(PBR release)
COLUMBUS, Ohio – As the lone rider to deliver a flawless performance inside the Schottenstein Center, Claudio Montanha Jr. (Pacaembu, Brazil) earned his first PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Unleash The Beast event win of the 2019 season, victorious at the Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic, presented by Cooper Tires, in Columbus, Ohio.
Having covered Night Sweats (Plummer/Hart Cattle Co.) for 85.75 points in Round 1 on Saturday night, the 29-year-old stepped foot on the campus of The Ohio State University on Championship Sunday fifth overall in the event.
His climb to the top of the leaderboard continued in Round 2 when he made the 8 aboard Millenium (Torres Buckign Bulls) for 76.5 points. While Montanha was offered a re-ride, he declined, a decision which proved dividends.
As one of five riders to cover both of his long-round draws, the surging Brazilian earned the fifth pick in the championship round draft. Setting the stage for a rematch, Montanha selected M.A.G.A. (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.) who he had bucked off in 3.36 seconds at the premier series stop in September 2018 in Austin, Texas.
In their second showdown, Montanha bested the bovine athlete, taking him to the 8-second whistle for a score of 87.25 points.
Montanha leaves the Buckeye State with $32,467.86 in addition to 470 world points.
After beginning the event No. 14 in the world, he is now No. 9, 1,544.16 points behind No. 1 Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil).
Backed by a dominant performance in the event’s final rounds, Cody Teel (Kountze, Texas) finished second to collect $20,097.86, along with 400 world points.
Rebounding from a 4.84-second buckoff of Cool Customer (D&H Cattle/Flinn) in Round 1, the Texan won Round 2 courtesy of an 87.5-point ride atop Nailed (Broken Arrow Bucking Bulls).
He then cemented his runner-up finish with an 89.25-point ride on Milky Chance (Hart Cattle Company) in the championship round.
Teel climbed one position in the world standings to No. 5, inching closer to the top spot. After beginning the event 1,025.83 points back, he now trails the No. 1 ranking by 820.83 points.
Competing for the first time since breaking his jaw two weeks ago, Eduardo Aparecido (Gouvelandia, Brazil) earned his second third-place finish of the season in Columbus.
The veteran Brazilian began the final night of action second overall after covering Peep Show (Cornwell Bucking Bulls) for 87.25 points in Round 1.
Despite bucking off Steer Clear (Creekbend Bucking Bulls) in the second round in 3.47 seconds, he rebounded in the championship round, making the 8 aboard Bottoms Up (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.) for 88 points.
Earning a paycheck for $13,567.86, Aparecido also gained 290 crucial points towards the world standings. Having fallen outside the Top 35, beginning the event No. 38 in the world, Aparecido catapulted up the rankings, now No. 21 and 247.5 points in front of the cutline.
Round 1 winner Derek Kolbaba (Walla Walla, Washington) finished fourth overall.
With an 87.5-point trip on Sugar Boom Boom (Cornwell Bucking Bulls/Circle G) at his back, Kolbaba retained his spot atop the event leaderboard after the second round, taking Jungle Can Do (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/ Diamond Willow) to the whistle for 87 points.
With the first pick in the draft, Kolbaba selected Big Black (K-C Bucking Bulls/Joe & Nina Webb) who has helped four riders earn event titles thus far in 2019, after all covered him for 90-point rides.
Kolbaba, however, was unable to continue the trend, dispatched by the bovine athlete in 4.36 seconds.
He returns to the Pacific Northwest $11,747.86 richer, having also earned 225 world points.
The finish, Kolbaba’s best of 2019 on the elite Unleash The Beast, allowed him to rise from No. 15 to No. 11 in the world, now 1,710 points behind No. 1 Leme.
Rounding out the Top 5 was 2018 PBR World Finals event winner Marco Eguchi (Poa, Brazil), netting $9,067.86 along with 210 world points.
After recording the seventh-best score in Round 1, an 85.25-point ride on Bandit (Mike Miller Bucking Bulls), Eguchi was bested by Lefty (Bill Henson/Gene Owen) in 4.26 seconds in the second round.
Determined to reach the 8 again inside the Schottenstein Center, Eguchi took Losing My Religion (Broken Arrow Bucking Bulls) to the whistle for a championship round-winning 89.5 points. The round win was his second of the season, earning his first in Round 2 of the Little Rock, Arkansas stop at the start of March.
