PUEBLO, Colo. – The PBR’s first five Unleash The Beast events of 2020 are in the books, and with that is a group of new faces, and some familiar ones, that were missing a year ago.
Here is a look at eight riders that finished outside of the Top 35 last season that have worked their way back into the Top 30 of the world standings through the first month 2020.
1. Kaique Pacheco
The 2018 World Champion highlights the group of riders that fought their way back onto the Unleash The Beast, and it really is no surprise. An injury-plagued 2019 was not the true version of Pacheco, who eventually shut down his season following reconstructive elbow surgery in June.
Pacheco heads into Iron Cowboy, presented by Ariat, ranked fourth in the 2020 world standings after beginning the season 11-for-17 in the first five events. In comparison, Pacheco was 9-for-29 in 11 Unleash The Beast events last year before undergoing that season-ending surgery.
The 25-year-old is once again a world title contender, and he should have even ridden reigning YETI World Champion Bull Smooth Operator last weekend in Oklahoma City if not for a mental mistake that led to him reaching for his bull rope too soon.
2. Colten Jesse
Jesse may just be the biggest surprise through the first month of the season. The 22-year-old is sixth in the world standings, and has begun 2020 8-for-16 after missing the second half of the 2019 regular season because of reconstructive shoulder surgery.
Jesse has dropped off some in the last two weeks, going 1-for-6 after a second-place finish at the Manchester Invitational. The Konowa, Oklahoma, bull rider’s hot start to 2020 will still be a welcome sight for the Team USA Wolves next week at the 2020 WinStar World Casino and Resort Global Cup USA, presented by Monster Energy, at AT&T Stadium.
3. Dener Barbosa
Mr. Consistency, Dener Barbosa, is back to churning out ride after ride. Just recently, Barbosa became only the second rider in 43 outs to ride Heartbreak Kid on the premier series. However, Heartbreak Kid had an off day and the ride was only worth 81 points.
Barbosa has made a living on reaching the 8-second mark more times than not. The career 50% rider has begun 2020 5-for-8 on the UTB since earning a spot back on tour for the Manchester Invitational.
The 2016 PBR Brazil champion missed the first half of 2019 recovering from offseason shoulder surgery (right) and never got back to his previous Top-15 form, going 9-for-21 before being cut from tour.
Barbosa appears to be healthy and ready to make a push at the 2020 world title.
4. Fabiano Vieira
Vieira saw his streak of eight consecutive World Finals appearances come to an end last season. The longtime veteran went only 2-for-11 on the premier series after finally electing to get surgery on his right shoulder in February. The 37-year-old, though, did not look at his 219th place finish in the 2019 world standings as a sign that he had reached the end of his career.
Vieira has since returned motivated and driven to make it back to the World Finals this year. He is coming off a 2-for-3, fourth-place finish last weekend in Oklahoma City. The 11th-year pro won the Baltimore Velocity Tour event in mid-January to help him with his push up the world standings, and he is 7-for-11 on the UTB.
In fact, Vieira’s 63.64% riding average is fourth-best on the UTB behind only Jose Vitor Leme (78.95%), Joao Ricardo Vieira (64.71%) and Pacheco (64.71%).
5. Bradley Brittain
Brittain is the early leader in the 2020 Rookie of the Year race, but he is now on the sidelines because of a left shoulder injury. The 27-year-old is 5-for-11 in his first season on the UTB, including a career-best fifth-place finish at the Chicago Invitational.
Brittain is not competing at Iron Cowboy, but he will still head to Los Angeles to have Dr. Tandy Freeman look at his shoulder. Identity Crisis stepped on him last weekend in Oklahoma City.
6. Nathan Burtenshaw
The talented Australian bull rider is up to No. 23 in the world standings and just recently made his season debut in Oklahoma City (1-for-2). Burtenshaw is looking to make it back to the World Finals after missing the 2019 Finals because of a broken collarbone and additional injuries. It was the second consecutive season Burtenshaw broke his collarbone.
Burtenshaw began his push back into the Top 35 in Australia this past November when he won the PBR Australia Monster Energy event in Melbourne.
7. Cole Melancon
The 2017 College National Finals Rodeo champion is set to make his UTB debut in Los Angeles, but Melancon is no stranger to PBR fans. Melancon played a crucial role for Team USA at the inaugural Global Cup in Edmonton, Alberta, hanging off the side of Bourbon Oak for an important 82.5 points during the Eagles’ victory in Canada.
Melancon was on track to qualify for a third consecutive NFR last year before he suffered a collapsed lung and three broken ribs at the California Rodeo Salinas on July 22. He wound up finishing 18th in the final 2019 NFR standings; he was ranked No. 13 at the time of his injury.
The Paris, Texas, bull rider heads into Iron Cowboy ranked 29th in the PBR world standings and is 6-for-11 on the Velocity Tour and TPD level this season.
8. Jake Lockwood
Lockwood rode Soup in a Group for a career-high 87.25 points in Sacramento, California, and is looking to join his older brother and two-time World Champion Jess Lockwood on the UTB. Jake went 2-for-6 in his first two UTB events this season, and he is 4-for-7 on the Velocity Tour with a victory at the Reno Rumble on Jan. 10.
Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko