PUEBLO, Colo. – Montana cowboys Dakota Louis and Matt Triplett are back.
The duo will be among 45 bull riders competing at next week's PBR World Finals and the $1 million bonus at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth May 13-22, the organization announced. They'll join a rank pen of more than 100 bovine athletes selected to buck at the season-culminating event.
Louis is fresh off winning the regular season finale with a stellar showing in Billings last weekend. Louis is 22nd in the world while Triplett is 27th. Joao Ricardo Vieira is No. 1 and at age 37, trying to become the oldest to ever win a PBR world title.
Alongside riders, the league’s fiercest bulls will also be competing for the 2022 YETI PBR World Champion Bull honor and accompanying $100,000 bonus.
The 2022 YETI PBR World Champion Bull will be the animal with the highest average bull score from their highest-scored 6 regular-season outs and two outs at the PBR World Finals.
The top bucking bulls competing at the Finals will receive three outs, and World Champion contenders will be able to drop their lowest score in Fort Worth.
The 2022 PBR World Finals will also anoint a YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Finals, who will be presented with a $25,000 bonus for posting the top combined score based on his three outs at the season-culminating event.
Reigning YETI PBR World Champion Bull Woopaa and Ridin Solo will enter the event tied for the world No. 1 rank, each concluding the regular season with an impressive 46.29-point world average. They lead No. 3 contender Pookie Holler by 0.5 points.
In a dramatic end to the regular season campaign, as the final event approached in Billings, Montana, Woopaa held a 0.08-point lead over then No. 2 Ridin Solo. While neither were initially scheduled to buck, stock contractor Cord McCoy made a last-minute decision to enter Ridin Solo in the Treasure State event.
Registering two outs, Ridin Solo was able to tie Woopaa for the No. 1 position in the standings when he posted a 46.25-point score in the championship round after tossing Cody Jesus in 5.5 seconds.
Throughout 2022, Woopaa bucked 11 times on the elite Unleash The Beast, while Ridin Solo was a road warrior logging 13 trips on the premier series.
Woopaa led the PBR in YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Event honors, topping the pen at five events, including Duluth, Georgia, Oklahoma City, Arlington, Texas for the 2022 PBR Global Cup USA, Glendale, Arizona, and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Hot on Woopaa’s hooves, Ridin Solo earned the accolade three times, leading the field in St. Louis, Little Rock, Arkansas, and Everett, Washington.
During the regular season, 24 bull scores of 46 points or more were registered. Woopaa registered five of those, three of which were for 46.5 points or more. Woopaa’s top score thus far in 2022 was recorded in Oklahoma City when he was marked 46.75 points for his 4.14 seconds of work against Austin Richardson.
Ridin Solo logged a matching five scores of 46 points or more, including the top bull score of the season, marked a PBR-best 47.5 points in Little Rock when he bucked off Dalton Kasel in 4.65 seconds.
Looking at other bull contenders, Moonlight Party, who is tied for No. 4 in the standings, will attempt to become the first Canadian-born bovine athlete to be crowned a PBR World Champion Bull at the 2022 PBR World Finals.
Moonlight Party, who was bred by Allan Shields and then purchased by Outlaw Buckers in Western Canada, now represents Gene Owen’s Oklahoma outfit. In his first full season on the premier series, Moonlight Party bucked 10 times, concluding the regular-season with a 45.63-point world average, 0.66 points behind the top spot.
The striking bovine turned heads earlier in the season in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, posting what is now the third best score of the season by besting Kasel in 1.67 second, a career-best for Moonlight Party at 47 points.
While not in contention for a World Championship, Moonlight Party will be joined by several other bulls with ties to the nation, including Happy Camper, Gaume Farms Stickin “n” Movin and Norse God who all still call Canada home.
The remaining Top 10 active contenders in the YETI PBR World Champion Bull race set to compete at the World Finals are: No. 3 Pookie Holler (45.79-point average | -0.5 points); No. 4T Juju (45.63-point average | -0.66 points); JAG Metals Grand Theft (45.63-point average | -0.66 points); No. 10 Charmer (45.13-point average | -1.16 points).