For Eguchi, the out was the first qualified ride he had earned atop Losing My Religion in three meetings. The bovine athlete had previously bucked him off in 5.69 seconds at the premiere series event in Tulsa, Oklahoma in August 2017, and at the stop in Glendale, Arizona in March 2018 in 3.52 seconds.
The 89.5-point trip, his high-marked ride of the season, allowed him to cement the Top 5 finish, also his top event performance of the year, and gain six spots in the world rankings. Eguchi is now No. 26 in the world.
The Top 3-ranked riders in the world standings remained constant following the Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic, presented by Cooper Tires, with No. 1 Leme and No. 2 Chase Outlaw (Hamburg, Arkansas) both gaining points, while No. 3 Joao Ricardo Vieira (Itiatinga, Brazil) was shutout.
Leme finished 10th after going 1-for-3 to net $2,217.86 and 45 world points, while Outlaw recorded the top finish, tying for sixth after going a matching 1-for-3, to earn $4,317.86 and 60 world points. Leme leads Outlaw by 214.16 points, and Vieira by 471.66 points.
In the bullpen, Sky Harbor (Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Wilks Ranch/Paradigm Bull Co.) and SweetPro’s Bruiser (D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle Co.) tied for the YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Event after recording matching 45.75-point scores. Sky Harbor earned the marks in the championship round for his 3.85-second buckoff of Leme, while SweetPro’s Bruiser’s were recorded in Saturday’s 15/15 Bucking Battle when he dispatched Outlaw in 7.43 seconds. While the honor is the first of the season for Sky Harbor, it is SweetPro’s Bruiser’s second having earned the title at the most recent stop in Billings, Montana.
SweetPro’s Bruiser remains atop the race for World Champion Bull, 0.19 points in front of No. 2 Fearless (D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle/Tommy Julian).
Additionally, two bovine athletes extended their premier series buckoff streak to 32 after dispatching their rider opponents in Columbus. Heartbreak Kid (D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle/Erwin Cattle) made fast work of Mason Taylor (Maypearl, Texas) in the 15.15 Bucking Battle, while Bad Touch (Jo Z Bucking Bulls/K-C) sent Ryan Dirteater (Hulbert, Oklahoma) to the dirt in 7.7 seconds in the championship round.
The all-time premier series buckoff streak is held by three-time PBR World Champion Bucking Bull Bushwacker (Julio Moreno/Richard Oliveira) with 42 consecutive buckoffs.
Fans can relive all the action on-demand on Monday, April 29 at 8:00 a.m. EDT on RidePass.com or via the mobile app.
PBR Unleash The Beast
Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic, presented by Cooper Tires
Schottenstein Center – Columbus, Ohio
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Claudio Montanha Jr., 85.75-76.5-87.25-249.50-470 Points.
2. Cody Teel, 0-87.5-89.25-176.75-400 Points.
3. Eduardo Aparecido, 87.25-0-88-175.25-290 Points.
4. Derek Kolbaba, 87.5-87-0-174.50-225 Points.
5. Marco Antônio Eguchi, 85.25-0-89.5-174.75-210 Points.
6. Chase Outlaw, 87-0-0-87.00-60 Points.
(tie). Colten Jesse, 0-86.75-0-86.75-60 Points.
(tie). Junio Quaresima, 85.5-84.5-0-170.00-60 Points.
9. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 77.5-86-0-163.50-55 Points.
