First it was his knees. Then J. B. Mauney had a bad left elbow to contend with. Then, in May, came a partially collapsed lung.
After being forced to rest over the summer break, the 23-year-old returned to the Built Ford Tough Series and reasserted himself as contender for the world title, with seven consecutive Top 10 finishes that stretched from San Antonio through Charlottesville, Va.
But in the final month of competition, his “body took a beating,” Mauney said.
Despite covering three of five bulls in the Final Five Showdown bonus rounds, and finishing eighth in Columbus, Ohio, a rough opening round in Las Vegas on Oct. 20 all but ended his chances of winning his first world title.
He came down hard off of Train Wreck, and the bull fell on top of him.
“I don’t feel the best in the world,” he said, at the conclusion of the PBR World Finals.
Assessing his situation, Mauney said, “My riding elbow is messed up, free arm shoulder – I have an AC separation in it and it doesn’t feel the best when I ride – so hopefully I can it fixed without having to do anything major, but we’ll have to find out.”
While in Las Vegas, he consulted with Dr. Tandy Freeman about preparing for the 2011 season.
According to a text from Freeman, “J.B.’s plan is rehab and compete in [New York], Jan 7.”
Freeman indicated that Mauney’s elbow is hurt as badly as his knee, but that the shoulder should be “better in a few weeks.”
“I need to start working out more,” Mauney said. “It used to be all right, but I was young then. I’m still young now, but it’s starting to set in and it hurts a lot more than it used to. Hopefully I’ll have what I need fixed, get everything right, go to working out and be better than ever next year.”
“When you get sored up and hurt, it kind of changes your riding style. You tend to kind of favor what’s hurting on you. … But a bull rider can’t use that excuse. I should have rode a lot better than I did.”
NEWS and NOTES
MAUNEY AND HIS BROTHER-IN-LAW Shane Proctor will be featured Wednesday night in the season finale of “L.A. Ink.”
The episode, which airs on TLC at 9 p.m. ET, was filmed last summer in Los Angeles. Both received a tattoo at American Electric. The episode will also feature Kat Von D and boyfriend Jesse James.
Mauney made the trip to Los Angeles while his was recovering from the collapsed lung.
TY MURRAY WILL BE APPEARING ON TWO TOP-RATED TV SHOWS ON MONDAY, Nov. 1. The King of the Cowboys will be introduced during the opening of Monday’s hit series “Dancing with the Stars.” In celebrating their 200th episode, they’ve invited the alumni of all the past seasons to join them during the taping of the live broadcast, which can be seen on ABC at 8 p.m. ET.
Murray will also be featured in a pre-taped segment during ESPN’s coverage of “Monday Night Football.” The nine-time World Champion filmed a segment talking about Houston Texans defensive end Mario Williams, who is known by teammates as “Raging Bull.” This week’s game features the Indianapolis Colts and the Texans, and Murray’s segment is scheduled to air during the pre-game telecast at 7:50 p.m. ET.
FORD TRUCKS brought Guillermo Rodriguez to the Finals to film a special segment for “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” Guillermo came to Las Vegas with the intention of riding a bull, but after a rough go of it with Travis Briscoe and Super Duty, he thought better of the idea. He spent time with bullfighter Shorty Gorham before getting on stage with Flint Rasmussen during one of the commercial breaks. The segment can be seen on ABC on Tuesday, Nov. 9 (Please note this is an updated air date). Check local listings for show times.
— by Keith Ryan Cartwright
