(Editor's note: PBR release)
LAS VEGAS - Jose Vitor Leme delivered his second qualified ride of the 2021 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast, Thursday night to further his stronghold on the No. 1 position in the world standings. The two cowboys chasing him were shut out.
Leme, who is competing at his first event since sustaining a groin injury in mid-September, remained flawless inside T-Mobile Arena when he covered Montana Moon (Wentz Bucking Bulls/Aces Wild Pro Rodeo) for 88 points.
The score, the 9th-best of Round 2, netted Leme an important 20 world points, allowing him to further extend his lead atop the world rankings. He is now 597 points ahead of No. 2 Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil) and 752 in front of No. 3 Cooper Davis (Jasper, Texas), both of whom failed to make the 8 in the second round of action for the sport’s most prestigious event.
Leme is also now fourth in the event aggregate as he also seeks his second PBR World Finals event victory.
Should he win the World Finals for a second time, Leme would become just the fourth rider in history to win the grueling five-day event against the world’s best bulls multiple times. To date, Troy Dunn (1995 and 1997), J.B. Mauney (2009 and 2013) and Robson Palermo (2008, 2011 and 2012) are the lone riders to achieve the feat. Leme won the World Finals event in 2017 just days after setting foot on American soil for the first time.
Looking down the world standings, world No. 2 Pacheco and No. 3 Davis were unable to match Leme’s qualified ride.
Pacheco was bested by War Dress (Jane Clark/Gene Owen) in a hard-fought 5.57 seconds.
Davis’ Round 2 outing unfurled in much more dramatic fashion, demonstrating the 2016 PBR World Champion’s heart and grit.
After bucking off Moonlight Party (Jane Clark/Gene Owen) in 3.23 seconds, Davis sought refuge near the bucking chutes as he winced in visible pain, unable to press the review buzzer and forced to make a verbal call for further assessment of the out.
Following Leme’s score, Davis was awarded a re-ride. His re-ride bull HomeBru (D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle Co.) was ornery in the chutes, smacking Davis into the steel several times.
Finally, the Texan composed himself, the gate opened, and he hung on valiantly before being dispatched in 6.21 seconds.
In the race for the coveted PBR World Finals event win, Rookie of the Year contender Chase Dougherty (Decatur, Texas), Cody Teel (College Station, Texas) and Mason Taylor (Maypearl, Texas) are locked in a heated three-way tie, each with 177.25 points in the aggregate.
Teel led the contenders in Round 2, delivering the second-best score when he covered Kid Knapper (Cooper/Scruggs Bucking Bulls) for a commanding 91.75 points. Dougherty tied for third in the round via his 89.25-point effort aboard Midnight Rider (Carr Pro Rodeo), and Taylor, who continues to ride with his jaw wired shut, went the distance aboard Bubba G (Dakota Rodeo/Brian & Ashley Pintar/Clay Struve/Chad Berger) for 87.75 points.
With the silver finish in the round Teel earned a check for $20,000, along with 49 world points. He gained three positions in the world standings, climbing from No. 19 to No. 16.
Dougherty and Taylor also gained ground in the world rankings, collecting 38 points and 16 points, respectively.
The score allowed Dougherty to crack the world’s Top 10, now ranked No. 10 after beginning the round No. 11, while Taylor solidified his No. 29 ranking.
Dougherty also improved his standing in the race for the 2021 PBR Rookie of the Year honor. Still the No. 2 contender in the battle amongst first-year premier series riders, Dougherty is now within a mere 17.5 points of No. 1 Junior Patrik Souza (Sonora, Brazil), who holds the world No. 9 ranking.
Atop the leaderboard in Round 2 was Mexican sensation Alvaro Aguilar Alvarez (La Punta Lagos Moreno Jal, Mexico), who rode Detroit Lean (Blake Sharp/Henry Wilson) for a monstrous 92 points, the high-marked ride of his career.
Alvarez is just the third rider in 15 outs across all levels of competition to cover the bovine athlete, joining Dougherty and three-time PBR World Champion Silvano Alves (Pilar do Sul, Brazil) who also registered 90-point rides in 2021 atop Detroit Lean.
Alvarez, who qualified for World Finals through his performance in the PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals last weekend, left T-Mobile Arena with a check for $35,000 along with 89 world points. He catapulted 17 positions up the world standings, surging from No. 56 to No. 39.
