The NBC Sports Group and Professional Bull Riders (PBR) have reached an agreement for 20 Built Ford Tough Series broadcasts in 2012 on NBC and NBC Sports Network, it was announced today. The agreement marks the 12th year in a row that PBR will have a broadcast on NBC.

NBC Sports Network, to be renamed from VERSUS on Jan. 2, 2012, will air more than 30 hours of live event programming with 13 regular-season Built Ford Tough Series broadcasts, and two performances of the Built Ford Tough World Finals. NBC will broadcast four regular-season events, beginning Jan. 8 from Madison Square Garden in New York, and will again broadcast Championship Sunday from the PBR World Finals on Oct. 28.

"PBR is legacy programming that has been on VERSUS and NBC for more than a decade," said Jon Miller, President, Programming, NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network. "We look forward to it returning to our schedule in 2012."

"NBC was the first broadcast network to believe in the PBR, and this will be the 11th year in a row that NBC Sports Network, formerly VERSUS, has televised the Built Ford Tough Series," said PBR President and COO Sean Gleason. "We're excited that both networks will be the broadcast home of our biggest events in 2012."

The PBR made its network television debut on NBC in 2001 with one broadcast. The PBR and NBC relationship has expanded over the years to include as many as eight network broadcasts in a year, including Championship Sunday from the PBR World Finals.

Built Ford Tough Series telecasts are produced for the PBR under a multi-year agreement with David Neal Productions, a Los Angeles-based production company led by 34-time Emmy® Award winner and Peabody Award winner David Neal, who serves as executive producer.  Returning for his sixth season as the play-by-play broadcaster is Craig Hummer, who will be joined each week by one color commentator. The color commentators will be nine-time World Champion and PBR co-founder Ty Murray, two-time PBR World Champion Justin McBride, and PBR Ring of Honor member J.W. Hart. The behind-the-chutes reporters will be Leah Garcia, who has worked for the PBR since 2004, and Marty Snider, who has covered PBR events, including the Built Ford Tough World Finals, each of the last two years.

The PBR is the world's premier bull riding organization. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the founding of the PBR. In just two decades, the dream of 20 bull riders has become a global sports phenomenon that is televised worldwide. More than 100 million viewers annually watch primetime PBR programming on networks around the world including NBC and NBC Sports Network. The PBR has awarded over $100 million in prize money and 21 riders have earned over $1 million, including Justin McBride with $5.5 million -- the most of any western sports athlete in history. Nearly two million fans attend Built Ford Tough Series and Touring Pro Division events each year. For more information on the PBR, go to www.pbr.com, or follow on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TeamPBR and http://twitter.com/TEAMPBR.