Tonight, the top 35 bull riders in the world came into the second round of competition with a huge chip on their shoulders after a dismal performance just 24-hours ago. In round one there would only be five riders that would manage to best their bovine counterparts to earn a qualified ride score and carry over some precious world title race points into tonight’s action. With the cowboys not living up to the hype there were a few that would take full advantage of the opportunity and quietly move up a few rungs on that leader board that is being closely watched by all. Two months remain in the 2017 Built Ford Tough Series season and each and every contestant is striving to crack the top 35 in the world standings to guarantee themselves a spot at the Built Ford Tough Series World Finals this coming November in Las Vegas.
That being said, many guys outside of the top 35 are breathing heavy down the necks of those ahead of them that are not performing up to the standards required to remain there. As the season progresses these athletes know that the road to Las Vegas will not get any easier as they all compete with aches and pains but try to push those to the back of their minds to be able to stay within the needed 35 in the world. Coming into tonight’s second round these cowboys wanted to come in and regain their confidence and head to Springfield, Missouri next weekend full of enthusiasm. Time would tell as we all waiting anxiously to see if these cowboys could rebound from a night that most all of them would like to quickly forget, but the bull power they face tonight would be even tougher that what they saw in round one.
Cooper Davis Wins Round Two In Thackerville
Photo Credit: Rockin’ K Photos / Jeana Wilson-Kilcrease
As round two began the competition for one of the fifteen spots available for the championship round were still very much up for grabs with only five rides being made just one night ago. Knowing that the bull riders here in Thackerville were waiting with anticipation to begin their journey towards an event title and a huge payday. This weekend’s event is like non other as the Professional Bull Riders head outside into the Oklahoma heat hoping to raise the temperature even more with their actions on this fateful Sunday evening. As the action began it was quickly made evident that the outcome that we all saw one day ago was not a fluke but a showing of absolute bovine dominance here in Oklahoma which left every fan in attendance and watching from the comforts of their own homes in absolute shock and disbelief.
When things got started here earlier this evening we all wanted to see stiff competition but what we all watched was the absolute opposite here at the Winstar World Resort and Casino Invitational. Just like in round one, just 24 hours ago, we would only be able to see five qualified rides with only one man going 2-for-2 heading into the championship round. That man would be Cody Nance but he could not even beat 88.50 point ride that Cooper Davis was able to put up atop of Martinez Bucking Bulls, LLC’s Ice Pick to claim the round two win here earlier tonight. This is exactly what the reigning world champion needed to begin righting the wrongs that he has had to endure on his quest for a back-to-back World Championship Built Ford Tough Series title. Cooper still sits comfortably inside of the top ten in the world standings heading into Springfield next weekend!
Stetson Lawrence Takes Home The Championship Round Win
Photo Credit: Rockin’ K Photos / Jeana Wilson-Kilcrease
Once qualifying rounds were completed and the top 35 bull riders in the world finished licking their wounds it was time to put together the match-ups for the championship round. That being said, tonight’s final round would have a much different feeling that what we have ever felt of witnessed so far this year. After two rounds of action there would only be nine of the thirty-five bull riders here this weekend that would even manage to put up a qualified ride. The Professional Bull Riders rules state that there must be at least ten contestants so with that Kaique Pacheco was “drawn” back into the championship round without even making a qualified ride throughout the event. I personally can not think of a time anywhere in recent memory that this had to happen to fill out the required amount of spots for the final round of action at an event!
On the other hand, a few of these riders would do what they needed to do to earn a score and collect some much-needed world title race points. One of those would be the North Dakota native Stetson Lawrence who has had a rough go as of late on the elite Built Ford Tough Series tour. Tonight, however, that would all change as he would earn a combined 177 points throughout the weekend that was capped off with a brilliant 88.75 point ride in the championship round. He would manage to stay focused aboard Ogden Ranch/Hart Cattle Company’s Pick-It Construction’s Finding Jesus to claim the championship round win all while earning the 100 world title race points that would go along with the newly found confidence he was looking for heading into the final two months of the regular season.
Stetson Lawrence Celebrates His 2017 Winstar World Resort and Casino Invitational Win
Photo Credit: Rockin’ K Photos / Jeana Wilson-Kilcrease
When things were all said and done there would be just a handful of riders that would leave Thackerville, Oklahoma without their heads hung low after a tough weekend for the top 35 here this weekend. With that said, there would be a total of five of the riders that would be good enough to post two qualified rides throughout the weekend’s festivities. This, in turn, made things that much easier for those few that were feeling the swagger here this weekend. After two rounds where only five rode each time the ten competing in the championship round stepped up a little more and were able to cover four of the ten bucking bulls faced to close out the weekend here at the Winstar World Resort and Casino Invitational. Of course we could not leave Thackerville without crowning a 2017 event champion and that is exactly what we did here earlier this evening!
Ending the night would be Stetson Lawrence walking to the top of the shark cage in the center of the arena to collect his hard earned $39,000+ paycheck and his Montana Silversmith belt buckle as the winner of this weekend’s event. This would move him up two spots in the world standings and give him the confidence to make a serious run at the world title race that will come down to the last night inside of the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas this coming November. Odds are that you can not count this dedicated cowboy out as he is once again finding the groove he has been searching for at the exact time he needed to make big moves. It will be interesting to see how everything unfolds with a North Dakota cowboy flying high on top of the world late in the 2017 Built Ford Tough Series season!
With this up and down event done here in Thackerville, Oklahoma the Winstar World Resort and Casino Invitational is in the rear view mirror. Once things are packed up from this afternoon’s performance we march forward and head to Springfield, Missouri for the always highly anticipated PFIWestern.com Invitational Presented By Bass Pro Shops. After a shake up in the world standings here this weekend I see next week’s event being an action packed performance with everyone trying to regain their spot within the top 35 in the world. The Rodeo Round Up will once again have our team members and partners from Rokin’ K Photos on hand to bring you all the action through their camera lenses for all the followers of TheRodeoRoundUp.com! We appreciate all the efforts they make to provide us with our top quality photos we use for our stories each and every week!
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