What to Watch for: Eldred Gets Rematch in Oklahoma City vs. Bull Who Knocked Him Out of Competition for 7 Weeks

By: Justin Felisko

PUEBLO, Colo. – Brennon Eldred has had plenty of time at home for the past seven weeks to think about Cherry Bomb and how the bovine athlete sent him to the sidelines with a wreck on Feb. 26 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Eldred will not only be finally making his return to competition for the first time since Cherry Bomb broke two of his ribs and partially collapsed his lung, but his first bull back will be none other than Cherry Bomb himself.

“I knew I would have him,” Eldred told PBR.com on Thursday. “I’ve been thinking about him for the last seven weeks and my return to OKC. It’s going to be a good weekend.”

Eldred has drawn Cherry Bomb for Round 1 of the PBR Express Ranches Invitational Saturday night (9 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network / 7:45 p.m. ET on RidePass) at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The matchup is the only rematch in Round 1.

The 26-year-old has not been on any practice bulls leading up to this weekend, but Eldred said he feels ready to exact revenge and get his season back on track.

Eldred is ranked 31st in the world standings and is 3-for-15 in five events.

The four-time PBR World Finals qualifier said he won’t be overthinking the rematch or be worried about his past wreck.

“I will approach it just like I approach every day,” Eldred said. “Dominate! There’s always going to be a roadblock in the way. You just have to figure out how to get around it. I have not been on any practice bulls. I just have been working and preparing for the next one.”

 
Eldred enjoyed having time at home with his wife, Jewel, and daughter, Jade, but he did admit the recovery was tough early on.

“First few weeks were rough,” he said. “I couldn’t hardly breathe, and dang sure couldn’t pick nothing up or do much, but I am healed up and have all of my strength back. I actually feel better now than I did before I got hurt. Just been working a bunch and getting my body ready.”

Eldred will certainly have a big contingent of fans cheering him on inside Chesapeake Energy Arena, seeing as he lives only an hour-and-a-half away in Sulphur, Oklahoma.

“Home staters are my favorite,” Eldred said. “I’ll have a bunch of people there cheering me on, and hopefully, we can get the W.”

WHO IS IN / OUT FOR OKC

Top 30 Riders Out Because of Injury or Other

No. 2 Cooper Davis (concussion)
No. 17 Taylor Toves (hip)
No. 22 Mason Taylor (broken clavicle)
No. 24 Dalton Kasel (elbow surgery)
No. 27 J.T. Moore (right thigh)
No. 28 Lucas Divino (hip surgery)
No. 29 Ezekiel Mitchell (right groin)
No. 30 Jesse Petri (liver laceration, adrenal hematoma, bruised right lung)

Alternates for this weekend

No. 31 Brennon Eldred
No. 34 Claudio Montanha Jr.
No. 35 Kyle Jones
No. 36 Rodrigo Melgar
No. 39 Eli Vastbinder
No. 41 Marcus Mast
No. 44 Chase Dougherty

Lima is Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour invite

Paulo Lima is this weekend’s Velocity Tour invite following his 3-for-3 victory at the PBR Aggieland Classic last weekend in College Station, Texas. Oklahoma City is Lima’s first UTB event of 2021. He last competed on the premier series last year at the regular-season finale in Nampa, Idaho.

Lima will take on Body Count (2-0, UTB) in Round 1 as he looks for his first qualified ride on the UTB since an 85.75-point ride on With A Bang on October 3, 2020.

The 33-year-old is ranked 38th in the world standings and is attempting to get back to the World Finals for the first time since 2018.

 

Riders Competing Via Event Exemptions

No. 45 Ramon de Lima (two event exemptions remaining after Sioux Falls)
No. 46 Andrew Alvidrez (one event exemption remaining)

Ramon de Lima has two more events to get back inside the Top 30, or else he will possibly have to work his way back on tour via the Velocity Tour. Lima is only 2-for-13 in his first five events of 2021. He has drawn Page 29E (0-0, UTB) for Round 1.

Meanwhile, Andrew Alvidrez will give it a go in Oklahoma City after partially dislocating his left shoulder (free arm) last weekend in Sioux Falls. Alvidrez has one more event exemption remaining following this weekend to crack the Top 30.

PACHECO TAKES 69-POINT LEAD INTO OKC

World No. 1 Kaique Pacheco will look to extend his lead in the 2021 World Championship race. World No. 2 Cooper Davis is out for this weekend because of a concussion.

Pacheco leads Davis by 69 points in the world standings and No. 3 Jose Vitor Leme by 95.5 points.

Pacheco has drawn Outlaw (0-2, UTB) for Round 1.

ABBI Update

Round 1 is an ABBI Classic round, and Oklahoma City will feature some of the top 3- and 4-year-old bulls in the business. Here is a look at the Top 5 bulls in the ABBI Classic standings:

1. Cutting Torch (537.2 points / $22,332.01)
2. Juju (535.2 points / $26,028.77)
3. Manaba (531.2 points / $19,217.70)
4. Yadi (530.45 points / $27,306.13)
5. Mr. Right Now (530.4 / $16,175.18)

Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko

Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media

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