LAS VEGAS – As the 2024 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Challenger Series Championship got underway Wednesday night in Las Vegas, Zane Monnett (Glendale, Utah) rode supreme, winning Round 1 of the series’ year-end event.
The athletic prowess of PBR’s animal athletes was on full display for the raucous crowd inside South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa, surrendering just five qualified rides in 40 attempts, delivering buckoffs in 87.5% of the outs.
Monnett lit up the scoreboard when he covered Sucker Pop (Harrison/Spencer/Sherman Cattle Co./Farris) for 87.5 points. With the 8-second effort, the Utah native earned a crucial 48 Challenger Global points.
While he began the night ranked No. 76 in the standings, he climbed to No. 52 in the standings.
Atop the standings in the race for the 2024 PBR Challenger Series Championship, Andrei Scoparo (Assis Chateaubriand, Brazil) finished fifth to rise within the Top 10.
The Carolina Cowboys standout bested The CEO (McCoy Rodeo/Gerick Shraub) for 83.25 points to net 22 Challenger Global points. He rose one position in the standings, climbing from No. 10 to No. 9 in the title battle. He is now within 271 points of current No. 1 Cody Coverchuk (Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan, Canada), who is not competing in Las Vegas.
Alex Cerqueira (Iguatemi, Brazil) parlayed an 87-point score aboard Tijuana Two-Step (Blake Sharp/Michael Floyd) into a second-place finish in the opening round.
Cerqueira, who rides for the Florida Freedom in the separate PBR Teams league, collected 28 Challenger Global points. He rose from No. 27 to No. 23 in the season standings.
Third was the Texas Rattlers’ Claudio Montanha Jr. (Ribeirao dos Indios, Brazil). The affable Brazilian went the distance on Chateau Montelena’s Montana Jacket (Vella/Coleman/Ogden/Hart) for 86.5 points, netting 26 Challenger Global points.
With just one day remaining in the 2024 PBR Challenger Series season, Montanha climbed from No. 69 to No. 58 in the standings.
The Oklahoma Wildcatters’ Bob Mitchell (Steelville, Missouri) was fourth. Mitchell topped PIF (McCoy Rodeo/Spencer Neil/Crown D) for 84 points, garnering 24 Challenger Global points. Mitchell surged from No. 22 to No. 19 in the Challenger Series standings.
Following the conclusion of the Challenger Series Championship, the 2024 PBR Camping World Team Series playoffs begin on Oct. 17 at South Point Arena with the wild card Ride-In Round featuring the Nashville Stampede, Oklahoma Freedom, Arizona Ridge Riders, and New York Mavericks. Two teams will move on to Championship Weekend at T-Mobile Arena (Oct. 18-20). Prior to the Ride-In Round, the Challenger Series Championship will conclude, featuring the Top 20 bull riders from Round 1 attempting one final bull each. All the action begins at 7 p.m. PT.
Tickets for the Ride-In-Round at South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa can be purchased on Ticketmaster.com, while tickets for the three-day event at T-Mobile Arena to determine the season champions can be found on axs.com.
PBR+ will stream all the action from the Ride-In Round, with coverage beginning on Thursday, October 17, at 7 p.m. PT. PBR+ is a brand-new streaming subscription service offering unprecedented access to PBR & Rodeo video content, including live events, replays, and on-demand.
Viewers can download the PBR+ App in the iOS and Android App Store or on Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, and FireTV. PBR+ subscriptions are $9.99/month or $79.99/year. However, fans can enjoy a free trial until January 1, 2025, by visiting PBRplus.com.
PBR Challenger Series
PBR Challenger Series Championship
South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa – Las Vegas, Nevada
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2- Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Zane Monnett, 87.5-0-87.50-48 Points.
2. Alex Cerqueira, 87-0-87.00-28 Points.
3. Claudio Montanha Jr., 86.5-0-86.50-26 Points.
4. Bob Mitchell, 84-0-84.00-24 Points.
5. Andrei Scoparo, 83.25-0-83.25-22 Points.
Dustin Martinez, 0-0-0.00
Julio Cesar Marques, 0-0-0.00
Dustin Herman, 0-0-0.00
Brandon Chambers, 0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0.00
Elijah Monnett, 0-0-0.00
Elizmar Jeremias, 0-0-0.00
Cody McCandless, 0-0-0.00
Qynn Andersen, 0-0-0.00
Christian Clay Oliveira, 0-0-0.00
William Wright, 0-0-0.00
Ednélio Almeida, 0-0-0.00
Maikon Calixton Rocha, 0-0-0.00
Lance Lara, 0-0-0.00
Guilherme Valleiras, 0-0-0.00
Matt Allgood, 0-0-0.00
Jake Morinec, 0-0-0.00
Wyatt Rogers, 0-0-0.00
Eric Henrique Domingos, 0-0-0.00
Anderson de Oliveira, 0-0-0.00
Carlos André de Oliveira, 0-0-0.00
Afonso Quintino, 0-0-0.00
Alan de Souza, 0-0-0.00
Paulo Henrique da Silva, 0-0-0.00
Cleber Henrique Marques, 0-0-0.00
Emerson Lopes, 0-0-0.00
Weston Davidson, 0-0-0.00
Zane Hall, 0-0-0.00
Vitor Manoel Dias, 0-0-0.00
Miguel de Jesus, 0-0-0.00
Vinicius Pinheiro Correa, 0-0-0.00
Rogério Venâncio, 0-0-0.00
Gilmar Santana, 0-0-0.00
Frederico Araujo Margarido, 0-0-0.00
Ramon Fiorini de Souza, 0-0-0.00
Photo courtesy of Andre Silva/Bull Stock Media