As an added layer of excitement, ABBI (American Bucking Bull Inc.) will buck roughly 40 bulls during Round 1 and 20 bulls during Round 6 of the 2022 PBR World Finals when the top 3- and 4-year-old up-and-coming bulls will go up against the best riders in the nation. These four-legged athletes will compete for an estimated purse of more than $45,000, with $11,500 to be awarded to the first-place performers through the two rounds of competition.
Bovines to watch for include current No. 1 bull in the ABBI Classic standings Cool Whip (Julian/Staci Addison/D&H Cattle/Crooked W); Little Rock and Tulsa ABBI Classic Champion Blue Duck (Cord McCoy/Grin/Jacobson/Davis Rodeo Ranch); and Fort Worth ABBI Classic Champion Alakazam.
2022 PBR World Finals bulls:
Happy Camper (Two Bit Bucking Bulls)
Mike’s Magic (Five Star Ranch/BS Cattle)
Body Count (Bob & Jeri Adams/BS Cattle Co.)
Detroit Lean (Blake Sharp/Henry Wilson)
Mr. Nasty (Blake Sharp/Koe Wetzel/Cody O’Neil)
Vanilla Ice (Lightning Livestock/Blake Sharp)
Mike’s Motive (Blake Sharp/High Voltage Cattle/American Spirits/Koe Wetzel)
The Undertaker (Cornwell Bucking Bulls/Riley Bucking Bulls/PCP Bucking Bulls)
Hard Labor (Addi Drury/Nothin’ But Try/Diggers)
Ground Assault (Stockyards/444/Winston/Melton Bull Co.)
Soy El Fuego (Winston/Melton/Stockyards Pro Rodeo)
Kid Knapper (Phillips/Cooper/Scruggs Bucking Bulls)
Dr. X (Universal Pro Rodeo/Pepper/Freeman Cattle Co.)
Ninja Cowboy (Universal Pro Rodeo)
War Fury (Diamond G Rodeos Inc.)
Big Whiskey (5S Bucking Bulls/Tex Brothers Ranch)
Hang Em High (Bryan T. Smith/Nathan Doss)
Gaume Farms Stickin “n” Movin (Eno Bucking Bulls)
Long Haul (Evan Matthews)
Taking Chances (Frihauf Cattle Co.)
Crossover (Shuler Bucking Bulls)
Lil 2 Train (Jane Clark/Gene Owen)
Moonlight Party (Jane Clark/Gene Owen)
Casper (Crescent City Bucking Bulls/Lari Crane/Gene Owen)
Test Drive (Jane Clark/Gene Owen)
American Gangster (Jane Clark/Gene Owen)
Hawkeye (Jane Clark/Gene Owen)
Falcon Eddie (Lari Crane/Gene Owen)
Norse God (Wild Hoggs Bucking Bulls)
Juju (Tommy Julian/D&H Cattle)
Top Shelf (P. Ro Ranch/OK Corralis/Gordon/D&H Cattle)
Cherry Bomb (Flinn/D&H Cattle Co.)
Chiseled (Flinn/D&H Cattle Co.)
Charmer (D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle Co.)
JAG Metals Grand Theft (D&H Cattle Co./Philip Elkins)
Liston (P. Ro Ranch/Lone Star/Adams/D&H Cattle)
Manaba (Joe & Nina Webb/Julian/D&H Cattle Co.)
Arkansas (D&H Cattle Co.)
HomeBru (D&H Cattle Co./Buck Cattle Co.)
Black & Blue (OK Corralis/Gordon/D&H Cattle)
Night Hawk (Martinez Bucking Bulls, LLC)
Born To Sin (Martinez Bucking Bulls, LLC)
Sweatlodge Testified (Martinez/Rockin T/T-Ray Bulls)
Mule Train (Martinez/Porter Cattle Co.)
