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Ticketsmarter Morning Line – Global Cup 2020 Round 1

By: Slade Long

As tough as it may be to hear for fans of the American teams, Brazil should be considered a heavy favorite at this event. They have a deep and well-balanced team even with the notable absence of Joao Ricardo Vieira. Their advantage here is that if all their riders turn in a normal performance over this two-day competition, the other teams will have to come up with career-best type days to match them. The Eagles have had serious injury troubles here, but they still have Jess Lockwood. Team Canada may do well enough to challenge here as well.

TEAM USA WOLVES
Cannon Cravens on S30 Milky Chance:
Cody Jesus on 52 Lil’ Man:

These two matchups for the Wolves are the most crucial to their success here. Jesus is a lefty who has the most success on bulls that go to the left, and Cravens is the opposite. They’ve set both guys up for a win here, and they need to win every matchup they can to if they hope to keep pace with Brazil. Stetson Lawrence and Keyshawn Whitehorse are going against two tougher bulls in the first round, and the Wolves are banking on Cravens and Jesus to come through.

TEAM BRAZIL
Jose Vitor Leme on 345 Rising Sun:
Jose Vitor Leme on 46 Sugar Boom Boom:

Brazil brings the strongest team in this competition, even without Joao Ricardo Vieira, and they’ve doubled down on their strongest member. They are the only team to have one rider going twice in the long round tonight, and it could pay off for them. Leme has ridden both these bulls before, and he’s 3-0 against Rising Sun. Team Brazil coaches know they will get 10 rides, and are probably more concerned with getting their share of high scores. Leme is their ace in that category, and he should easily get two big scores here. They are a deep enough team they could rest Leme for the bonus round and still have a good chance of winning that too.

Sugar Boom Boom will be the tougher of these two bulls for Leme, and on paper, Leme wins the matchup easily. This bull is 7-7 against lefties, and 0-1 against Leme.

TEAM CANADA
Dakota Buttar on 209 Bad Beagle:
Jake Gardner on 77B Medicine Man:

Team Canada has a chance to pull off an upset in this competition, and winning these two matchups would be huge for them. They’ve put their highest-ranked member on the toughest bull in their pool, and their least experienced member on a bull that should fit him. Their coaches know they must have each rider perform just outside their comfort zone to some degree to have a chance here, and they’ve done a great job of matching their riders with bulls in the first round.

TEAM MEXICO
Alvaro Aguilar Alvarez on D5 Buddy’s Pet:
Edgar Durazo on 688 American Gangster:

Mexico has the weakest team here, but they have a chance to build something. These two matchups are their best chance in the opening round. Their riders don’t have as much experience on bulls of this level, and they need favorable matchups more than the other teams. They have strong leadership with Gerardo Venegas and Jerome Davis, and that may help elevate them to where they need to be for future Global Cup appearances.

TEAM AUSTRALIA
Aaron Kleier on C6 The Tickler:
Ky Hamilton on 62D Smokin’ Gun:

Hamilton is a relative newcomer here, and Team Australia needs him to deliver. His style is similar to that of Sage Kimzey, and he looks good on bulls. Australia only has two left-handed riders, and Kleier is their highest-ranked lefty. They will need him mostly on bulls that go into his hand, and they need to count on him.

TEAM USA EAGLES
Matt Triplett on 16B Budakon:
Daylon Swearingen on 621 Wicked Dreams:

The Eagles have been hit hard by injury, losing Sage Kimzey, Dalton Kasel, Chase Outlaw and Cooper Davis. They still have a strong team, and they still have Jess Lockwood. They put Lockwood on a lesser-known bull in this round, and presumably they will lean on him in the bonus rounds against tougher bulls. They’ve set Triplett and Swearingen up to carry the load for them in the first round. Triplett is 2-0 against Budakon, who is not an easy bull to ride. Swearingen has a pretty tough draw here, but one he can win against. Swearingen in particular is key to this team. He’s replacing Sage Kimzey, but Kimzey is a safer bet on most bulls. If the Eagles can get Swearingen to win against bulls that may not fit him perfectly, they have a shot here.

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