CHICAGO – All it took was two seconds for Smooth Operator to show that maybe he indeed has something left in the tank at 10 years old.
The reigning YETI World Champion Bull sent Ezekiel Mitchell flying like a helicopter in a demonstration of brute strength during the championship round of the Chicago Invitational Sunday, quickly reminding everyone watching why he won a world title in 2019.
Smooth Operator was marked a season-best 46.75 points in his first out of 2020, and the out caught the attention of not only riders and stock contractors on the back of the bucking chutes, but also, of course, of his caretaker Chad Berger.
“Well, you can expect everything from him, that bull, but that was phenomenal,” Berger said, somewhat in disbelief. “46.75, if that’s all he was worth, then them guys all need to get on another bull, these four judges here. But that’s beside the point. That bull was outstanding. There wasn’t a fault in him. He was rank. And I guess at 10 years old, he might have a chance.”
Smooth Operator turned 10 years old at the beginning of the month, and Berger decided to bring back the bovine superstar for his seventh season.
Mitchell said after the event that Smooth Operator by no means felt like an old bull.
“They’re amazing animal athletes,” Mitchell said. “They get taken care of, and Chad Berger loves him, so I know he’s doing whatever it takes. He said he even gave him a bath before he came up here, so I figure he’ll still bring it as long as Chad keep bringing him to buck.”
Smooth Operator concluded 2019 with a World Champion Bull average of 46 points. The veteran bull went 14-3 with an average bull score of 45.42 points. Smooth Operator was marked 46 points or higher in seven of his 17 outs.
No bull has won a PBR World Championship at 10 years old.
Berger said he will take things cautiously with Smooth Operator in 2020, but he would like to still get around 10-12 outs before the 2020 PBR World Finals on Nov. 4-8 in Las Vegas.
Smooth Operator may next buck in two weeks at the Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic in Sacramento, California, on Jan. 24-26.
“It all depends on him,” Berger said. “We’ll watch him. We’ll listen to what he tells us and go from there. But I plan on bucking him as much as I can. I’d like to get at least 10, 12 outs on him in case he has a bad out here or there, and we can wipe it out. Like I said, we’ll let him tell us how many times he needs to buck.”
Wherever Berger decides to bring Smooth Operator, you can expect Mitchell to be looking for revenge.
He was not happy to get demolished by Smooth Operator this weekend, and he has every intention on evening the score this season.
“I’m going to get on him again,” Mitchell said. “Wherever the next short round is, hopefully I’m sitting in first. I’m coming in and I’m picking him. World Champions ride World Champions, and I want to be a world champ, and that’s all there is to it. He won’t get me on the ground again.”
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko