PUEBLO, Colo. – Before Round 1 of the PBR SoCal Showdown in Los Angeles last weekend, Eli Vastbinder had some fortifying words for Boudreaux Campbell.
“Hey man, you’ve got a great bull in the first round,” Vastbinder said. “You’ll probably win it.”
Campbell recalls the conversation with a laugh.
“I’m glad he told me that because me and that bull matched up great, and I ended up winning the round,” he said.
Indeed, Campbell matched up with Shameless for a round-winning – and event-high – 91.25 points. And interestingly, it was the first long-round win of Campbell’s PBR career.
He’s won three regular-season events, one 15/15 Bucking Battle, and the 2020 PBR World Finals, but had never won a long round.
“I think I’ve won a couple short rounds, but I have never won a long round,” Campbell said. “I’ve never had to go onstage after a long round. It was a cool experience. To be in it this long, just to get my first round win and stand onstage like that, it was pretty cool.”
Campbell actually notched another round win the next day in Los Angeles, this time taking the championship round win thanks to 88 points on July.
“He’s a good bull,” Campbell said. “He’s never been ridden, but he’s got a lot of good guys on the ground. He’s usually around to the left, so that’s why I picked him, but before I got on, Mr. (stock contractor Gary) Leffew was like, ‘Man, he can go right.’ And today, he came out backward and went right. I was just in the zone and made the right moves, had the right timing. Everything worked out. I was very blessed.”
Campbell was the only rider in the championship round to notch a qualified ride, giving him the easy round win and a nice $30,000 weekend for finishing second overall to Dalton Kasel. Kasel edged Campbell in the aggregate by half a point, 179.75 to 179.25.
It’s an agonizingly small margin to lose out on his first event win of the season, but it’s Campbell’s second second-place and fourth Top-5 finish of the year. He’s now ranked No. 8 in the Unleash The Beast standings heading into this weekend’s PBR U.S. Border Patrol Invitational in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Campbell will take on T-K L900 (1-0, all levels) in Round 1, which airs Friday, March 3, at 8:30 p.m. ET on RidePass on Pluto TV.
“My season hasn’t been bad,” Campbell said. “I need to be better and more consistent week in and week out. So I’m not happy with that, but I’m blessed to be healthy and able to ride and do this for a living. I live one of the best lives in this world, and I thank the good Lord for that. Now it’s just time to keep the hammer down, keep the momentum rolling.
“Gold buckle – that’s the goal.”
WHO’S IN FOR LITTLE ROCK
Jose Vitor Leme Andrew Alvidrez Kaique Pacheco Dalton Kasel Cooper Davis Rafael Jose de Brito Daniel Keeping Boudreaux Campbell Luciano De Castro Keyshawn Whitehorse Jesse Petri Silvano Alves Eduardo Aparecido Mason Taylor Eli Vastbinder Wingson Henrique da Silva Rafael Henrique dos Santos Dener Barbosa Marcelo Procopio Pereira Joao Ricardo Vieira Tate Pollmeier Casey Roberts Koltin Hevalow Jess Lockwood Braidy Randolph Manoelito de Souza Jr. Kyler Oliver Sandro Batista Ramon de Lima Ezekiel Mitchell Chase Outlaw Marcus Mast Aaron Williams Ednei Caminhas Cody Jesus Mason Moody Elizmar Jeremias Wyatt Rogers
OUT DUE TO INJURY/OTHER
Brady Oleson Derek Kolbaba Bob Mitchell Austin Richardson Colten Fritzlan Junior Patrik Souza Briggs Madsen Clayton Sellars Griffin Smeltzer Chase Wimer
THE CUTLINE LOOMS
Following action in Little Rock this weekend, riders will once again be subject to the cutline: a Top-32 ranking in the Unleash The Beast standings is the only way to guarantee a spot next weekend.
Plenty of riders are facing danger this weekend, including home-state favorite Chase Outlaw. Outlaw is ranked No. 36 after being unable to string his rides together – he hasn’t ridden more than one bull in a weekend since the season-opener in Tucson, Arizona, in November. Outlaw will look to get his first ride in Little Rock under his belt against Fastfire (5-2, all levels) in Round 1.
Also in danger are Cody Jesus (ranked No. 57 and down to his last guaranteed event), Ezekiel Mitchell (ranked No. 35), and Marcus Mast (ranked No. 39 after missing two weeks of action after being hurt at the PBR Stockyards Showcase in Fort Worth, Texas, on Feb. 16). No. 33 Austin Richardson is out due to injury, but No. 30 Manoelito de Souza Junior, No. 31 Kyler Oliver, No. 32 Sandro Batista and No. 34 Ramon de Lima are all at risk and will need to get some bulls ridden in Little Rock to avoid being cut.
LEME’S LEAD DOWN TO 102.5 POINTS HEADING INTO LITTLE ROCK
Two-time World Champion Jose Vitor Leme still holds the world No. 1 ranking, but that hold is a bit more tenuous than it was a few weeks ago.
This past weekend at the PBR SoCal Showdown in Los Angeles, Leme suffered a rare shutout, going 0-for-2. Luckily for him, No. 2 Andrew Alvidrez went just 1-for-2 – as did No. 3 Kaique Pacheco and No. 5 Cooper Davis – so nobody gained much ground. Leme did lose 13 points to Alvidrez, which isn’t much, but it followed a week in which Alvidrez gained 51.5 points on Leme.
Can Leme reverse the trend in Little Rock? He’ll attempt to when he takes on Ain’t No Joke (5-0, all levels) in Round 1. Alvidrez will match up against John 14:6 (17-1, all levels).
NEWS AND NOTES
Mason Taylor (out with injury since Sacramento, California, on Feb. 4), Marcus Mast (out with injury since Fort Worth on Feb. 16), and 2002 World Champion Ednei Caminhas (out with injury since Duluth, Georgia, on Jan. 21) are all returning to the draw in Little Rock.
Also of note, Round 1 is an ABBI Classic Round and will feature the No. 2 and No. 3 bulls in the world, Ricky Vaughn and Flapjack. Ricky Vaughn will take on Eli Vastbinder, while Flapjack, the current No. 1 Classic bull, faces off against Ramon de Lima.
ROUND 1 REMATCHES
Casey Roberts vs. Soul King (2023 in Tulsa, Oklahoma – 3.14 seconds) Koltin Hevalow vs. Turner Burner (2023 in Tulsa, Oklahoma – 5.59 seconds)
FOLLOW ALONG
This weekend’s action in Little Rock is set to begin with Round 1 on Friday, March 3, at 8:45 p.m. ET on RidePass on Pluto TV. The championship round airs Sunday, March 5, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.
Fans can stay tuned to PBR.com and PBR social media channels throughout the weekend for the latest scores, wrecks, injury updates and beyond as the world’s best bull riders compete at the U.S. Border Patrol Invitational in Little Rock.
Photo courtesy of Josh Homer/Bull Stock Media