ProRodeo Sports News - August 6, 2021

Xtreme Bulls victory has rookie Young surging In Full Focus BY TRACY RENCK C reek Young’s dream of making the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo is inching closer to reality. The rookie bull rider made sure of that by winning the Lea County PRCA Rodeo Xtreme Bulls with 169.5 points on two head in Lovington, N.M., Aug. 3. “It would mean everything if I could qualify for NFR,” said Young, 20. PRCA XTREME BULLS 2021 TOUR STANDINGS (Unofficial as of Aug. 3)

Texas), and J.B. Mauney and Sage Kimzey (tied at Spanish Fork, Utah) as winners on the 2021 Division 1 Xtreme Bulls Tour. Young also qualified for the RAMNational Circuit Finals Rodeo in April in Kissimmee, Fla., where he earned $1,836. “Yes and no,” said Young when asked if he thought he would have this type of success as a rookie. “It’s a thrill that this is actually happening. This is what I dreamed of, and this is what I wanted to do, and this is just a big blessing for it to actually come true and be right where I want to be and have everything going good.” 1. Sage Kimzey, Salado, Texas..................... $62,819 2. Clayton Sellars, Fruitland Park, Fla.. .......... 62,509 3. Creek Young, Fort Scott, Kan..................... 32,887 4. Dustin Boquet, Bourg, La.. ........................ 29,564 5. Roscoe Jarboe, New Plymouth, Idaho........ 26,538 6. J.B. Mauney, Cotulla, Texas....................... 26,105 7. Josh Frost, Randlett, Utah......................... 21,551 8. Jordan Spears, Redding, Calif.. ................. 18,246 9. Brady Portenier, Caldwell, Idaho................ 16,834 10. Parker Breding, Edgar, Mont.................... 16,383 11. T.J. Gray, Dairy, Ore.. .............................. 14,921 12. Boudreaux Campbell, Crockett, Texas. ..... 14,802 13. Ruger Piva, Challis, Idaho. ...................... 14,182 14. Trevor Kastner, Roff, Okla........................ 13,710 15. Garrett Smith, Rexburg, Idaho................. 12,937 Complete results/Page 77

“That was my goal, to make the Finals, and now it’s looking more realistic. I’m hoping I can qualify in the top five (in the world standings) and maybe have a chance at a world title.” Young entered the Lovington event sixth in the PRCA | RAMWorld Standings with $74,040. He moved closer to the top 5 after earning $10,247 for his 16 seconds of work. Young also is leading the PRCA | Resistol Rookie Standings in bull riding. “It feels really good to get a check like that, especially since it is later in the season,” Young said. The PRCA regular season concludes Sept. 30. Sage Kimzey (2014) and Bill Kornell (1963) are the only rookies to win bull riding world championships. Kimzey finished second in Lovington with 165.5 points on two head. Young, a Missouri native, was especially happy because Lovington was his first Division 1 Xtreme Bulls victory. “This was my first time in Lovington, and this feels good for sure,” Young said. “This is the biggest win of my career, so far. Everybody talks about Lovington. It’s a huge Xtreme Bulls now, and I’m glad this was my first one. It really means a lot. “I’ve been wanting to win one of these Division 1 events for a while. These big X Bulls events like this pay so well.” Young started his night with an 82.5-point ride on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Curley Bill. He then met up with Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Bayou Bengal in the short round. “I had never ridden Curley Bill before, and that ride worked out for me,” Young said. “I knew Curley Bill was a good bull and he was awesome and one that everyone wants to get on.” Gavin Michel split the win at the West of Pecos (Texas) Rodeo with a 90-point ride on Curley Bill June 23. In the short round, Young was plenty familiar with his draw. “(Bayou Bengal) bucked me off in San

Angelo (Texas) at the Xtreme Bulls (April 18), and I got him ridden tonight,” he said. “Things went my way in the rematch. I knew what to expect coming out of there. Last time I left back a little bit, and he kind of rears out and has a lot of front-end coming out of there. I stayed more forward this time and I left better with him. I got tapped off right out of there better. He felt pretty good because I stayed where I was supposed to.” Young was rewarded with an 87-point ride. With his win, Young joins Clayton Sellars (San Angelo, Texas, and Reno, Nev.), Fletcher Jowers (Austin, Texas), Dustin Boquet (San Antonio), T.J. Gray (Del Rio,

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