Two-Time PBR World Champion J.B. Mauney Announces Retirement
By: James Youness
PUEBLO, Colo. – After nearly two decades of showcasing bull riding greatness to a “T,” the legendary J.B. Mauney has officially retired from the sport in which he continuously set the bar.
Taking to Instagram Tuesday afternoon to declare his retirement, the Statesville, North Carolina, native is officially hanging em’ up at 36:
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The announcement came just one week after Mauney injured his neck during a wreck at the PRCA’s Xtreme Bulls event, part of the Lewiston Roundup in Lewiston, Idaho.
Opting to have a disc removed during corrective surgery, he was forced to end his bull riding career.
While injury is rarely predictable, yet often tolerated in this sport, the living legend has been on record realizing it’s simply part of the gig.
“If something’s not worth dying for, what’s the point of even living?” Mauney shared in the foreword of LOVE & TRY: Stories of Gratitude and Grit in Professional Bull Riding.
“That’s how I feel about life and the sport of bull riding, which has been my life for as long as I can remember.”
The two-time PBR World Champion (2013, 2015) has left quite the impression on the industry during his time on the dirt.
From earning the 2006 PBR Rookie of the Year honors to becoming a two-time Challenger Tour Champion (2006, 2009), Mauney quickly made a name for himself as he climbed the ranks of PBR competition.
Later building on his successful 2009 campaign, he went on to be crowned the 2009 PBR World Finals event champion as he began to hone in on the biggest prize in bull riding.
While he had to wait a few more years for that honor, he eventually finished off the 2013 season with both a PBR World Finals event title and matching gold buckle, as Mauney was crowned the 2013 World Champion.
“When I was standing out there with my family and my wife was standing beside me, I kind of got a little choked up,” Mauney shared with PBR.com.
“There’s no better feeling. You dream of something all your life and to eventually get it, oh, I mean, it feels like you’ve done conquered the world.”
Picking up his second World Championship two years later, in 2015, he solidified his spot in PBR history, becoming one of five cowboys to accomplish the feat (now seven, thanks to Jose Vitor Leme and Jess Lockwood).
“Unless you show up and perform, and do what you are supposed to do, your words don’t mean nothing. To be the best, you have to ride the best, and that proves it,” he shared after earning his second championship.
“I want my name to be right there at the top,” he said. “That is why I do this. I love doing it, but I want to be the best at it. I want to be right there at the top of those record books. I want people to remember me for who I am. Hopefully for being one of the greatest bull riders ever. One that lays it all out on the line every time. It doesn’t matter whether he is sitting first or last, he puts it all out there every single time.”
Capturing the attention of the crowd each and every time he prepared atop the chutes, Mauney did his best to solidify his place in bull riding history.
Nicknamed the “Dragon Slayer,” Mauney succeeded in creating a reputation for riding the rankest of bulls, including Bushwacker, SweetPro’s Bruiser, Asteroid and beyond. He rode every single YETI World Champion Bull during his career before Smooth Operator (2019-20).
“What made him stand out against everybody else was he wasn’t scared of stepping up there and picking the rankest bull,” 2016 World Champion Cooper Davis said. “That’s what sticks out in everybody’s mind, because he would pick them and then ride them.”
Ending his career tied with fellow standout Justin McBride atop the all-time event win list with 32 each, respectively, Mauney ranks among PBR’s best in several competition categories, including:
Money earned (No. 1 with $7,419,474.90)
Wins in a season (No. 3 with six)
Highest ride score (No. 8 with 95.25 points)
Consecutive rides (No. 2 with 16)
90-point rides (No. 2 with 75)
Consecutive World Finals qualifications (No. 2 with 15)
Qualified rides (No. 2 with 538)
Recently named the ninth-best bull rider in the world as part of PBR’s Top 30 series, celebrating the organization’s 30th anniversary, Mauney will forever be revered as one of the best to ever do it.
Since stepping away from PBR competition in 2020, Mauney has spent the last three years competing in various rodeo circuits, where he’s continued to build on his legacy.
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Continuing to excel as a loving father and endearing husband, visibly apparent with a quick look at the legend’s Instagram page, Mauney is primed for success outside the chutes as he shifts his dedication from earning 90s to being the best “Family Man” that he can be.
But he’ll always be a cowboy at heart.
Want more J.B.?
Looking back at J.B. Mauney’s impressive feat of riding every World Champion Bull since 2007
J.B. Mauney has 75 90-point rides in his career. Here are the 11 best
From the Vault: Mauney’s last five event wins
From the Vault: Mauney wins three consecutive 15/15 Bucking Battles
Calling Dr. Mauney: A “Love & Try” sub-story
From the Vault: Mauney wins two world titles
From the Vault: J.B. Mauney no stranger to making history
Photo courtesy of Christopher Thompson/Bull Stock Media
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