Roster Rundown: Team Stetson Wright

By: Darci Miller

PUEBLO, Colo. – The PBR is back in action, and in a way that you’ve never seen it before.

The PBR Monster Energy Team Challenge, presented by U.S. Border Patrol, will run from June 5-28 at the South Point Hotel Casino and Spa in Las Vegas, and culminate in a Championship Weekend Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on July 10-12 in front of fans. The event will feature 12 teams and 48 bull riders, with each team consisting of four riders, and there will be two divisions of six teams. The Top 3 teams in each division will then qualify for Championship Weekend.

Each of the 12 competing teams will be comprised of three active riders, one of whom is the Captain, an alternate, and a supervisory General Manager.

Division A will hold its first weekend of competition June 5-7, followed by its final weekend of play June 12-14. Teams to be announced in Division B will compete the weekends of June 19-21 and June 26-28. Each night of televised action on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, will feature three games, with each team competing once per night at the Pendleton Whisky Let ‘Er Buck Saloon at South Point Arena.

Each game will be comprised of 12 collective outs, with each team attempting six bulls. In each game, three riders per team, as selected by the General Manager, will attempt two bulls each. The winner of each game will be the team with the top combined aggregate score from their six outs.

Last week, the first six teams – comprising Division A – were announced. In the lead-up to competition, PBR.com will be diving deeper into each roster.

The next team on the docket, led by general manager Ty Murray, features team captain Stetson Wright, Garrett Smith, Brady Portenier and Chase Dougherty.

Read on to learn more about Team Wright, and stay tuned for more on the rest of Division A.

STETSON WRIGHT

 
Stetson Wright may only have three PBR events on his resume thus far in his career, but he’s coming off of a career year in the PRCA. After qualifying for his first Wrangler National Finals Rodeo, Wright won the all-around title and finished ranked No. 3 in the world in bull riding. Wright, who also competes in saddle bronc riding, is currently ranked No. 3 in the all-around, and is battling a torn MCL suffered at the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo in February.

GARRETT SMITH

 
Garrett Smith has competed at four PBR events in his career, winning the Calgary Stampede in 2017 and winning bronze at the Days of ’47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo in 2018. The three-time NFR qualifier finished 10th in the PRCA’s bull riding standings in 2019, winning Round 2 and placing 12th in the average at the 2019 NFR.

Smith also won the bull riding title at the Cave Creek, Arizona, PRCA event last weekend with an 89-point ride.

BRADY PORTENIER

 
PBR fans may be a tad bit more familiar with Brady Portenier, as he has a longer PBR resume and made his Unleash The Beast debut at the PBR Las Vegas Invitational in April. He’s currently ranked No. 7 in the PRCA standings, and finished 2019 ranked No. 19. Before the 2020 season was halted due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Portenier won the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo bull riding title.

CHASE DOUGHERTY

 
After winning the event average at the NFR in 2018 and finishing second in the world, Chase Dougherty had his 2019 season cut short when he injured his right shoulder in Walla Walla, Washington, on Sept. 1. He underwent reconstructive shoulder surgery in October and made his 2020 debut in late February. According to the PRCA, Dougherty is 4-for-7 this year in seven events.

Prior to getting hurt last year, Dougherty placed sixth at the 2019 Calgary Stampede, thus far his only PBR-sanctioned event to date, and was a four-time qualifier for the National High School Finals in bull riding.

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