(Editor's note: PBR release)
ST. LOUIS - One week after a vicious wreck that left his helmet shattered, 22-year-old Daylon Swearingen (Piffard, New York) was back to his winning ways at the PBR’s (Professional Bull Riders) elite Unleash The Beast stop in St. Louis.
Compliments of a championship round 90-point ride on Saturday night, Swearingen won the PBR TicketSmarter Invitational, presented by Cooper Tires, surging to No. 2 in the world and inching within 61.34 points of the No. 1 rank in the race for the 2022 PBR World Championship.
As action got underway on Friday evening inside Enterprise Center, Swearingen was unrivaled, winning Round 1 after making the 8 aboard Hurts So Good (Cord McCoy/David Wolfe) for 89.75 points.
Swearingen, however, was not able to continue his momentum in Round 2, brought down by Sky Harbor (Wilks Ranch/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger) in 5.03 seconds.
With the fifth pick in the championship round bull draft, Swearingen chose deep, opting to go head-to-head with YETI PBR World Champion Bull contender WSM’s Jive Turkey (WSM Auctioneers/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger).
Having bucked four times to date in 2022, WSM’s Jive Turkey had been ridden twice this season entering the showdown with each of the rides scored 90 points. Mauricio Moreira (Gaviao Peixoto, Brazil) most recently rode the bovine athlete for 91.75 points en route to the Unleash The Beast event win in late January in Sacramento, California.
Poised, Swearingen erupted from the bucking chutes inside the home of the NHL’s St. Louis Blues, matching WSM’s Jive Turkey jump-for-jump for a monstrous 90 points.
The 90-point ride clinched Swearingen’s first Unleash The Beast win of the season and brought him a check for $46,346.67 and 137 world points.
Swearingen is now ranked No. 2 in the world after beginning the PBR TicketSmarter Invitational, presented by Cooper Tires, ranked No. 4. Seeking his first PBR World Championship, Swearingen is now within a mere 61.34 points of the top rank.
Joao Ricardo Vieira (Itatinga, Brazil) retained his world No. 1 rank after tying for 15th in the Show Me State. Going 1-for-3, Vieira rode Red Solo Cup (Next Level Bucking Bulls) for 85 points in Round 2 to collect 11.5 world points.
Should Vieira conclude the season the 2022 PBR World Champion, he would become the oldest rider ever to win the coveted gold buckle at 37.
Chasing history of his own, two-time reigning PBR World Champion Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil) was fifth. He earned 47 world points to crack the world’s Top 10 for the first time in 2022.
Leme advanced to the championship round second on the event leaderboard after he rode T-Bone (Hart Cattle Company) for 86.75 points in Round 1, and WSM’S Trail of Tears (WSM Auctioneers/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger) for 88.25 points in Round 2.
With the second selection in the bull draft, Leme chose a bovine athlete with the propensity to elevate riders to massive scores – Big Black (K-C Bucking Bulls/Joe & Nina Webb).
Leme, however, was unseated in an uncharacteristic 4.17 seconds as Big Black emerged the more dominant athlete in their showdown.
Now ranked No. 9 in the world, up two positions from No. 11 at the start of the event, Leme is within 254 points of the No. 1 rank.
Should Leme once again be crowned the PBR World Champion in 2022, the former semi-professional soccer player would become the first rider in history to win the honor in three consecutive seasons and just the third three-time PBR World Champion.
Moreira was second, earning a check for $21,132.67 and 85 world points.
Bookending his efforts inside Enterprise Center with qualified rides, Moreira rode WSM’s Scary Larry (WSM Auctioneers/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger) for 89.25 points in Round 1, and Choc Tease (Cord McCoy/BuzzBallz LLC) for 89.75 points in the championship round.
The surging Brazilian rose three positions in the standings from No. 8 to No. 5, now within 177.5 points of the No. 1 rank.
Third was Rafael Henrique dos Santos (Sebastianopolis, Brazil).
Santos was sensational in Round 1, riding Mike’s Motive (Blake Sharp/High Voltage Cattle/American Spirits/Koe Wetzel) for 89.5 points, but was quickly humbled in Round 2 when he was bucked off by Safety Meeting (Hruby/Kainz/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger) in 4.78 seconds.
Quick to rebound, Santos converted in the championship round, earning the bronze finish compliments of his 87.5-point ride atop Test Drive (Jane Clark/Gene Owen).
Santos earned $14,632.67 and 71 world points. Gaining much-needed ground in the standings, he climbed from No. 34 to No. 18.
Rounding out the Top 5 in fourth was Luciano de Castro (Guzolandia, Brazil), garnering 53 world points.
Castro punched his ticket to the championship round atop the leaderboard after riding Bottom’s Up (TCB Ranch/K-C Bucking Bulls) for 88.5 points in Round 1, and Slingin Lead (Viducic Bucking Bulls/Wyatt Bridge) for 86.75 points in Round 2.
The fast-rising Brazilian’s hopes of victory, however, came to a heartbreaking end when he was bested by Diddy Wa Diddy (Cord McCoy/Bill McCarty) in a hard-fought 7.54 seconds in the final round.
