Chase Dougherty on -6 Delbert:
Dougherty is one for his last eight bulls, but he should turn that around here. Delbert is a very rideable bull who has given up four scores in his last six outs.
Daylon Swearingen on E13 Hurts So Good:
Swearingen dominated this bull at the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals last year for 89.5 points and did it again for 88 points in Chicago last month. The bull was 42.5 and 42 points in those two outs, which means Swearingen went 88 and 89.5 on a bull he could have been 85-87 on, which means he spurred the daylights out of him both times. Swearingen looks really good on bulls that fit him, and this one fits him to a T.
Koltin Hevalow on 62 Spastica:
If you are wondering who in the world Koltin Hevalow is, welcome to the club. He’s making his UTB debut in St. Louis. He recently turned 18 and went to his first Velocity event just last week, which he won easily using the rare but effective strategy of simply riding all his bulls. That makes this kind of an interesting matchup because this bull has only two outs on record and was ridden both times. So here we have Hevalow, who apparently doesn’t buck off, against a bull who can’t throw anyone off. On top of that, both guys who have ridden Spastica were lefties, and so is Hevalow.
Cody Teel on E5 Big Black Cat:
Probability numbers look better for Teel than anyone else who has faced this bull in the past eight months. They may be misguided, though. Teel rode this bull back in 2018. Big Black Cat is 10 years old and has been in the game since 2014, active in the PBR UTB events longer than Teel has. Early in his career, he was ridden a lot, but he’s gotten wiser along with getting older because the longer he’s been around, the less he gets ridden. No one has ridden him since June of 2020, and he has 25 straight buckoffs since then, 18 of those at UTB events.
Eli Vastbinder on 34 Soup in a Group:
Another veteran bull, but a more rideable one. Soup in a Group has 84 career outs, and he’s been ridden 28 times, including the most recent four. Vastbinder won the short round at the Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo on this bull back in 2018. Vastbinder is riding extremely well this season and has a great draw here.
Dawson Branton on 507C Bentley:
We’ve been seeing this bull in short rounds and 15/15 Bucking Battles recently, where he’s been one of the better draws for left-handed riders. Branton is a relative newcomer who made his UTB level debut in Sacramento last month, going 2-for-3 there. Bentley is one of the better draws in this round for a left-handed rider, and he can be good enough to produce round wins. In his last four outs, Bentley has been ridden three times for scores and allowed riders to stay on 31.16 out of 32 total seconds.
Derek Kolbaba on 628 Bubba G:
Kolbaba has been pretty quiet this year, but he has a chance here. Bubba G is a good fit for left-handed riders, and he’s been ridden four times in his last six outs. He’s the kind of bull Kolbaba usually gets along with, too.
Rafael Henrique Santos on 723 Mike’s Motive:
Santos was 89.5 points on this bull about a year ago to win a round in the frozen tundra of Del Rio, Texas. Mike’s Motive is a solid draw for any right-handed rider, and guys are typically high 80s to low 90s on him.
Silvano Alves on 54 Catfish:
After going on a run during the World Finals and into the first couple of events this year, Alves has gone into something of a slump: he’s been blanked at the last three events. This is a really favorable matchup for him. Catfish has been ridden in three of his last four outs and is good to right-handed guys in general. Alves should get a score. The big issue with Alves is consistency. For a guy who rode more than 60% of his bulls early in his career, he rarely gets all of his bulls ridden at a single event. He did it once in 2020 and twice in early 2018.
Joao Ricardo Vieira on 710 Simon:
Vieira is right where he wants to be – at the top of the standings. That also means every other rider is chasing him. Way back in the pack, just outside the Top 10, Jose Vitor Leme is gaining ground, and he’s obviously the biggest threat. Neither guy drew all that well in Round 1. Vieira’s bull is a complete unknown – this is his first pro-level out. This does give Vieira a slight edge, being a veteran rider against a rookie bull. Leme’s bull is 9-1 in his career and is not used to giving up qualified rides. On the other hand, no bull ever really has an edge against Leme, which is why he’s won the past two world titles.
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