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Taylor Wins Round 1 at Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals

By: Easton Colvin

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – With the competition at PBR’s (Professional Bull Riders) Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour (PWVT) Finals never being tighter than the 2020 race, Texan young gun Mason Taylor (Maypearl, Texas) was the night’s top cowboy at the site of his first premier series victory, winning Round 1 and moving to No. 10 in the world.

All 45 riders entering the event are able to win the 2020 PWVT Championship, with 105 points available and current tour and world No. 1 Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil) pacing the field with 84 points coming into the night.

The top two riders in the 2020 World Championship race were both stymied in Round 1 tonight, leaving their battle for the 2020 title unchanged. Leme failed to earn a qualified ride, lasting 6.47 seconds on Party Animal (Stockyards/Pritchett Ranch/Melton Bull Co.), while No. 2 Joao Ricardo Vieira (Itatinga, Brazil) hit the dirt in 5.29 seconds, dispatched by Slumlord (Nothin’ But Try Ranch/’Diggers Bucking Bulls).

Riding in the same hoof prints of his first Unleash The Beast tour win in Denny Sanford PREMIER Center in April 2019, Taylor thrilled the crowd late in the round with a 90.5-point trip on Walking Tall (Davis Rodeo Ranch). The two blended perfectly each jump towards the 8 second whistle, and the ride earned Taylor $3,200 and, more importantly, 15 world points.

 
The points put Taylor in the hunt for his first PWVT title, and moved him up one spot to No. 10 in the world standings as he eyes the 2020 PBR World Finals in Arlington, Texas, Nov. 12-15.

Moving into championship Saturday in Sioux Falls, every rider in the field still has the chance to ride their way to not only the PWVT title, but one of the event’s four qualifying spots for PBR World Finals.

Taylor will match up in Round 2 against Festus (Cord McCoy/Kevin Graber) on Saturday night, needing the event sweep if he wants to take home the 2020 PWVT Championship and the $35,000 prize that goes along with the title.

Brazilian Lucas Divino (Nova Crixas Goias, Brazil) joined the 90-point club on the night, hitting that exact mark aboard Young Man’s Blues (Paradigm Bull Co./Jess Lockwood/Parker McCollum). Divino, who has burst onto the PBR scene with two wins in 2020, earned eight world points and $2,400 for the ride. He now sits at No. 7 in the world standings.

 
Keyshawn Whitehorse (McCracken Springs, Utah), 2018 PBR Rookie of the Year, rounded out the Top 3 on the evening. The Navajo rider fired up the crowd early as he bested Crossover (Hodges/Shuler) in the second out of the night for 88.5 points.

Along with a much-needed seven world points, Whitehorse added $1,600 to his season earnings. Whitehorse cemented his standing at No. 25 in the world, now trailing No. 24 Stetson Lawrence (Williston, North Dakota) by three points.

 
Fellow Utah native Kyler Oliver (Roy, Utah) rode into fourth place and weekend contention during Round 1. Mounting the famed country singer Koe Wetzel’s bull, Dirty Sancho (Blake Sharp/Koe Wetzel/High Voltage Cattle), Oliver heard the 8-second whistle and was rewarded with a score of 87.5 points.

Oliver also picked up four world points, along with $800.

PBR veteran and fan favorite Wallace Vieira de Oliveira (Goiania, Brazil) got to break out his patented walker celebration as he took Blessed (Nothin’ But Try Ranch/’Diggers Bucking Bulls) to the horn. The qualified ride was marked 87 points, and kept the 41-year-old’s hopes of riding at the 2020 World Finals alive.

Splitting fifth with Oliveira was newcomer Andre da Cruz de Souza (Decatur, Texas). His 87-point ride was aboard Suns Up (Joe & Nina Webb/BS Cattle Co.).

Both riders earned 2.5 world points for their efforts, and Oliveira cut the tour No. 1 Leme’s lead down to just 7.84 points.

Friday night was also Round 1 of the ABBI World Finals Classic Event. Current No. 1 in the ABBI Classic standings Woopaa (Barker Bulls) extended his lead with a first-place finish this evening, posting 92.2 points after dispatching Marcus Mast (Middlebury, Indiana).

Second place went to 2018 ABBI Futurity World Champion Ridin Solo (Cord McCoy/Steve Best) with 91.2 points. There was a split between Little Hott (TM Cattle/BS Cattle) and Ground Assault (Stockyards/444/Winston/Melton Bull Co.) for third and fourth place as both bovines notched 90-point performances. Hank (Halpain/Martinelli) rounded out the Top 5 of the night with 89.6 points.

