Road to Vegas: Richardson Undergoes Surgery to Repair Broken Collarbone with Goal of Returning for World Finals
By: Justin Felisko
PUEBLO, Colo. – Austin Richardson joked over the weekend that he may have gained “a few pounds” with the amount of hardware Dr. Tandy Freeman used to fix his broken right collarbone last week.
The bigger weight going forward, though, will be that of uncertainty as Richardson keeps an eye on the world standings during the final three weeks of the season before the 2021 PBR World Finals begins on Nov. 3 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Richardson is currently 28th in the world standings with two Unleash The Beast regular-season events, two Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour regular-season events, the Velocity Tour Finals (Oct. 30-31 at the South Point Arena & Equestrian Center) and one Touring Pro Division event remaining on the PBR schedule.
“My plan is to go to the Finals,” Richardson told PBR.com over the weekend. “I have a checkup in two weeks with Tandy to see if I can get cleared to ride. The surgery went well, and I feel good.”
Richardson is also sixth in the 2021 Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour standings and is in contention for the $50,000 Velocity Tour championship.
According to Richardson, Freeman used 13 screws and a plate to fix the fracture, which occurred when Capone bucked him off in 5.68 seconds at the PBR U.S. Border Patrol Invitational, presented by Ariat, in San Antonio on Oct. 3.
Richardson is 105 points ahead of No. 38 Adriano Salgado.
In fact, 188.5 points separates No. 28 Richardson and No. 41 Fernando Henrique Novais.
The Top 35 healthy/active riders in the world standings qualify for the World Finals. The possible cutoff in November could be No. 37 in the world standings, with No. 24 Colten Fritzlan (reconstructive shoulder surgery) out for the remainder of the season and No. 23 Alex Cerqueira currently in Brazil. Of course, that target line could move if other riders are injured before the Finals or if Fritzlan/Cerqueira were to drop out of the Top 35.
Here is a look at the World Finals cutline heading into next weekend’s PBR Monster Energy Invitational in Manchester, New Hampshire.
No. 30 Andrew Alvidrez (264.75 world points)
No. 31 Cole Melancon (263.5)
No. 32 Ezekiel Mitchell (249)
No. 33 Manoelito de Souza Jr. (223)
No. 34 Cody Nance (198.16)
No. 35 Conner Halverson (189 points)
No. 36 Taylor Toves (187 points)
No. 37 Thiago Salgado (184 points)
No. 38 Adriano Salgado (171 points)
No. 39 Lucas Divino (166 points)
No. 31 Cole Melancon told PBR.com Monday that he will undergo an MRI on his left knee this week to see the extent of his injuries from this past weekend’s PBR Union Home Mortgage Invitational, presented by Bass Pro Shops, in Greensboro, North Carolina. According to Dr. Freeman, it is believed Melancon has completely torn his MCL and partially torn his PCL. Melancon is hopeful he will still be able to compete at the World Finals despite his injuries.
No. 32 Ezekiel Mitchell helped himself push towards a third consecutive World Finals appearance with a sixth-place finish in Greensboro courtesy of an 87.25-point ride on King Brute.
“Honestly, if I had to say something about this season, it is I have learned a lot about myself,” Mitchell said. “It has been a season of a lot of minor injuries that I have not had to deal with in the past. So it really has kind of weighed on me, but we are getting things turned around.”
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
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