(PBR release)
ST. LOUIS – In front of an electric crowd inside the Enterprise Center in the Show Me State, the world’s Top 35 bull riders showed out at the elite PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Unleash The Beast’s U.S. Border Patrol Invitational. Hosting the third 15/15 Bucking Battle of the season, U.S. Border Patrol athlete Daylon Swearingen (Piffard, New York) topped the special round with the third 90-point ride of his career.
Snapping a five-out buckoff streak, Swearingen won the second 15/15 Bucking Battle of his career courtesy of a 91.75-point ride aboard I’m Legit Too (Bloyd Land & Cattle Co. Inc.) in St. Louis.
The monstrous ride garnered the New York cowboy $7,000 in addition to 50 crucial world points. He rose from No. 5 to No. 4 in the world, now within 159.84 points of the No. 1 ranking.
Delivering two 8-second efforts in both Round 1 and the 15/15 Bucking, Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo) reclaimed the world No. 1 ranking in St. Louis, leapfrogging countryman Joao Ricardo Vieira (Itatinga, Brazil) who he now leads by 26.25 world points.
Leme began the night on a strong note, covering Air Tight Alibi (L&E Bull Co./FT Bulls) for a third-best 84.75 points in Round 1. He then returned in the 15/15 Bucking Battle, posting an 89.75-point ride on Jive Turkey (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/MAGA Cattle/Roper Angus), which also marked the third-best score of the round.
Leme’s score atop Jive Turkey marks the second consecutive week the Brazilian phenom has been marked in excess of 89 points aboard the bovine athlete from nine-time Stock Contractor of the Year Chad Berger. Last weekend, at the 2020 WinStar World Casino and Resort PBR Global Cup USA, presented by Monster Energy, Leme was marked 89.5 points aboard the bull.
Cumulatively, Leme exited the Enterprise Center Saturday night with a check for $6,052.86 along with 44 world points.
Leme will attempt to cover his third consecutive bull on Sunday in Round 2 when he attempts Inferno (K-C Bucking Bulls/Spark-lin Acres).
Matt Triplett (Columbia Falls, Montana) capitalized on a re-ride in the 15/15 Bucking Battle to finish second and collect $5,000 along with 40 world points.
After Big Black (K-C Bucking Bulls/Joe & Nina Webb) hipped himself upon leaving the chutes, Triplett reached the whistle aboard his re-ride draw Safety Meeting (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Hruby/Kainz) for a massive 91.5 points.
In addition to marking Triplett’s first 90-point ride since September 2019, the out snapped the bull’s eight-out buckoff streak. The Montana man is now just the third rider in PBR competition to cover Safety Meeting, joining Stetson Lawrence (Williston, North Dakota) and Luciano de Castro (Guzolandia, Brazil).
Much like Leme, two-time and reigning PBR World Champion Jess Lockwood (Volborg, Montana) also posted two qualified rides on the opening night of competition for the U.S. Border Patrol Invitational.
In Round 1, Lockwood finished second after riding Ghost Rider (Phenom Genetics/Sankey Pro Rodeo).
He then continued his momentum in the 15/15 Bucking battle.
Receiving a re-ride after Nailed (Kruger Bucking Bulls) didn’t cleanly leave the chutes, Lockwood brought the crowd to its feet as the last man to leave the chutes on Saturday night, covering Sitting Bull (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Diamond Willow) for an impressive 89.25 points, the fourth-best score of the special round.
Collectively, Lockwood earned $5,802.86 and 40 world points. He remains the No. 3-ranked bull rider in the world, now 36 points behind No. 1 Leme.
In Round 2 on Sunday afternoon, Lockwood will attempt Soup in a Group (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Wilks Ranch) as he looks to reclaim the top spot in the world rankings.
Rounding out the Top 5 in the 15/15 Bucking Battle was 2018 PBR World Champion Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil). He rode Speed Demon (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Heald Pro Bulls) for 87.75 points to collect $2,000 and 20 world points.
Pacheco, who bucked off The Sauce (Blake Sharp/Henry Wilson) In 5.43 seconds in Round 1, slipped to No. 5 in the world. He is now 168.5 points behind No. 1 Leme entering Championship Sunday.
