PUEBLO, Colo. – Three years ago, a young gun by the name of Cooper Davis headed into the dog days of summer sitting a mere 795.33 points out of the world No. 1 ranking.

The 22-year-old stepped foot inside Bridgestone Arena in downtown Nashville on Aug. 18 ranked eighth in the world standing, and left Nashville with a career-shifting victory at the final PBR Major of the 2016 season.

Davis won the Music City Knockout that night to pick up 900 points toward the world standings to more than keep pace with then-world leader Kaique Pacheco, who Davis knocked out in the final round of the then bracket-style event.

Fabiano Vieira actually eliminated Davis in the semifinals, but was unable to continue because of a dislocated shoulder. That opened the door for Davis to continue in the tournament, and ultimately propelled him on his remarkable push for the 2016 world title and a $1 million bonus.

Just how important was Davis’ victory, though?

Well, he would have finished the 2016 season 136.58 points short of a world title if Vieira hadn’t gotten hurt and allowed him to continue.

“It was really important,” Davis said in Green Bay, Wisconsin, this past weekend. “That is what made me a World Champion, or started the World Champion run. So it was a big deal.”

That is why Davis, who had never won a regular-season event until Nashville that year, has continued to preach his belief that a world title can ultimately be won in the second half of the season.

On Sunday, Davis was in the process of grabbing his car keys to his rental – a speedy, silver Nissan Versa mind you – so that he could make the 3-hour drive to Chicago for a 9:35 p.m. flight back home to Texas.

The Jasper, Texas, native had just gone 3-for-3 to win the Green Bay Invitational, presented by Oneida Casino and North Star Mohican Resort and Casino, to jump to No. 6 in the world standings ahead of the Unleash The Beast summer break.

“It is no big deal right now,” Davis said as he shoved his white U.S. Border Patrol riding shirt into his gear bag. “It will be a big deal in November. Anything we get helps, but I won’t complain about (my standing) until I am too far gone.”

Davis was putting on a bull riding clinic in Green Bay prior to running up to his gate at O’Hare International Airport with minutes to spare before final boarding,

The fifth-year pro rode Stretch for 89.25 points in the championship round Sunday to take the lead before watching 2017 World Champion Jess Lockwood get bucked off by Big Black to cement Davis’ victory.

“He was really steep and up and down,” Davis said. “It felt good. About the time I lifted my leg to try and get 90 out of the deal and he kind of dropped me down in there and I hung on long enough.”

The 25-year-old picked up 530 world points after also riding Show Me Homie for 87.25 points and Speed Demon for 88.5 points.

“That is a deep short round bull that nobody really wants to get on,” Davis said of Speed Demon. “To get him rode today in the second round was a big deal. It kind of proves you could do it on any level still.”

Davis now trails world leader Jose Vitor Leme by 1,689.16 points heading into the Unleash The Beast summer break

Yes, that deficit is almost 900 points more than what Davis faced in 2016, but there is a major difference between this season and this point in June 2016.

This season there are still two PBR Majors remaining – Last Cowboy Standing at Cheyenne Frontier Days and the Music City Knockout in Nashville – before the 2019 PBR World Finals on Nov. 6-10 in Las Vegas at T-Mobile Arena.

One rider can earn potentially 1,250 points toward the world standings at either PBR Major.

A victory in Cheyenne or Nashville could immediately put Davis right in the direct mix for a second World Championship.

“I’ve always said world titles are won in the second half,” Davis said. “Jose (Vitor Leme), Chase (Outlaw), and Jess (Lockwood) are all riding really, really good, and I expect them to keep riding real good. The Finals and the second half – Nashville, Cheyenne – those are the events that can change things up real quick for people that don’t expect it.”

In fact, the last three World Champions – Davis (Nashville), Lockwood (New York) and Pacheco (Last Cowboy Standing) – all won a PBR Major on their path to the gold buckle.

Two-time World Champion and CBS Sports Network analyst Justin McBride said Davis showed in Green Bay that he wants to be a player in the title race.

“Cooper comes out here and throws his name right back in there,” McBride said.

Davis will also have an additional seven regular-season UTB events remaining beyond the two PBR Majors, and a slew of summer Touring Pro Division and PBR international events to make up ground.

However, Davis ultimately plans to rest before Cheyenne.

He will, though, compete in Bismarck, North Dakota, at Chad Berger’s $125,000 Team Challenge where he is the captain of Team Cooper Tires (Davis, Outlaw, Sage Kimzey, Braden Richardson).

In fact, Davis rode Stretch last year at Berger’s special World Champion’s Challenge in Bismarck for 91.5 points and $25,000.

“He repeated it today and I was real happy for him,” Berger said. “If he gets on a roll, get out of the way because he will be there before you know it, knocking on their door. And he is one of the baddest bull riders in the world. He has a real good shot at making a run at the title.”

Other than Bismarck, Davis will be resting in preparation for Cheyenne.

He will do so with a smile on his face, proud of ending his first half on a strong note.

“My goal this week was to ultimately ride all my bulls and if I won, awesome, but if not, then be on a hot streak going into the second half,” Davis concluded. “It is a big deal to come out on top.”

Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko