NEW YORK ― New York City will get the opportunity to join the Professional Bull Riders in celebrating the organization's 500th Built Ford Tough Series regular-season event when the toughest sport on dirt returns to Madison Square Garden on Jan. 3-5, kicking off the 2014 PBR Built Ford Tough Series season.
Tickets, ranging in price from $20 to $200, are now on sale for the PBR's return to the World's Most Famous Arena and can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com and via phone at (800) 345-3000. Tickets are also available at the MSG Box Office.
During this three-day event, the Top 35 bull riders in the world will face off with foes nearly 100 times their weight in sinewy brawn during 8-second battles where only one athlete will be left standing. The action begins Friday and Saturday, Jan. 3 and 4 at 8 p.m. and on Sunday, Jan. 5 at 1 p.m.
In 2013, New York's Monster Energy Invitational drew more than 43,000 fans to Madison Square Garden to set a new attendance record for the three-day competition. PBR expects much of the same in 2014.
The bull riders will face one bull each during Round 1 on Friday, Round 2 on Saturday and Round 3 on Sunday. Following Round 3, the top 10 to 15 riders with the highest cumulative scores on at least two bulls will advance to the Built Ford Tough Championship Round that same day. The overall event winner will be the rider with the highest-combined score from all four rounds, earning at least $30,000 for first place.
The competition in New York is always tight ― the men are rested, healed and ready for 8-second action.
To start the 2013 BFTS season, Robson Palermo captured the New York PBR event win after winning the 2012 PBR World Finals event the previous October. NYC fan favorite J.B. Mauney had been in the lead in New York, headed toward what seemed a third title at MSG, but he was tossed from his bull in the championship round while Palermo held tight.
Mauney and Palermo are expected to return to NYC in January along with 33 other bull riders, including former PBR World Champions Silvano Alves (2011, 2012), Renato Nunes (2010), Kody Lostroh (2009), Guilherme Marchi (2008) and Mike Lee (2004).
New York City will be the first of 27 stops on the 2014 PBR Built Ford Tough Series schedule. The series also will travel to Chicago, Anaheim, Calif., and Dallas on its 18-state tour, culminating with the PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals in Las Vegas on Oct. 22-26 when the 2014 PBR World Champion, the bull rider who amasses the most points during the 2014 season, will receive the coveted world championship belt buckle and $1 million bonus.
The BFTS is televised every week on CBS, CBS Sports Network and networks around the world. BFTS 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.