La Grande (Davis Rodeo Ranch)
Walking Tall (Davis Rodeo Ranch)
Mr. Clean (Julio Moreno/Equistride)
Hey Bartender (JQH Bucking Bulls/Skip & Elaine Jones)
Figure 8 (Paradigm Bull Company)
Marquis Metal Works Red Clark (Paradigm Bull Co./Wentz)
Chickasaw (Fabulous IV Ranch/Josh & Dalton Walling)
Hostage (Hart Cattle Co./Hale/Randy Wood)
Oz (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.)
I’m Legit Too (Hart Cattle Co./Hale)
Wicked Dreams (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.)
Montana Jacket (Berg/Coleman/Ogden/Hart)
Border Crisis (Hart Cattle Co./Hale)
Bread Basket (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.)
Hundred Bad Days (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.)
Gangster Bones (Hart Cattle Company)
Jersey Tuff (McClellan/Lidgard/Hart)
Medicine Man (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.)
Crystal Fox (Hart Cattle Co./Diggers Bucking Bulls)
U.S. Border Patrol (Hale/Berryman/Ogden/Hart)
First Down (Hart Cattle Co./Farris)
Dixieland Delight (Hart Cattle Company)
Show Me Homie (Jo-Z Bucking Bulls/K-C/Spark-lin Acres)
Big Black (K-C Bucking Bulls/Joe & Nina Webb)
Preachers Kid (K-C Bucking Bulls/RD Cattle)
Magic Potion (K-C Bucking Bulls/Daniels Cattle Co.)
Apper’s Mind Freak (Jo-Z Bucking Bulls/K-C Bucking Bulls/Spark-Lin Acres)
Nervous Wreck (CG Bucking Bulls/Big Rafter Rodeo)
Lone Survivor (Whitman Bucking Bulls/Jenkins Cattle Co.)
Black Ice (BMC Bucking Bulls/Jenkins Cattle Co.)
Malaka (Jenkins Cattle Co.)
Buffalo Heifer (Lucas Manning Bucking Bulls)
Satan’s Seed (Lucas Manning Bucking Bulls)
Woopaa (Barker Bulls/Hookin’ W Ranch)
Marciano (Hookin’ W Ranch)
Flyover (XTB Cattle/Marty Foutch)
Harold’s Genuine Risk (M Rafter E Bucking Bulls)
Cliff Hanger (Cord McCoy/Pioneer Bulls)
Diddy Wa Diddy (Cord McCoy/Bill McCarty)
Ridin Solo (Cord McCoy/Bill McCarty)
Homegrown (Cord McCoy/Chad Reese)
Outlaw (Cord McCoy/Big Sky Bulls, LLC)
Hurts So Good (Cord McCoy/David Wolfe)
Choc Tease (Cord McCoy/BuzzBallz LLC)
Rodeo Thug (Garcia Rodeo Bulls/Farris/Hart Cattle Co.)
Dennis The Menace (Viducic Bucking Bulls/White Trash Buckers)
Express Lane (Classic Jack Cattle/Viducic Bucking Bulls)
Slingin Lead (Viducic Bucking Bulls/Wyatt Bridge)
Back Jack (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
Sky Harbor (Wilks Ranch/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
WSM’s Trail of Tears (WSM Auctioneers/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
Oilfield Outlaws Yellow Feather (Chad Berger/Oilfield Outlaw’s Bucking Bulls)
Mr. Winston (Dakota Rodeo/Mark Baker/Clay Struve/Chad Berger)
WSM’s Jive Turkey (WSM Auctioneers/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
Safety Meeting (Hruby/Kainz/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
Pookie Holler (Dakota Rodeo/Brian & Ashley Pintar/Clay Struve/Chad Berger)
Drago (Jeb Fredericks/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
Bubba G (Dakota Rodeo/Brian & Ashley Pintar/Clay Struve/Chad Berger)
WSM’s Nasty Wishes (WSM Auctioneers/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
Dagger (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)
(Editor's note: PBR media info contributed to this story)
