LOS ANGELES – Joao Ricardo Vieira (Itatinga, Sao Paulo, Brazil) rode his way to a record-setting third Iron Cowboy title at PBR’s (Professional Bull Riders) Iron Cowboy, presented by Ariat, on Saturday night at a sold-out STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.
The Brazilian was the only rider to go 3-for-3 for the weekend and the only cowboy to cover his bull in Round 3 as he brought the spirited LA crowd to its feet when he delivered a monster 90.25-point ride aboard Cochise (Jane Clark / Gene Owen). Vieira entered the weekend No. 3 in the world standings and moved to No. 2 earning 760 world points and $146,000 for the event.
Vieira would go on to be crowned the Iron Cowboy as he was the only rider to reach the 8-second mark out of 11 riders in Round 3. In the specially-formatted PBR Major, riders much reach 8 seconds to advance to the next round of competition.
Alisson de Souza (Taubate, Sao Paulo, Brazil) and Cannon Cravens (Porum, Oklahoma) tied for second place for the event. The young Brazilian covered his first bull of the night Acting Crazy (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Staci Wilks/N Bar Ranch) for 87.25 points.
In Round 3, Souza faced Smooth Operator (Dakota Rodeo/Julie Rosen/Clay Struve/Chad Berger) and was eliminated from the Iron Cowboy event when he was bucked off in 4.34 seconds. The performance earned Smooth Operator the YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Event title with a score of 46 points.
Despite getting bucked off in Round 2 on Saturday, Cravens held on to a second-place tie after his Round 1 win on Friday night. The 18-year-old cowboy went head-to-head with Udder Brother (D&H Cattle Co/Bob & Jeri Adams) in Round 2.
Both riders walked away with $10,600 and 125 world points. Souza moved from No. 15 to No. 9 in the world standings, and Cravens jumped from No. 17 to No. 12.
Luciano de Castro (Guzolandia, Sao Paulo, Brazil) and Brennon Eldred (Sulphur, Oklahoma) tied for fourth place. Castro made the 8 seconds atop Whiskey Bent (Wentz Bucking Bulls/New West Rodeos) for 86.25 points in Round 2. He was matched up with Fearless (D&H Cattle/Buck Cattle/Tommy Julian) in Round 3, lasting only 3.9 seconds.
Eldred was unable to cover Jasper (Wentz Bucking Bulls/New West Rodeos) in Round 2, but his impressive Round 1 performance kept him in the Top 5.
Both cowboys left STAPLES Center with 75 world points and $4,100. Castro moved from No. 6 to No. 5 in the world standings, and Eldred stayed at No. 19.
Replays from Round 2 and the Championship Round will be available starting at 8 a.m. ET on Sunday, February 24 on Ridepass.com or via the Ridepass mobile app and the final round of competition will air on CBS Sports on Sunday, February 24 at 12 p.m. ET.
In other PBR news this weekend, Daniel Tinsman (Farmland, Indiana) captured the second PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour event win of his career inside the DCU Center, victorious at the Worcester Rumble. The 23-year-old began the event with an 84.5 point ride on Pit Bull (Broken Arrow Bucking Bulls), tying for sixth in Round 1. He then brought the electric crowd in Worcester to its feet when he was the only rider to make the 8 in the championship round, covering Slow Ride (Mike Miller Bucking Bulls) for 79.5 points. For the victory, Tinsman collected 170 world points, in addition to a check for $7,900. He is now the No. 18 ranked rider in the world.
Every winner of a Velocity Tour event has an opportunity to compete at an Unleash The Beast series event, and with the victory in Youngstown, Tinsman will go to Kansas City for the Caterpillar Classic, on March 23-24 at Sprint Center.
Unleash The Beast - LOS ANGELES IRON COWBOY PRESENTED BY ARIAT
STAPLES Center - Los Angeles, CA, 2019
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Round 4-Round 5-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Joao Ricardo Vieira, 84.5-80.5-90.25-0-0-255.25-760 Points.
2. Alisson De Souza, 0-87.25-0-0-0-87.25-125 Points.
(tie). Cannon Cravens, 87.25-0-0-0-0-87.25-125 Points.
4. Luciano De Castro, 0-86.25-0-0-0-86.25-75 Points.
(tie). Brennon Eldred, 86.75-0-0-0-0-86.75-75 Points.
6. Alan de Souza, 86.25-84-0-0-0-170.25-67.5 Points.
7. Jose Vitor Leme, 84.75-85.75-0-0-0-170.50-61.66 Points.
8. Cody Jesus, 0-86-0-0-0-86.00-60 Points.
9. Emilio Resende, 85.75-0-0-0-0-85.75-50 Points.
10. Derek Kolbaba, 85.25-0-0-0-0-85.25-40 Points.
(tie). Dakota Buttar, 80.25-85.5-0-0-0-165.75-40 Points.
12. Mason Taylor, 84.75-84.25-0-0-0-169.00-31.66 Points.
13. Ezekiel Mitchell, 84.75-81.75-0-0-0-166.50-16.66 Points.
14. Cody Nance, 84.25-84-0-0-0-168.25-12.5 Points.
15. Silvano Alves, 81-80.25-0-0-0-161.25-10 Points.
16. Chase Outlaw, 84-0-0-0-0-84.00-5 Points.
(tie). Lucas Divino, 83.25-0-0-0-0-83.25-5 Points.
(tie). Tanner Byrne, 84-0-0-0-0-84.00-5 Points.
(tie). Stetson Lawrence, 84.5-0-0-0-0-84.50-5 Points.
20. Taylor Toves, 77.75-0-0-0-0-77.75
21. Colten Jesse, 77.5-0-0-0-0-77.50
Ryan Dirteater, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Cooper Davis, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Claudio Montanha Jr., 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Rubens Barbosa, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Danilo Carlos Sobrinho, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Junio Quaresima, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Sean Willingham, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Ouncie Mitchell, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Cody Teel, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Matt Triplett, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Dylan Smith, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Koal Livingston, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Alex Marcilio, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Keyshawn Whitehorse, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Ramon de Lima, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Marco AntÙnio Eguchi, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Eduardo Aparecido, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Kaique Pacheco, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00
Francisco Garcia Torres, 0-0-0-0-0-0.00