“I’m very honored to be here, very proud to represent my country of Mexico in the PBR World Finals,” Alvarez said. “I hope to ride another one in the next round to make everyone in Mexico very happy.”
Round 2 of the 2021 PBR World Finals also featured the first of two outs from the top contenders in the race for the YETI PBR World Champion Bull honor.
No. 2 Chiseled (Flinn/D&H Cattle Co.), who began the evening 0.56 points behind No. 1 Woopaa (Barker Bulls/Hookin’ W Ranch), closed within 0.39 points of the top-ranked bull compliments of a 46-point score with his 4.91-second buckoff of Souza. Woopaa was awarded 45 points for his 3 seconds of work against Daylon Swearingen (Piffard, New York), allowing Chiseled to tighten the race amongst the league’s top animal athletes.
While not in contention for the World Champion Bull honor, Dennis The Menace (Viducic Bucking Bulls/White Trash Buckers) quickly established himself as a front runner for the PBR Bull of the World Finals award, and accompanying $50,000 bonus, in Round 2. He was marked a formidable 47.25 points in tossing reigning World Finals event winner Boudreaux Campbell (Crockett, Texas) in 2.31 seconds.
The impressive performance by the powerful animal athlete is tied for the second-best score registered on the premier series in 2021.
The 2020 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast continues with Round 3 on Friday, Nov. 5 at 7:40 p.m. PDT.
PBR RidePass on PlutoTV will offer re-airs and on-demand replays of every PBR Unleash The Beast event. PBR RidePass is available on desktops, laptops and mobile devices via www.pluto.tv [pluto.tv]. Tune to channel 720 for the latest programming schedule, and click here [pluto.tv] for on-demand PBR programming.
PBR Unleash The BeastPBR World Finals: Unleash The BeastT-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas, NevadaEvent Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Round 4-Round 5-Round 6-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Chase Dougherty, 88-89.25-0-0-0-0-177.25-74 Points.
(tie). Cody Teel, 85.5-91.75-0-0-0-0-177.25-73 Points.
(tie). Mason Taylor, 89.5-87.75-0-0-0-0-177.25-56 Points.
4. Jose Vitor Leme, 86.75-88-0-0-0-0-174.75-52 Points.
5. Alvaro Aguilar Alvarez, 0-92-0-0-0-0-92.00-89 Points.
6. Eli Vastbinder, 91-0-0-0-0-0-91.00-89 Points.
7. Cooper Davis, 90.75-0-0-0-0-0-90.75-49 Points.
8. Kaique Pacheco, 90.5-0-0-0-0-0-90.50-45 Points.
9. João Ricardo Vieira, 0-89.25-0-0-0-0-89.25-38 Points.
(tie). Dener Barbosa, 0-89.25-0-0-0-0-89.25-38 Points.
(tie). Rafael Henrique dos Santos, 0-89.25-0-0-0-0-89.25-38 Points.
12. Adriano Salgado, 0-89-0-0-0-0-89.00-28 Points.
13. Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 0-88.25-0-0-0-0-88.25-24 Points.
14. Claudio Montanha Jr., 86.5-0-0-0-0-0-86.50-28 Points.
15. Silvano Alves, 0-85.75-0-0-0-0-85.75-13 Points.
16. Junior Patrik Souza, 84.75-0-0-0-0-0-84.75-20 Points.
17. Marcelo Procopio Pereira, 0-84.25-0-0-0-0-84.25-12 Points.
18. Manoelito de Souza Junior, 82-0-0-0-0-0-82.00-16 Points.
19. Boudreaux Campbell, 78.75-0-0-0-0-0-78.75-5 Points.
Derek Kolbaba, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Dalton Kasel, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Keyshawn Whitehorse, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Jesse Petri, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Marco Eguchi, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
João Henrique Lucas, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Paulo Ferreira Lima, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Cody Jesus, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Daylon Swearingen, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Eduardo Aparecido, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Andrew Alvidrez, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Austin Richardson, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Cole Melancon, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Conner Halverson, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Cody Nance, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Thiago Salgado, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Fernando Henrique Novais, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Lane Nobles, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Grayson Cole, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Leonardo Lima, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Dalton Rudman, 0-0-0-0-0-0-0.00
