Dougherty Leads Round 1 After First Round of Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic
By: Mandi McCary
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – As Sacramento fans cheered, Chase Dougherty (Decatur, Texas) stood on the dirt with a Texas-sized smile as he took the lead in Round 1 of the 2021 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic at Golden 1 Center.
As the lanky, young Texan fired out of the chutes aboard Kent’s Wildside (4B Bucking Bulls), it was obvious he was on a mission to make the 8 and secure his place in the weekend. The crowd roared as his ride received the first and only 90-point score of the night, marking his third of the 2021 season.
Dougherty currently sits at No. 15 in the world standings as he makes a play this weekend to move into the Top 10.
The weekend in Sacramento showcases a unique format for fans, with the three-day event also involving a 15/15 Bucking Battle.
The draw features 65 riders competing in Round 1, which will involve riders split into two groups for the first two nights of competition.
On Friday night, the 25 lowest-ranked riders and the 15 riders competing in Saturday evening’s 15/15 Bucking Battle each attempted one bull. Round 1 will conclude on Saturday with the remaining 25 riders who did not compete Friday attempting one bull each.
For Round 2 on Sunday, all seeded riders for the event will automatically advance, accompanied by any of the 35 invited competitors who logged a qualified ride in Round 1. The 12 bull riders with the top combined ride scores following the first two rounds will advance to the championship round on Sunday.
Close on Dougherty’s heels Friday night was fellow Texan and 2016 PBR World Champion Cooper Davis (Jasper, Texas).
Now sitting in the second-place spot as Round 1 advances, Davis showed true cowboy grit riding three bulls. After technical calls from judges on his first ride, Davis was awarded a re-ride. Upon launching from the chutes on his re-ride bull, judges again determined a re-ride was warranted. Davis, who looked to be in pain after his second ride, then nodded his head yes and prepared for his third bull of the round.
As the last ride of the night, Davis climbed aboard Mr. Winston (Dakota Rodeo/ Mark Baker/ Clay Struve/Chad Berger). In complete control, he collected an 89.75-point score.
Davis, who has made it known he is on the hunt for a second world title, is currently the No. 3-ranked rider in the world, sitting just 108 points behind world No 2., 2018 PBR World Champion Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil).
Both men chase world leader and reigning PBR World Champion Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil), who now holds the third-place spot in Sacramento’s Round 1 after riding 4B Special (4B Bucking Bulls) on Friday night.
His ride score of 89.5 fell just short of the 90 points he needed to surpass 1999 PBR World Champion Cody Hart’s single-season 90-point ride record. As the weekend progresses, Leme is still tied with Hart’s record of 16.
Just five days after winning the PBR Express Ranches Classic in Tulsa, Oklahoma, reigning Rookie of the Year Boudreaux Campbell (Crockett, Texas) continued his hot streak, landing himself in fourth place on the leaderboard.
Campbell’s ride aboard Safety Meeting (Hruby/ Kainz/ Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/ Chad Berger) collected an 88-point ride score for the No. 6-ranked man in the world standings.
Rounding out the Top 5 of the night was North Carolina cowboy Eli Vastbinder (Statesville, North Carolina), who was paired with WSM’s Foghorn Leghorn (WSM Auctioneers/ Clay Struve/ Dakota Rodeo/ Chad Berger) to receive an 86.25-point ride score.
Vastbinder is currently No. 37 in the world standings.
The best bull riders in the world will return to Golden 1 Center on Saturday, Aug. 7 for the continuation of Round 1 of the Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic. The night will also feature a special 15/15 Bucking Battle round.
PBR RidePass on PlutoTV will offer re-airs and on-demand replays of every PBR Unleash The Beast event. PBR RidePass is available on desktops, laptops and mobile devices via www.pluto.tv. Tune to channel 720 for the latest programming schedule.
PBR Unleash The Beast – Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic
Golden 1 Center -Sacramento, California
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Chase Dougherty, 0-90-0-0-90.00
2. Cooper Davis, 0-89.75-0-0-89.75
3. Jose Vitor Leme, 0-89.5-0-0-89.50
4. Boudreaux Campbell, 0-88-0-0-88.00
5. Eli Vastbinder, 0-86.25-0-0-86.25
6. Dalton Krantz, 0-85.75-0-0-85.75
7. Kaique Pacheco, 0-85-0-0-85.00
(tie). Keyshawn Whitehorse, 0-85-0-0-85.00
(tie). Davi Henrique de Lima, 0-85-0-0-85.00
10. Cole Skender, 0-83.75-0-0-83.75
11. Silvano Alves, 0-83.5-0-0-83.50
12. Aaron Williams, 0-77.25-0-0-77.25
Dener Barbosa, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Marco Eguchi, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Derek Kolbaba, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Cody Teel, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Junior Patrik Souza, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Jesse Petri, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Cole Melancon, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Eduardo Aparecido, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Alex Cerqueira, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Cody Nance, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Austin Richardson, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Claudio Montanha Jr., 0-0-0-0-0.00
Dalton Kasel, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Marcelo Procopio Pereira, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Mason Taylor, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Andrew Alvidrez, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Thiago Salgado, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Divino, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Dakota Louis, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Conner Halverson, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Matt Triplett, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Fideles Souza, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Ramon de Lima, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Lane Nobles, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Dalton Rudman, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Hunter Kelly, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Bob Mitchell, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Eli Byler, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Rubens Barbosa, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Casey Coulter, 0-0-0-0-0.00
D.J. Parker, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Aaron Pass, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Adriano Salgado, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Venn Johns, 0-0-0-0-0.00
River Stephenson, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Mason Ward, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Nate Hoey, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Tyler Congleton, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Thor Hoefer II, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Gage Gay, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Ross Freeman, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Justin Houston, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Flávio Vinícius da Silva, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Laramie Craigen, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Andy Guzman, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Riley Gagnon, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Alex Santana, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Junio Quaresima, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Santiago Castellanos, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Marco Juarez, 0-0-0-0-0.00
Alex Guzman, 0-0-0-0-0.00
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