2017 World Champions

Bareback Riding

Tim O’Connell Defending champion stays ahead of the game

Bareback rider Tim O’Connell is 2-for-2 in his last two attempts at becomingWorld Champion. That’s all well and good, but O’Connell is hoping he’s not done counting his world titles. “To do it back-to-back, to have both these buckles sitting inmy hands again and coming back to Iowa, what a blessing,”he said. The 26-year-old has never been shy of saying he wants to be the best bareback rider of all time. And with the way he’s dominated the bareback riding competition in the last two years, his dream could come true in the not-so-distant future. After winning his second gold buckle andWran- gler National Finals Rodeo bareback riding average title in December, O’Connell finished the 2017 seasonwith $371,416 in the PRCAWorld Standings. The Zwingle, Iowa, cowboy dominated during the Wrangler NFR in Las Vegas, Dec. 7-16 – he entered the Finals with the biggest lead of any competitor in any event, a staggering $65,259 ahead of his nearest competitor. His lead never dipped below $68,000 over the course of 10 rounds, andO’Connell’s biggest margin

came on the final night, when hewonwith $102,905 more than Richmond Champion, who finished second. All told, O’Connell cashed in for $169,500. “It just solidified it for me that last year wasn’t a fluke,” O’Connell said. “I’m a world champion and I showed up again this year and defendedmy world title.” O’Connell won the 2016 gold buckle by a wider gap, locking in his first world title by $134,111. He relished being at the top of the charts during the 2017 regular season and Finals. “Like I’ve said before, the guy with a target on his back can do two things: he can keep it close where someone can hit it, or you can take it out too far where no one can touch it,” O’Connell said. “I’ve realized the No. 1 guy doesn’t make mistakes. I’ve trained not to make mistakes – I’ve trained to mentally prepare not to make mistakes.” The secondworld title has O’Connell three back of Joe Alexander and Bruce Ford for most ever. But O’Connell doesn’t want to tie them with five. He wants to be the best and take home six. “I wanted nothing more than to be a two-time

2017 WORLD CHAMPIONS

world champion, and now I want nothing more than to be a six- time world champion,” he said. “Now that I have two, it’s time to move on to three – and that means refocusing and resettingmy goals.” But earning the 2017 title wasn’t an easy feat, O’Connell said. “It was harder this year, way harder than it was last year,” he said. “The group of guys that are here are better than any of the guys that have set foot in this arena.This is the best set of 15 bareback riders that ever hit this arena.” – Scott Kaniewski

PRCA ProRodeo photo by Greg Westfall

TimO’Connell stayed in the lead in bareback riding during the 59th NFR, winning a second consecutive world title.

2018 PRCA MEDIA GUIDE

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