PRORODEO Sports News - July 12, 2024

Jacki Jensen photo

Ty Pope captured a key win at the Mandan Rodeo Days with an 88.5-point ride on Bailey Pro Rodeo’s Time To Rock.

MANDAN RODEO DAYS MANDAN, N.D. Ty Pope inches toward Top 15 with win

There is a ‘yet’ quality to Ty Pope? He has yet to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo. He has yet to inch into the Top 15 this season. But it is coming. Watch Pope, and it’s easy to see his future brightening like the morning sunshine in the bareback ranks. Pope continued his push for his first NFR berth with an impressive victory at the Mandan (N.D.) Rodeo Days. The 22-year-old delivered an 88.5-point ride on Bailey Pro Rodeo’s Time to Rock to secure the top prize at the Dale Pahlke Arena. “She was a super good horse. She had some hang time to her. I was having a lot of fun out there,” said Pope, who finished 23rd in the PRCA | RAM World Standings last season. “I knew I had a chance to win it. I got a second on her last year. She’s more of a hopper, and I have seen her at multiple events. She’s so consistent.”

Only in his second full season, Pope knows these types of draws cannot be squandered. The bareback standings feature more stars than a planetarium. That includes Ty’s brother, Jess, a former world champion in 2022. It is a bare knuckle battle to place in the bareback competition week-to-week. “Today’s set of bareback riders, you have to step it up. I don’t think I have ever seen as many good guys in one event,” Pope said. “When you show up, you have to be ready to show out to hang in this group.” What makes Pope’s potential so tantalizing is that he has performed his best in some of the sport’s biggest events. It has helped put him in contention for the NFR this season. “I just try to stay fit, stay healthy and draw good. There’s a ton of money to be won through July, August and September,” said Pope, who honed his skills at Missouri Valley College before turning pro. “I am passionate about what I do. I feel like God put me on this earth to ride bucking horses. It’s all I know.”

ProRodeo Sports News 7/12/2024

ProRodeo.com

57