The Top 15 bulls from this evening’s ABBI Classic Round have earned their spot to compete at the PBR World Finals in Arlington on Saturday, Nov. 14, to conclude the ABBI Classic event. Here are the bulls who advanced:

Place Animal Reg. No. Owner
1 124 Woopaa 10196010 Barker Bulls
2 612 Ridin Solo 10202016 Cord McCoy / Steve Best
4-Mar 874-D Little Hott 10193431 TM Cattle / BS Cattle
4-Mar 03d Ground Assault 10199590 Stockyards / 444 / Winston / Melton Bull Co
5 46 Hank 10229319 Halpain / Martinelli
7-Jun 62d Smokin Gun 10192461 Hodges / Shuler
7-Jun 39d Top Shelf 10199246 OK Corralis / Gordon / D&H Cattle
9-Aug 6X4 Walking Tall 10203105 Davis Rodeo Ranch
9-Aug 346 Payin Debts 10201911 Gary Long / Dean Wilson
12-Oct 2L Young Man’s Blues 10199009 Paradigm / Jess Lockwood / Parker McCollum
12-Oct 624 Homegrown 10198498 Cord McCoy / Chad Reese
12-Oct 614 Mr Nasty 10192533 Blake Sharp / Koe Wetzel / Cody O
13 628 Drago 10200436 M Rafter E Bucking Bulls
14/15 606 Slumlord 10197345 Nothin But Try Ranch / Diggers Bucking Bulls
14/15 611 Kid Knapper 10199748 Scruggs / Scarborough / EVP

Fans can relive every out from Round 1 of the 2020 PWVT Finals on Saturday, November 7 at 8 a.m. ET via RidePass.com or the RidePass mobile app.

The 2020 PWVT Finals return to action tomorrow night at 8:30 p.m. ET and can be seen exclusively on RidePass.

Professional Bull Riders
2020 PWVT VELOCITY TOUR FINALS PRESENTED BY FIRST PREMIER BANK AND PREMIER BANKCARD
Denny Sanford PREMIER Center – Sioux Falls, S.D.
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)

1. Mason Taylor, 90.5-0-0-90.50-15 Points.
2. Lucas Divino, 90-0-0-90.00-8 Points.
3. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 88.5-0-0-88.50-7 Points.
4. Kyler Oliver, 87.5-0-0-87.50-4 Points.
5. Wallace Vieira de Oliveira, 87-0-0-87.00-2.5 Points.
(tie). Andre da Cruz de Souza, 87-0-0-87.00-2.5 Points.
7. Junior Patrik Souza, 85-0-0-85.00-1 Points.
8. Dakota Louis, 83-0-0-83.00
9. Luciano De Castro, 79.5-0-0-79.50
Jose Vitor Leme, 0-0-0-0.00
João Ricardo Vieira, 0-0-0-0.00
Daylon Swearingen, 0-0-0-0.00
Dener Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Cerqueira, 0-0-0-0.00
Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 0-0-0-0.00
Joao Henrique Lucas, 0-0-0-0.00
Taylor Toves, 0-0-0-0.00
Tye Chandler, 0-0-0-0.00
Ryan Dirteater, 0-0-0-0.00
Rafael Henrique dos Santos, 0-0-0-0.00
Amadeu Campos Silva, 0-0-0-0.00
Marcus Mast, 0-0-0-0.00
Paulo Ferreira Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Casper, 0-0-0-0.00
Bradley Brittain, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Campbell, 0-0-0-0.00
Chase Dougherty, 0-0-0-0.00
Keith Hall, 0-0-0-0.00
Dalton Kasel, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Cardozo, 0-0-0-0.00
Devon Weaver, 0-0-0-0.00
Grayson Cole, 0-0-0-0.00
Valdiron de Oliveira, 0-0-0-0.00
Cannon Cravens, 0-0-0-0.00
Joseph McConnel, 0-0-0-0.00
Kyle Jones, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Santana, 0-0-0-0.00
Tyler Werner, 0-0-0-0.00
Pedro Fonseca, 0-0-0-0.00
Leonardo Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Fideles Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
Javier Garcia, 0-0-0-0.00
Romildo Rodrigues, 0-0-0-0.00
Ky Hamilton, 0-0-0-0.00
Venn Johns, 0-0-0-0.00

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