Proctor has South Point in Position to Control its Sioux Falls Playoff Destiny Against Team Boot Barn
By: Justin Felisko
PUEBLO, Colo. – Team South Point General Manager Colby Yates will have no problem dishing out another steak dinner to Shane Proctor if the 35-year-old can once again help lead South Point to victory on Sunday morning.
Proctor delivered Team South Point (3-2) its third win at the Monster Energy Team Challenge, presented by U.S. Border Patrol, Saturday night with his ride on High Razor being all South Point needed to defeat Team Cat (0-5) 88.75-0.
Team South Point (3-2) now controls its destiny to qualify for Championship Weekend in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on July 10-12.
All the team needs is a win over No. 4 Team Boot Barn (2-2-1) Sunday at 11:45 a.m. ET on CBS Sports Network and it is playoff bound.
“It is really important for us,” Proctor told PBR.com via phone on Saturday night. “To make Sioux Falls, that is what we are here for. We don’t show up to lose. We show up to make it.
“We all know we have a job to do, and we all know what our job is. We have an understanding is that is what you need to do to get a win. Whatever it takes.”
Proctor previously rode High Razor four years ago for 86.75 points at the premier series event in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
“They don’t ride him a whole lot,” Proctor said. “He is small and electric. Tonight was a pretty dang cool ride. He kind of got caught up in the gate there for a second, and it just felt like everything was going right.”
Proctor has been carrying South Point throughout Division B competition since being added to the team as a last-minute injury replacement for 2012 PRCA champion Cody Teel days before the competition started.
The 35-year-old is 4-for-9 in five games, and he has all three of the team’s winning rides.
“I owe Shane Proctor a steak dinner, and maybe a couple more,” Yates said on RidePass following his team’s nail-biting victory.
Proctor laughed when told about Yates’s comments.
The Grand Coulee, Washington, native joked Yates owes him at least three steaks now.
The good news for Yates is that Proctor isn’t picky when it comes to steak.
“Whatever is cheap and medium rare,” Proctor said. “I don’t care. Food is food. I like food.”
Team South Point would love to celebrate a playoff berth Sunday with a steak dinner if it can get past Team Boot Barn, which has a victory and a tie this weekend to put itself in position to reach the postseason with a victory Sunday.
The winner of the game will join No. 1 Team Ariat and No. 2 Team Pendleton Whisky in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for Championship Weekend on July 10-12 as the Top 3 teams from Division B. Ariat and Pendleton Whisky face off at 1 p.m. ET on CBS national television for the Division B title.
The three Division B qualifiers will then join Team Cooper Tires, Team Las Vegas and Team Can-Am in Sioux Falls.
It will be an early morning with South Point and Boot Barn squaring off at 8:45 a.m. locally in Las Vegas.
Proctor plans to wake up at 4:30 a.m. to begin his pre-event stretching routine and then get a second stretch from the PBR Sports Medicine Team.
“I just want to make sure I am awake, too,” Proctor added. “I am not a morning person. Luckily, that is only six in Oklahoma time. That does go to our advantage. I want to make sure I am awake and ready to go.”
The early start time did not affect Proctor last weekend as he went 2-for-2 to single-handedly help South Point defeat Boot Barn 172.5-0.
Proctor has drawn Holy Water and Check It Out for Sunday’s play-in game. Holy Water bucked Proctor off in 7.12 seconds on Friday night.
Boot Barn will be a fiercer test this time around with the addition of Andrew Alvidrez. The 2020 Rookie of the Year contender is 3-for-4 at the METC this weekend. Boot Barn Team Captain Daylon Swearingen has also decided to sub J.C. Mortensen into the starting lineup Sunday for Braden Richardson.
“This is going to be a real battle,” two-time World Champion and CBS Sports Network commentator Justin McBride said on CBSSN on Saturday night. “If tonight was any indicator, it might not entail a lot of qualified rides, but it is going to have to revolve around Shane Proctor if South Point wants to get that spot into the playoffs. Shane Proctor has really led this team the entire competition.”
Team South Point is only 8-for-30 in Division B play, but has continuously found ways to win when its back is against the wall. Boot Barn is 7-for-30.
“They don’t ask how ugly it was when they put your name on the check,” Proctor said. “We did win by 88.75 points tonight. It is a big win. It is a confidence-builder.
“I guess we don’t do good in the first rounds (on Friday nights), so we always come back on Saturday and Sunday and kick ass.”
Professional Bull Riders – Team Challenge – Game 32
Las Vegas, NV, 2020
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Shane Proctor, 88.75-0-88.75
Alex Cerqueira, 0-0-0.00
Joao Henrique Lucas, 0-0-0.00
Manoelito de Souza Junior, 0-0-0.00
Cody Nance, 0-0-0.00
Clayton Sellars, 0-0-0.00
Denton Fugate, 0-0-0.00
Aaron Pass, 0-0-0.00
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
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