Castro is now tied for the world No. 6 rank, just 204 points behind the top position.
In the bull pen, Ridin Solo (Cord McCoy/Bill McCarty) was anointed the YETI “Built for The Wild” Bull of the Event. The striking animal athlete was marked an event-best 46 points in the championship round when he tossed Mason Taylor (Maypearl, Texas) in 3.69 seconds.
The PBR Unleash The Beast next travels to Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles for the PBR Pluto TV Invitational. The event will be on Tuesday, February 22 at 7:45 p.m. PST.
Elsewhere in the PBR, the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour was in action in Knoxville, Tennessee, at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Going a perfect 2-for-2, Tye Chandler (Celina, Texas) won the PBR Knoxville Invitational, catapulting more than 50 positions in the race for the 2022 PBR World Championship.
In Round 1, Chandler was one of 11 riders to deliver a qualified ride. Covering Yellow Water (Fenzel Bucking Bulls) for 81.5 points, the Texan advanced to the championship round positioned ninth on the event leaderboard.
Chandler next went head-to-head with Hey Bartender (JQH Bucking Bulls-Skip & Elaine Jones). Matching the powerful animal athlete jump-for-jump, Chandler was a picture of perfection as he reached the requisite 8 for an event-best 88.5 points.
For his efforts, Chandler earned a crucial 37 world points. After traveling to the Volunteer State ranked No. 103 in the world, he gained 56 positions in the standings, rising to No. 47.
The 2022 PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour season continues February 26 in Worcester, Massachusetts. Action for the PBR Worcester Rumble at DCU Center begins at 7 p.m. EST.
Stay tuned to PBR.com for the latest news and results and be sure to follow the league on all social media platforms at @PBR.
PBR Unleash The BeastPBR TicketSmarter Invitational, presented by Cooper TiresEnterprise Center – St. Louis, MissouriEvent Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Daylon Swearingen, 89.75-0-90-179.75-137 Points.
2. Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 89.25-0-89.75-179.00-85 Points.
3. Rafael Henrique dos Santos, 89.5-0-87.5-177.00-71 Points.
4. Luciano De Castro, 88.5-86.75-0-175.25-53 Points.
5. Jose Vitor Leme, 86.75-88.25-0-175.00-47 Points.
6. Silvano Alves, 86-85-0-171.00-33.5 Points.
7. Ramon de Lima, 82-86.5-0-168.50-29 Points.
8. Kaique Pacheco, 0-88.75-0-88.75-33 Points.
9. Mason Taylor, 0-88.25-0-88.25-20.5 Points.
(tie). Derek Kolbaba, 88.25-0-0-88.25-18 Points.
11. Stetson Lawrence, 87.25-0-0-87.25-15 Points.
12. Kyler Oliver, 86.75-0-0-86.75-12.5 Points.
13. Brady Oleson, 86.25-0-0-86.25-11 Points.
14. Dakota Louis, 0-85.75-0-85.75-14 Points.
15. João Ricardo Vieira, 0-85-0-85.00-11.5 Points.
(tie). Chase Dougherty, 0-85-0-85.00-11.5 Points.
(tie). Clayton Sellars, 0-85-0-85.00-11.5 Points.
18. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 84.25-0-0-84.25-9 Points.
19. Manoelito de Souza Junior, 83.75-0-0-83.75-8 Points.
20. Eli Vastbinder, 82.75-0-0-82.75-8 Points.
Dalton Kasel, 0-0-0-0.00
Austin Richardson, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Teel, 0-0-0-0.00
Bob Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Marcelo Procopio Pereira, 0-0-0-0.00
Marco Eguchi, 0-0-0-0.00
Andrew Alvidrez, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Cardozo, 0-0-0-0.00
Matt Triplett, 0-0-0-0.00
Claudio Montanha Jr., 0-0-0-0.00
Boudreaux Campbell, 0-0-0-0.00
João Henrique Lucas, 0-0-0-0.00
Brennon Eldred, 0-0-0-0.00
Dawson Branton, 0-0-0-0.00
Francisco Morales, 0-0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Lane Nobles, 0-0-0-0.00
Koltin Hevalow, 0-0-0-0.00
Jesse Petri, 0-0-0-0.00
Cole Skender, 0-0-0-0.00
PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour
PBR Knoxville Invitational
Thompson-Boling Arena – Knoxville, Tennessee
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2- Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Tye Chandler, 81.5-88.5-170.00-37 Points.
2. Fernando Henrique Novais, 81-83-164.00-23 Points.
3. Eduardo Aparecido, 86-70-156.00-14 Points.
4. Michael Lane, 87.5-0-87.50-13 Points.
5. Brandon Davis, 86.5-0-86.50-7 Points.
(tie). Patterson Starcher, 86.5-0-86.50-7 Points.
7. Adriano Salgado, 85.5-0-85.50-2 Points.
(tie). Paulo Ferreira Lima, 85.5-0-85.50-2 Points.
9. Cody Nance, 0-83.5-83.50-4 Points.
(tie). Thor Hoefer II, 83.5-0-83.50-1 Points.
