A sellout crowd at PBR Velocity Tour in Grand Rapids sees Gowdy ride to victory

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – In front of a sold out, filled-to-capacity crowd, 19-year-old bull rider, Jake Gowdy earned his first-ever PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour (RVT) win, taking the victory in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at Van Andel Arena Saturday night.

The Bristow, Oklahoma, native was one of three riders to cover both bulls on the night. He racked up 83.5 points aboard Meller Yeller (Jim Bollinger) before adding 88 points in the championship round on Fire Bender (Cornwell Bucking Bulls) to finish with 171.5 points. He earned 80 points towards the PBR world standings along with $6,200.

Winners of each RVT event in 2017 will be guaranteed at least one opportunity to compete at a PBR Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) regular-season event. With his victory in Grand Rapids, Gowdy will compete at the Jacksonville Invitational, presented by Cooper Tires, in Jacksonville, Florida, Mar. 4-5. It will be Gowdy’s first appearance on the BFTS.

Luciano de Castro (Guzolandia, Brazil) finished in second place after he reached 8 seconds aboard Taking Names (C Check Bucking Bulls) for 85 points and then scored 81 points on Blue Magic (C Check Bucking Bulls) in the championship round. He earned 50 points toward the world standings along with a paycheck of $5,250.

A rider well known to the BFTS, Emilio Resende (Santa Helena, Brazil) finished third in Grand Rapids. Resende rode Missouri Madness (New Frontier Rodeo) for 85 points in Round 1, and then scored 80 points atop Big Dan (Cornwell Bucking Bulls) in the championship round. For the effort, Resende earned 30 world points and $3,550.

Justin Granger (Tuba City, Arizona) and Carlos Garcia (Hammondsport, New York) finished in fourth and fifth place, respectively. Granger scored 86.5 points on Big Rig (C Check Bucking Bulls) in Round 1 while Garcia covered Tucker (Cornwell Bucking Bulls) for 84.5 points. Granger earned 20 world points along with $2,600, while Garcia earned 15 world standings points and $1,140.

Ueberson Duarte (Itambacuri, Brazil) and Ricky Aguiar (Stephenville, Texas) tied for sixth with equal 84-point rides. The pair each earned five points towards the world standings along with $490.

Fly Trap (Cornwell Bucking Bulls) was the high-marked bull of the event with a score of 44 points when he bucked off Granger in 3.17 in the championship round.

An hour-long highlight show of the RVT event in Grand Rapids will air on PBR.com Wednesday, Feb. 15.  Visit PBR LIVE to watch all the action from the Velocity events. ~ PBR Media