Two additional riders also recorded scores in the 15/15 Bucking Battle. Dener Barbosa (Paulo de Faria, Brazil) rode Slingin Tears (Blake Sharp/Caveman Bucking Bulls) for 87.5 points to finish sixth, and Derek Kolbaba (Walla Walla, Washington) covered Shownuff (Blake Shar/Henry Wilson) to finish seventh. They earned 18 world points and 16 world points, respectively.
In Round 1, Claudio Montanha Jr. (Pacaembu, Brazil) was the top-marked rider, covering Constant Sorrow (Blake Sharp/Buckwild Bucking Stock) for 87 points.
The high-marked ride propelled him to a $3,632.86 payday, while also earning him 20 world points. He gained two spots in the world standings as a result, climbing from No. 15 to No. 13.
Attempting to win his first Unleash The Beast event of 2020, Montanha has drawn Stunt Man Ray (Kruger Bucking Bulls) in Round 2.
Behind Lockwood in second and Leme in third, Marcus Mast (Middlebury, Indiana) and 2020 Iron Cowboy Cole Melancon (Paris, Texas) tied for fourth after recording matching 83.75-point rides. Mast rode Big Shot (Blake Sharp), while Melancon covered Holy Terror (L&E Bull Company/Crazy 8 Cattle/FT Bulls).
As a result, each rider earned $1,127.86 and 7.5 world points.
Fans can relive all the action from Round 1 starting at 8:00 a.m. EST on RidePass, at RidePass.com or via the mobile app. Later that day, CBS Sports will air the 15/15 Bucking Battle at 12:30 p.m. EST.
The U.S. Border Patrol Invitational from St. Louis will conclude on Sunday, February 23, starting at 1:45 p.m. CST, with Round 2 and the championship round.
PBR Unleash The Beast
15/15 Bucking Battle
Enterprise Center – St. Louis, Missouri
1. Daylon Swearingen, 91.75-91.75-50 Points.
2. Matt Triplett, 91.5-91.50-40 Points.
3. Jose Vitor Leme, 89.75-89.75-35 Points.
4. Jess Lockwood, 89.25-89.25-30 Points.
5. Kaique Pacheco, 87.75-87.75-20 Points.
6. Dener Barbosa, 87.5-87.50-18 Points.
7. Derek Kolbaba, 85.75-85.75-16 Points.
João Ricardo Vieira, 0-0.00
Cole Melancon, 0-0.00
Colten Jesse, 0-0.00
Eduardo Aparecido, 0-0.00
Fabiano Vieira, 0-0.00
Claudio Montanha Jr., 0-0.00
Mason Taylor, 0-0.00
Ramon de Lima, 0-0.00
PBR Unleash The Beast
U.S. Border Patrol Invitational
Enterprise Center – St. Louis, Missouri
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Claudio Montanha Jr., 87-0-0-87.00-20 Points.
2. Jess Lockwood, 86.5-0-0-86.50-10 Points.
3. Jose Vitor Leme, 84.75-0-0-84.75-9 Points.
4. Cole Melancon, 83.75-0-0-83.75-7.5 Points.
(tie). Marcus Mast, 83.75-0-0-83.75-7.5 Points.
6. Lucas Divino, 82.25-0-0-82.25-6 Points.
7. Aaron Kleier, 81.5-0-0-81.50-5 Points.
João Ricardo Vieira, 0-0-0-0.00
Kaique Pacheco, 0-0-0-0.00
Daylon Swearingen, 0-0-0-0.00
Colten Jesse, 0-0-0-0.00
Eduardo Aparecido, 0-0-0-0.00
Matt Triplett, 0-0-0-0.00
Fabiano Vieira, 0-0-0-0.00
Mason Taylor, 0-0-0-0.00
Dener Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Derek Kolbaba, 0-0-0-0.00
Ramon de Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Bradley Brittain, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Campbell, 0-0-0-0.00
Joao Henrique Lucas, 0-0-0-0.00
Brady Sims, 0-0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Jake Lockwood, 0-0-0-0.00
Brock Radford, 0-0-0-0.00
Taylor Toves, 0-0-0-0.00
Dakota Louis, 0-0-0-0.00
Joseph McConnel, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Teel, 0-0-0-0.00
Silvano Alves, 0-0-0-0.00
Stetson Lawrence, 0-0-0-0.00
Brennon Eldred, 0-0-0-0.00
Alisson De Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
Rubens Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Luciano De Castro, 0-0-0-0.00
Keyshawn Whitehorse, 0-0-0-0.00
