(PBR release)
LAS VEGAS – Continuing his historic comeback after injury sidelined him the majority of the season, Chase Outlaw (Hamburg, Arkansas) recorded his seventh consecutive qualified ride inside South Point Hotel & Casino to win Round 1 of the 2018 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour (RVT) Finals.
The 26-year-old brought the Sin City crowd to its feet when he covered Bowie Daze (Cord McCoy/B&M Bucking Bulls) for 88.5 points. Topping the 11 other riders that also delivered an 8-second effort, Outlaw earned 80 world points, propelling him from No. 35 to No. 33 in the world standings as he looks to qualify for his seventh consecutive PBR World Finals.
Throughout the past month, Outlaw has mounted a historic climb up the world standings. While reconstructive shoulder surgery prevented the Arkansas cowboy from competing the entirety of the first half, he was forced back to the sidelines just two months after making his 2018 debut when he was involved in a horrific wreck at Cheyenne Frontier Days where he sustained 30 facial fractures.
Since returning to competition on Oct. 6 at the Milwaukee, Wisconsin 25th PBR: Unleash The Beast event, Outlaw has risen 43 spots in the world standings, up from No. 76, collecting 625 world points.
Notably, Outlaw has gone a collective 9-for-13 across all levels of competition, including a current seven-out ride streak.
Tied for second was 2017 PBR Rookie of the Year Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil) and Luis Blanco (Iacanga, Brazil), both collecting 40 world points. The Brazilian riders were both marked 88 points after Leme covered Wired To Hook (The Jaynes Gang) and Blanco rode Yatesy Down Under (Star E Ranch/Just Have Faith Ranch).
Las Vegas fans have become accustomed to Leme’s success in the city. Last year in his first time competing on U.S. soil, the 22-year-old finished eighth at the RVT Finals, earning the international invite to World Finals, where he went a historic 6-for-6 to win the event and be crowned the Rookie of the Year.
This season, his success at the event allowed Leme to gain ground on current world No. 1 Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil) who was sent to the dirt in 4.3 seconds by BW547 (Long Ranch). The world No. 2, Leme now trails Pacheco by 1,550 points.
Fourth place went to Alisson De Souza (Taubate, Brazil) who rode Heartless (John Peck/Hale & Wallgren Bull Co.) for 87 points. Earning 20 world points, Souza is now No. 42 in the world, 167.5 points behind the Top 35 as looks to qualify for his career first World Finals.
Mexican invite Francisco Garcia Torres (Sal, Mexico) rounded out the Top 5 to earn 15 world points. Looking to follow in Leme’s footsteps from last season, Torres rode Mr. Valentine (Rickey West Bucking Bulls) for 86 points.
Rookie of the Year and RVT Champion contender Colten Jesse (Konawa, Oklahoma) was the final rider to earn world points at the Friday night event. Marked 85.5 points aboard Rag Doll (Chase Foutch/Tom Baker) to finish sixth in the round, the 21-year-old earned 10 world points.
In the RVT standings Jesse closed the gap on No. 1 Michael Lane (Tazewell, Virginia), who failed to record a qualified ride. After entering the event tied for No. 2 with Mason Taylor (Maypearl, Texas), who was also unsuccessful aboard his draw, Jesse took sole possession of No. 2 and is now 30 points behind Lane.
Round 1 of RVT Finals was also an American Bucking Bull Inc. (ABBI) Derby and Wild Card Classic event. The bull pen consisted of 45 3- and 4-year-old bulls. While the Derby bulls are just beginning their career as a rider bull, for the Wild Card bulls, the event is their final opportunity to qualify for the Classic World Finals.
Viper (Cord McCoy/Big Sky Bulls, LLC) currently leads the Wild Card event with 89.4 points after bucking off Lucas Divino (Nova Crixas, Brazil) in 2.43 seconds. Full Count (Major League Bucking Bulls) sits in second with 88.4 points, while Rugby (LeFlore Bucking Bulls) is third with 88.2 points.
With 90.6 points, Preacher’s Kid (K Bar C Bucking Bulls/RD Cattle) sits atop the Derby competition standings, with TNT 541 (Terrell/Smith) and Right Stuff (Craig Smith/Vern Nix) tied for second after each bovine athlete posted and 88.2-point score.
The 2018 Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour Finals will conclude Saturday, November 3, inside Las Vegas’ South Point Hotel & Casino with action set to get underway at 7:00 p.m.PT. At the end of Saturday’s event, not only will a 2018 RVT Champion and finals event winner be crowned, but five riders will earn berths to the 2018 PBR World Finals.
Fans can watch all the action LIVE on RidePass starting at 10:00 p.m. ET. Round 1 will be available on the platform on-demand tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. ET.
2018 PBR Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour Finals
Las Vegas, Nevada – South Point Hotel & Casino
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Chase Outlaw, 88.5-0-0-88.50-80 Points.
2. Jose Vitor Leme, 88-0-0-88.00-40 Points.
(tie). Luis Blanco, 88-0-0-88.00-40 Points.
4. Alisson De Souza, 87-0-0-87.00-20 Points.
5. Francisco Garcia Torres, 86-0-0-86.00-15 Points.
6. Colten Jesse, 85.5-0-0-85.50-10 Points.
7. Sean Willingham, 84.5-0-0-84.50
(tie). Paulo Ferreira Lima, 84.5-0-0-84.50
9. Eli Miller, 83.5-0-0-83.50
10. Juan Carlos Contreras, 83-0-0-83.00
11. Bryan Titman, 80-0-0-80.00
12. Will Centoni, 79.5-0-0-79.50
Kaique Pacheco, 0-0-0-0.00
Dener Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Keyshawn Whitehorse, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Marcilio, 0-0-0-0.00
Nathan Burtenshaw, 0-0-0-0.00
Silvano Alves, 0-0-0-0.00
J.B. Mauney, 0-0-0-0.00
Gage Gay, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Jesus, 0-0-0-0.00
Brock Radford, 0-0-0-0.00
Cannon Cravens, 0-0-0-0.00
Rubens Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Cliff Richardson, 0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Divino, 0-0-0-0.00
Tye Chandler, 0-0-0-0.00
Michael Lane, 0-0-0-0.00
Fernando Henrique Novais, 0-0-0-0.00
Mason Taylor, 0-0-0-0.00
Junio Quaresima, 0-0-0-0.00
Chase Robbins, 0-0-0-0.00
Andrew Alvidrez, 0-0-0-0.00
Justin Granger, 0-0-0-0.00
Wallace Vieira de Oliveira, 0-0-0-0.00
Edgar Durazo, 0-0-0-0.00
Ueberson Duarte, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Casper, 0-0-0-0.00
Taylor Toves, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Rodeo Tyler, 0-0-0-0.00
Reese Cates, 0-0-0-0.00
Francisco Morales, 0-0-0-0.00
Ricardo Ramirez, 0-0-0-0.00
Cole Skender, 0-0-0-0.00
Travis Maguire, 0-0-0-0.00
