stout challenger for the Top 35 riders in the world on the Unleash The Beast. Chiseled went 7-1 in the second half with an average bull score of 46.03 points. In comparison, Woopaa averaged 46.95 points per out as he was ridden for an average of 95.75 points in all five outs.

Two weeks ago, Chiseled capped his regular season with a 46.25-point bull score for bucking off Cody Jesus in 3.25 seconds in Deadwood, South Dakota.

Chiseled has bucked 10 more times at all levels of competition compared to Woopaa, who has only bucked in 10 Unleash The Beast events.

Page said every contractor has to develop their own special formula for their bulls. Some animals need to buck more, while others need more time off. There is no one-size-fits-all approach.

“It is kind of whatever works,” Page said. “You don’t have to buck them 20 times. They just have to get eight outs to qualify for the (PBR) world title race. They are all different. That is kind of a testament to most good trainers; they get to know each bull individually and kind of get to know what they need or whatever. Woopaa has been great. You can’t knock him.”

TOP 5 YETI WORLD CHAMPION BULL STANDINGS

1. Woopaa (46.94 World Champion Bull Average)
2. Chiseled (46.38)
3. Mezcal (45.78)
4. Ridin Solo (45.59)
5. Marquis Metal Works Coriolis Effect (45.5)

Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko

Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media

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