Cowboys Feeding Off Brotherhood-Like Bond as Success Continues
By: Justin Felisko
RIDGEDALE, Mo. – 2016 World Champion Cooper Davis will sometimes be sitting in the Carolina Cowboys locker room and give his teammate Mason Taylor a friendly reminder while he does his best C.T. Fletcher impression.
“Somebody has to be the baddest, and there’s somebody that’s always badder,’” Davis will tell Taylor.
“He then looks at me and says ‘Naw, Mama, somebody’s gotta be the baddest!’” Taylor explains.
Davis has always been a huge believer in Taylor, and it was no surprise the Cowboys made a draft night trade at the 2022 PBR Team Series Draft, presented by ZipRecruiter, with the Texas Rattlers to acquire Taylor alongside reigning World Champion Daylon Swearingen.
While it was expected for Swearingen to lead the Cowboys, Taylor has been right there alongside Swearingen helping push the Cowboys to the No. 1 ranking in the PBR Team Series.
Taylor began things for Carolina (13-7) in its 264.5-88.75 victory over the Missouri Thunder (10-10) at Thunder Days on Friday night with an 88.5-point ride on Theodore.
The 23-year-old is 12-for-23 and third in the MVP race behind leaders Jose Vitor Leme (13-for-18) and Swearingen (13-for-18).
“There’s only a couple people that I can listen to about riding and a couple people I can talk to because they understand as well as I understand it or whatever,” Taylor said. “It may not be the best way to understand it, but I can click with them and Cooper is one of them that I can click with. Me and him kind of have a big brother, little brother thing, but I’m glad he’s back though, because it’s sure helping my riding.”
With Swearingen competing in Minot, North Dakota, this weekend in pursuit of Chad Berger’s $100,000 King of the North title, Taylor slid into the leadoff role for Carolina and Davis shifted to Swearingen’s closer position.
Davis clinched Carolina its league-leading 13th win of the season with 87.25 points on Big Deal after Boudreaux Campbell chipped in 88.75 points on Big Sugar earlier in the game.
“I like being the starter or the closer,” Davis said. “A lot of pressure on both ends, but I’ve always liked it. It’s really important (to get the win) coming into this weekend, especially having Daylon going up north to try and try and seal that deal. If we can stay on our grind this week and throughout the rest of the season, keep putting space in there on games like tonight where there are other teams that are right on our tail that lost.”
No. 3 Arizona (11-8-1), No. 4 Austin (10-10) and No. 5 Missouri (10-10) all lost on the opening night of Thunder Days.
Swearingen is leading the King of the North title race and he is third in Minot with a 2-for-2 start to the event.
Arizona (11-8-1) and Carolina (13-7) square off on Saturday night at Thunder Ridge Nature Arena (8:45 p.m. ET RidePass on Pluto TV). Arizona is winless (0-3) against Carolina this season.
Meanwhile, Carolina is 5-2 since Davis made his season-debut at Cowboy Days following a six-plus month recovery from two left shoulder surgeries.
“Cooper is Captain America, so I guess I have to step up and be Iron Man or something,” Taylor said in Oklahoma City. “Well, Daylon might be Iron Man, but I’m the guy with the arrow. We’re all a team, man!
Taylor continued with the Marvel analogy this weekend in Missouri.
“I’m trying more and more every weekend to get Daylon’s spot as Iron Man,” Taylor added in laughter. Nah, I’m just kidding man. Coop, he does nothing but good for the sport. He’s been my mentor since I came on tour, so, my God man, it’s surreal to be able to grow up and watch somebody and idolize somebody and he’s the captain on your team.”
Davis is giving credit to Taylor, though.
“I don’t think I have anything to do with it,” Davis said. “Mason is a good rider and we definitely feed off of each other. He’s kind of like the little brother who picks you up and picks on you and I’m the older brother who picks on him, so we feed off each other and it’s good to have him around.”
Taylor has the utmost respect for all Davis is doing for him even if Davis may not be ready to take the credit.
“He doesn’t cut me any slack,” Taylor said. “It’s different when he’s not riding, because he can’t say the things he would normally say because he’s not fixin’ to do it himself. I feel like there’s a reason why I really turned a corner when I broke my jaw (at the 2021 World Finals) and he was a big part of it. There’s certain things that he says and certain things that he does like going out there and whooping something and it fires me up.
“He instils in our head to get the job done, and every time I slide up and nod, he goes ‘win every jump’ so I try to.”
SATURDAY GAME SCHEDULE (8:45 p.m. ET)
Nashville (5-14-1, Freedom Fest 0-1) vs. Missouri (10-10, Freedom Fest 0-1)*
Oklahoma (12-8, Freedom Fest 1-0) vs. Austin (10-10, Freedom Fest 0-1)
Texas (8-12, Freedom Fest 1-0) vs. Kansas City (8-12, Freedom Fest 1-0)
Carolina (13-7, Freedom Fest 1-0) vs. Arizona Ridge Riders (Freedom Fest 0-1)
*CBS Game of the Week | Airs Sunday at 3 p.m. ET Sunday on CBS
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
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