(PBR release)
LAS VEGAS - In front of a historic, sold-out crowd inside South Point Arena & Equestrian Center, the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) world title race intensified Saturday evening during Round 1 of the 2019 Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals with world No. 1 Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil) and No. 2 Jess Lockwood (Volborg, Montana) both posting Top-5 scores.
As the final two men to explode from the chutes in Sin City, Lockwood set the bar high, posting an 88-point ride aboard Hammered Down (Davis Rodeo Ranch/D&H Cattle) to surge to third-place on the leaderboard.
Leme, both the world and Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour No.1, then responded with an 87.5-point ride of his own atop Little Joe (JD Nix Rodeo Co.) to tie for fourth in the round.
For their efforts, Lockwood earned 30 world points and $2,000, while Leme took home 17.5 world points and $500.
Entering the opening round of competition, Leme held a 496.66-point lead over Lockwood, which the Montana man shrunk to 484.16 points as he seeks his second PBR World Title.
In the race to be crowned the 2019 Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Champion, Leme expanded his lead to 220 points over No. 2 Taylor Toves (Stephenville, Texas). While Toves reached the 8-second whistle aboard Page 512 (Izard Bucking Bulls/DD Bucking Bulls) for 83 points, tying him for fifteenth in the round, it was not enough to garner world points.
Kache Moosman (Price, Utah) inched one step closer to qualifying for the first PBR World Finals of his career after winning the event’s opening round. He recorded the top-score of the night when he covered Reckless Tested (BMC Bucking Bulls/Jenkins Cattle Co.) for a massive 89 points.
The score propelled him to 80 world points and a $4,000 payday.
The Utah cowboy is now ranked No. 57 in the world, 464.59 points outside of the Top 35.
Second was Luciano De Castro (Guzolandia, Brazil), earning the Brazilian cowboy $3,000 and 50 world points.
His 88.5-point ride aboard Invizibull Fire (Cord McCoy/Bruce Wold) allowed him to gain one spot in the world title race, climbing from No. 10 to No. 9.
Tying for fourth alongside Leme was fellow Brazilian Claudio Montanha Jr. (Pacaembu, Brazil) who rode Ain’t Done Yet (Miller Farms) for a matching 87.5 point effort.
Montanha also netted 17.5 world points and $500 for his performance in Round 1, maintaining his world No. 18 ranking.
Collectively, Round 1 of the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals bore witness to 19 qualified rides.
PBR Brazil invite Leandro Machado (Nova Esperanca, Brazil) leads the charge of the international competitors vying for their one position to advance to the PBR World Finals. He is currently sixth after Round 1 courtesy of his 86.5-point ride on Hot Spots (Shuler Bucking Bulls) which earned him 10 world points.
Bryan Titman (East Bernard, Texas) was the final rider to earn points Saturday night. He collected 5 points after riding Hard Juice (Next Level Bucking Bulls) for 86 points. A top contender for the season’s Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Championship, Titman is now No. 11, 448.34 points behind No. 1 Leme.
The 2019 PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals conclude on Sunday, November 3 at 4:00 p.m. PT with Round 2 and the championship round.
Fans can relive all the action from Round 1 starting at 8:00 a.m. ET on RIdePass.com or via the mobile app.
PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour
2019 PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals
South Point Arena & Equestrian Center – Las Vegas, Nevada
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Kache Moosman, 89-0-0-89.00-80 Points.
2. Luciano De Castro, 88.5-0-0-88.50-50 Points.
3. Jess Lockwood, 88-0-0-88.00-30 Points.
4. Jose Vitor Leme, 87.5-0-0-87.50-17.5 Points.
(tie). Claudio Montanha Jr., 87.5-0-0-87.50-17.5 Points.
6. Leandro Machado, 86.5-0-0-86.50-10 Points.
7. Bryan Titman, 86-0-0-86.00-5 Points.
8. Daylon Swearingen, 85.5-0-0-85.50
9. Scottie Knapp, 85-0-0-85.00
(tie). Francisco Garcia Torres, 85-0-0-85.00
11. Matt Triplett, 84.5-0-0-84.50
(tie). Brennon Eldred, 84.5-0-0-84.50
(tie). Keyshawn Whitehorse, 84.5-0-0-84.50
14. Lucas Divino, 83.5-0-0-83.50
15. Taylor Toves, 83-0-0-83.00
(tie). Daniel Tinsman, 83-0-0-83.00
17. Mason Taylor, 82.5-0-0-82.50
18. Alan de Souza, 82-0-0-82.00
19. J.B. Mauney, 81-0-0-81.00
Chase Outlaw, 0-0-0-0.00
Derek Kolbaba, 0-0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Alisson De Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Nance, 0-0-0-0.00
Michael Lane, 0-0-0-0.00
Dylan Smith, 0-0-0-0.00
Ramon de Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Junio Quaresima, 0-0-0-0.00
Lawson Nobbs, 0-0-0-0.00
Shay Marks, 0-0-0-0.00
Brady Sims, 0-0-0-0.00
Ruger Piva, 0-0-0-0.00
Marcus Mast, 0-0-0-0.00
Lane Mellers, 0-0-0-0.00
Ouncie Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Casper, 0-0-0-0.00
Paulo Ferreira Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Rodeo Tyler, 0-0-0-0.00
Jake Lockwood, 0-0-0-0.00
Devon Weaver, 0-0-0-0.00
Leonardo Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Lindomar Lino, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Cardozo, 0-0-0-0.00
Luis Blanco, 0-0-0-0.00
Junior Patrick Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Fideles Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
Eli Miller, 0-0-0-0.00
Austin Richardson, 0-0-0-0.00