10. Jose Vitor Leme, 86.25-0-0-86.25-45 Points.
11. Stetson Lawrence, 0-85.25-0-85.25-35 Points.
12. Joe Frost, 83.5-85-0-168.50-30 Points.
13. Daylon Swearingen, 0-85-0-85.00-15 Points.
14. Ryan Dirteater, 84.25-0-0-84.25-5 Points.
João Ricardo Vieira, 0-0-0-0.00
Luciano De Castro, 0-0-0-0.00
Cooper Davis, 0-0-0-0.00
Mason Taylor, 0-0-0-0.00
Cannon Cravens, 0-0-0-0.00
Matt Triplett, 0-0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Rubens Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Alisson De Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
J.B. Mauney, 0-0-0-0.00
Silvano Alves, 0-0-0-0.00
Danilo Carlos Sobrinho, 0-0-0-0.00
Taylor Toves, 0-0-0-0.00
Scottie Knapp, 0-0-0-0.00
Brennon Eldred, 0-0-0-0.00
Daniel Tinsman, 0-0-0-0.00
Ruger Piva, 0-0-0-0.00
Dylan Smith, 0-0-0-0.00
Paulo Ferreira Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Emilio Resende, 0-0-0-0.00
Kaique Pacheco, 0-0-0-0.00
2019 PBR World Standings
(Place, Rider, Events, Wins, Top 5’s, Points, Total Winnings)
1. Jose Vitor Leme, 22, 5, 11, 2,751.66, $205,220.36
2. Chase Outlaw, 23, 4, 6, 2,537.50, $177,685.18
3. João Ricardo Vieira, 22, 3, 5, 2,280.00, $286,443.61
4. Jess Lockwood, 11, 2, 6, 2,097.50, $201,564.42
5. Cody Teel, 20, 2, 5, 1,930.83, $148,848.86
6. Luciano De Castro, 18, 0, 5, 1,637.50, $82,061.67
7. Ryan Dirteater, 16, 1, 5, 1,273.33, $85,808.10
8. Cooper Davis, 15, 1, 4, 1,237.50, $107,552.50
9. Claudio Montanha Jr., 21, 1, 4, 1,207.50, $115,669.80
10. Cody Jesus, 14, 1, 4, 1,048.33, $80,965.24
11. Derek Kolbaba, 22, 2, 5, 1,041.66, $127,133.05
12. Mason Taylor, 15, 1, 4, 951.66, $54,090.00
13. Lucas Divino, 21, 1, 4, 850.00, $50,805.99
14. Cannon Cravens, 18, 0, 3, 840.00, $72,958.21
15. Matt Triplett, 14, 0, 3, 827.50, $42,531.96
16. Ezekiel Mitchell, 22, 1, 3, 806.66, $39,185.00
17. Rubens Barbosa, 25, 0, 6, 717.50, $52,630.80
18. Alisson De Souza, 19, 1, 3, 686.66, $35,293.83
19. Stetson Lawrence, 22, 0, 2, 683.33, $50,305.80
20. Joe Frost, 16, 1, 2, 672.50, $32,239.53
21. Eduardo Aparecido, 16, 0, 4, 667.50, $77,560.36
22. Aaron Kleier, 16, 2, 9, 655.00, $35,156.55
23. J.B. Mauney, 12, 1, 1, 649.16, $48,370.11
24. Silvano Alves, 21, 0, 3, 635.00, $36,974.44
25. Colten Jesse, 17, 0, 1, 626.66, $51,746.65
26. Marco Antônio Eguchi, 17, 1, 3, 620.00, $73,483.47
27. Danilo Carlos Sobrinho, 17, 1, 3, 585.00, $35,728.35
28. Taylor Toves, 18, 1, 3, 572.50, $29,210.00
29. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 17, 1, 3, 532.50, $38,994.40
30. Cody Nance, 15, 1, 3, 525.00, $56,269.75
31. Scottie Knapp, 18, 1, 5, 510.00, $29,077.99
32. Cody Heffernan, 13, 4, 6, 505.00, $21,047.67
33. Junio Quaresima, 21, 1, 4, 462.50, $29,374.11
34. Brennon Eldred, 17, 0, 5, 435.00, $52,056.84
35. Koal Livingston, 14, 1, 2, 428.33, $21,912.94
36. Daylon Swearingen, 13, 2, 5, 420.00, $26,959.34
37. Daniel Tinsman, 14, 2, 2, 395.00, $18,775.00
38. Dakota Buttar, 16, 0, 3, 382.50, $32,695.16
39. Cliff Richardson, 13, 1, 4, 370.00, $19,404.14
40. Ruger Piva, 15, 2, 2, 362.50, $23,351.41
41. Dylan Smith, 15, 1, 2, 336.66, $13,923.33
42. Stormy Wing, 14, 1, 2, 320.00, $12,780.16
43. Paulo Ferreira Lima, 19, 0, 4, 315.00, $26,563.30
44. Michael Lane, 14, 1, 3, 310.00, $10,576.67
45. Marcus Mast, 15, 1, 3, 302.50, $15,382.72
