ANAHEIM, Calif. – For the 19th year in a row, the stars of the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) will return to Anaheim, California, with the elite Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) on Jan. 29-31, covering the Anaheim Ducks ice rink with more than 750 tons of dirt at the Honda Center. Get ready for three days of the most high-flying, dirt-flinging, edge-of-your-seat excitement ever to hit Orange County.
The greatest bull riders in the world will once again go head-to-head with their nearly 2,000-pound opponents looking to not only win their share of the $130,000 total event purse, but also the valuable points needed to win the season’s overall title, the $1 million 2016 PBR World Championship.
The Anaheim Invitational will begin at 8 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 29; 6:50 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 30; and 1:50 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 31. Tickets are on sale now, ranging from $15 to $127, and can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com, at the Honda Center Box Office and via phone at 800-745-3000.
New to the ticket options this year are the PBR Elite Seats. Located in an exclusive section of the arena near all of the action, the PBR Elite Seats are priced at $404 each and will give fans the VIP experience of a lifetime; a pre-event catered reception, backstage tours featuring a PBR 101 presentation, and meet-and-greets with the PBR’s top stars. Contact the PBR Customer Service Department at 800-732-1727 for more information.
In the 19 years the BFTS has visited Anaheim, the PBR has paid out roughly $2.5 million in prize money. Riders who have been victorious in Orange County are:
2015 Matt Triplett
2014 Valdiron de Oliveira
2013 Shane Proctor
2012 Guilherme Marchi
2011 Silvano Alves
2010 Kody Lostroh
2009 Kody Lostroh
2008 Paulo Crimber
2007 Greg Potter
2006 Mike Lee
2005 Greg Potter
Adriano Moraes
2004 Greg Potter
2003 Justin McBride
2002 Adriano Moraes
2001 Ty Murray
2000 JW Hart
1999 Cody Custer
1998 Troy Dunn
Four PBR World Champions, including two-time reigning PBR World Champion J.B. Mauney (2013 & 2015), Mike Lee (2004), Guilherme Marchi (2008) and three-time World Champion Silvano Alves (2011, 2012, 2014), are all expected to compete in Anaheim. Kaique Pacheco, the 2015 Rookie of the Year, fan favorites Reese Cates and Douglas Duncan, and veteran bull riders Kasey Hayes and the dancing Australian Ben Jones are all in the lineup.
The BFTS’ Top 35 bull riders will ride one bull each in Rounds 1, 2 and 3, Friday through Sunday. After Round 3 on Sunday, the riders’ individual scores will be totaled and the Top 15 riders will advance to the Built Ford Tough Championship Round for one more ride and a chance at the $30,000 event title.
Following Round 2 on Saturday, the sport’s top bovine athletes and best bull riders will compete in a special round of competition, the PBR’s second 15/15 Bucking Battle of the season. The series’ Top 15 riders will be randomly matched against the 15 highest-ranked bulls in this round, competing for bonus points which count towards the PBR world standings and a total purse of $21,000.
Bullfighters Only (BFO) and the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) have joined forces to feature the most-talented freestyle bullfighters in the world during BFO competitions at stops along the PBR’s 2016 Built Ford Tough Series – Anaheim included. Bullfighters will take to the arena during intermission on Friday at the Honda Center, to showcase their fast–paced sport, which is based on the fundamental skills required to protect bull riders.
The Anaheim Invitational is the fourth stop on the 2016 BFTS schedule. The season will conclude at the PBR Built Ford Tough World Finals in Las Vegas on Nov. 2-6 when the 2016 PBR World Champion, the bull rider who earns the most PBR world standings points during the 2016 season, will be crowned and receive the coveted World Championship belt buckle and a $1 million bonus.
The BFTS is televised every week on CBS, CBS Sports Network – the home of the PBR 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.