11. Alex Marcilio, 82.5-0-82.50
12. River Stephenson, 80-0-80.00
Jesse Petri, 0-0-0.00
Casey Coulter, 0-0-0.00
Cladson Rodolfo, 0-0-0.00
Dalton Rudman, 0-0-0.00
Conner Halverson, 0-0-0.00
Dakota Eagleburger, 0-0-0.00
Leonardo Lima, 0-0-0.00
Blake Smith, 0-0-0.00
Griffin Smeltzer, 0-0-0.00
Kade Alberty, 0-0-0.00
Ky Hamilton, 0-0-0.00
Cole Ivey, 0-0-0.00
Lucas Divino, 0-0-0.00
Mason Moody, 0-0-0.00
Colt Robinson, 0-0-0.00
Dalton Krantz, 0-0-0.00
Ednei Caminhas, 0-0-0.00
Justin Houston, 0-0-0.00
Seth White, 0-0-0.00
Taylor Toves, 0-0-0.00
Cody Casper, 0-0-0.00
Tylor Cabe, 0-0-0.00
Cody Hudson, 0-0-0.00
Quentin Vaught, 0-0-0.00
Zach Miles, 0-0-0.00
Justin Ethridge, 0-0-0.00
Laramie Craigen, 0-0-0.00
Hunter Ball, 0-0-0.00
2022 PBR World Standings
(Place, Rider, Events, Wins, Top 5's, Points, Total Winnings)
1. João Ricardo Vieira, 12, 3, 5, 506.50, $110,817.45
2. Daylon Swearingen, 14, 3, 6, 445.16, $116,990.39
3. Kyler Oliver, 13, 2, 3, 404.00, $107,602.95
4. Stetson Lawrence, 12, 1, 3, 332.00, $71,397.00
5. Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 14, 1, 3, 329.00, $75,723.55
6. Eli Vastbinder, 10, 0, 4, 302.50, $37,029.67
6. Luciano De Castro, 10, 2, 5, 302.50, $47,521.90
8. Dener Barbosa, 11, 0, 3, 278.50, $50,562.83
9. Jose Vitor Leme, 6, 1, 4, 252.50, $43,840.67
10. Dalton Kasel, 11, 0, 2, 234.50, $39,373.67
11. Austin Richardson, 7, 1, 2, 230.00, $57,360.00
12. Mason Taylor, 11, 1, 1, 212.50, $61,910.50
13. Cody Teel, 11, 0, 1, 170.00, $27,649.66
14. Bob Mitchell, 11, 0, 5, 166.50, $28,628.78
15. Marcelo Procopio Pereira, 12, 1, 1, 159.00, $45,395.17
16. Marco Eguchi, 8, 0, 1, 153.50, $32,859.00
17. Chase Dougherty, 10, 0, 1, 140.50, $13,974.50
18. Rafael Henrique dos Santos, 7, 0, 1, 133.00, $19,812.67
19. Manoelito de Souza Junior, 10, 1, 3, 118.50, $18,847.63
20. Cole Melancon, 6, 0, 1, 114.16, $18,462.00
21. Andrew Alvidrez, 10, 0, 1, 114.00, $15,905.00
22. Alex Cardozo, 9, 0, 1, 112.00, $20,698.71
23. Cannon Cravens, 6, 0, 0, 109.00, $12,346.00
24. Matt Triplett, 8, 1, 4, 106.50, $19,490.57
25. Ramon de Lima, 7, 1, 3, 96.50, $15,375.81
26. Cooper Davis, 4, 0, 0, 95.00, $11,546.00
27. Brady Oleson, 7, 1, 2, 87.50, $15,989.38
28. Claudio Montanha Jr., 9, 0, 0, 85.16, $7,870.00
29. Brady Fielder, 6, 2, 5, 84.00, $14,954.42
30. Boudreaux Campbell, 8, 1, 1, 80.50, $13,470.98
31. Dakota Louis, 10, 1, 2, 79.75, $14,081.59
32. Marcos Gloria, 7, 2, 3, 76.83, $15,589.44
33. João Henrique Lucas, 9, 0, 1, 76.00, $7,085.00
34. Silvano Alves, 9, 0, 0, 75.50, $3,417.50
35. Clayton Sellars, 11, 0, 3, 68.25, $16,326.72
36. Derek Kolbaba, 7, 0, 0, 66.00, $7,733.00
36. Sam Woodall, 6, 1, 2, 66.00, $9,823.02
38. Brennon Eldred, 5, 0, 1, 62.00, $8,516.67
39. Dawson Branton, 8, 0, 3, 59.50, $9,330.21
40. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 10, 0, 0, 58.66, $4,370.00
41. Francisco Morales, 6, 1, 2, 58.33, $11,858.00
42. Michael Lane, 4, 1, 2, 54.50, $10,810.75
43. Jess Lockwood, 6, 0, 0, 54.00, $4,158.33
44. Ezekiel Mitchell, 9, 0, 1, 51.50, $7,329.98
45. Eduardo Aparecido, 6, 0, 1, 51.00, $7,567.00
