23 Bucking bulls

A bucking bull is a bull used in American rodeo bull riding competition. They are usually a Brahman crossed with another breed, weighing 1,500 pounds or more, selected for their tendency to "leap, plunge and spin" when a human is on its back. Circa mid-20th century breeders began selecting bulls for bad temperament, that would buck when ridden. Many of the best bucking bulls trace their lineage to bulls owned by Charlie Plummer of Oklahoma. These are known as Plummer bulls.

Bull riding is a rodeo sport that involves a rider getting on a bucking bull and attempting to stay mounted while the animal tries to buck off the rider.

American Bucking Bull (ABBI) is an organization dedicated to the registration of bucking bulls and establishing the American Bucking Bull as a documented breed of cattle. American Bucking Bull, Inc., is owned by the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) and stock contractors. The organization created a breed registry and manages the registration and certification of American Bucking Bulls. It also keeps records of other breeds of bulls, some of which died out many years ago. It is the largest organization performing these functions. It maintains a genetic DNA database, manages bucking bull pedigrees and encourages the growth of the breed. ABBI also holds competitions for bucking bulls ages 2 through 4. It also has its own magazine, the American Bucking Bull.

Bodacious #J-31 was a bucking bull. He was known throughout the rodeo sport of bull riding as "the world's most dangerous bull." He was also known as "the greatest bull ever to buck." During his rodeo career he was the 1994 and 1995 Professional Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA) Bucking Bull of the Year, as well as the 1995 Professional Bull Riders (PBR) World Champion Bull. He and Bruiser are the only bulls who have won bucking bull world championship titles in both organizations. Bodacious is most well known for his serious injury to bull riding icon Tuff Hedeman. Coincidentally, Hedeman is the only rider to win the world champion bull rider title in both organizations as well. Not long after, Bodacious also seriously injured Scott Breding. His owner, Sammy Andrews, then retired Bodacious. In 1999, Bodacious was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame, and in 2017 into the Bull Riding Hall of Fame. In 2019, the PBR inducted Bodacious into the Brand of Honor, which is part of the PBR’s Heroes and Legends Celebration, the PBR's unique way of honoring outstanding individuals and livestock in the sport of rodeo. For a bucking bull, this is the highest honor he can receive in the sport of bull riding.

Bucking is a movement performed by an animal in which it lowers its head and raises its hindquarters into the air while kicking out with the hind legs. It is most commonly seen in herbivores such as equines, cattle, deer, goats, and sheep. Most research on this behavior has been directed towards horses and cattle.

The Bud Light Cup Series (BLC) was the first tour and in its first year was the only tour of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR). When other tours were created, it became the major league tour of the PBR.

The Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) was the elite series tour name of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) competitions from 2003 to 2017.

Bull Riders Only, Inc. (BRO) was a professional bull riding organization based in Englewood, Colorado, United States.

The Challenge of the Champions in 1988 was a series of seven matchups at seven rodeos that paired up then-reigning Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) World Champion Bull Rider Lane Frost with then-reigning PRCA Bucking Bull of the Year Red Rock. The publicity that the Challenge received increased the popularity of rodeos and bull riding amongst the general public.

Dillinger #81 was a bucking bull owned by the Herrington Cattle Company. He won the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) World Champion Bull title in 2000 and 2001. He is currently ranked first all-time in the ProBullStats Hall of Fame. He was bestowed the PBR Brand of Honor in 2012, the second bull to receive the honor after Little Yellow Jacket won the inaugural award in 2011. Today, Dillinger is still ranked first in the ProBullStats historical ranking of bucking bulls in the sport of bull riding.

Little Yellow Jacket #P761 was a bucking bull. He was a three-time Professional Bull Riders (PBR) World Champion Bull, winning the title in consecutive years from 2002 to 2004. At the time, his three titles made him unmatched by any bull in the history of the PBR. He was also inducted into the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame for his accomplishments. He was the son of #77 Yellow Jacket and the grandson of #LH600 Wrangler Rivets. Little Yellow Jacket's three-time World Champion Bull record has since been matched by #13/6 Bushwacker, who received his third title in 2014, his year of retirement and Bruiser from 2016 to 2018. When Bruiser won his third title in 2018, he tied Little Yellow Jacket's record of three consecutive titles. Little Yellow Jacket was sometimes referred to as the "Michael Jordan of professional bull riding" and had his own line of merchandise. It was said he was the greatest bull in the PBR when he was selected to the receive the inaugural Brand of Honor. In Little Yellow Jacket's day he had the largest following of any PBR bull. Later, the bull Bushwacker was deemed to surpass Little Yellow Jacket as the best PBR bucking bull of all time.

Long John #58x was the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) World Champion Bull in 2015. He tied for the title in 2016 with two other bulls, but the tiebreaker went to his brother, Sweet Pro's Bruiser. In 2015, he was the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) Reserve Champion Bull, coming in second to Kish's #849 Crystal Deal. In 2016, Time Magazine selected Long John for its 100 Most Influential Animals of 2016, at 50th place. Long John became both a fan favorite and a bull rider favorite by the end of his career. The PBR CEO, Sean Gleason, said, shortly after his death: "Long John was a phenomenal athlete with the heart of a champion."

Mossy Oak Mudslinger #790 (1997–2012) was a bucking bull. He was the 2006 Professional Bull Riders (PBR) World Champion Bull. He began his bucking career at age three. His owners retired him after the 2006 season ended, while he was still in his peak. Mossy Oak Mudslinger died in 2012 when he was almost 15 years old. His owners buried him on their ranch. In 2017, the PBR honored him with the Brand of Honor.

Oscar #16 was a bucking bull. The ProRodeo Hall of Fame inducted Oscar in its 1979 inaugural class of inductees. To date, only seven bulls have been inducted, which is the highest honor a bucking bull can receive in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The California Rodeo Salinas inducted Oscar into its hall of fame in 2013. In 2018, the Bull Riding Hall of Fame inducted Oscar. In over 300 attempts, only eight bull riders made qualified rides of the requisite eight seconds on Oscar. Eight-time world champion bull rider Don Gay made the highest-scored ride on him at the time, earning 97 points, just 3 points short of a perfect score. Oscar's owners retired him in 1979 as a living exhibit to the ProRodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He remained at the hall until his death in 1983.

The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization based in Pueblo, Colorado, United States. In the United States, PBR events have been televised on CBS and CBS Sports Network since 2012. In 2013, the PBR and CBS signed a contract that extended CBS Sport's partnership with PBR, making them the primary sports broadcaster for PBR. In 2018, the PBR launched RidePass; its own subscription-based video on demand service that live-streams PBR events, as well as PBR-produced events for other western sport organizations. On July 20, 2021, RidePass switched from a subscription-based streaming service to a free, ad-supported streaming channel on Pluto TV. More than 600 cowboys from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Australia and other countries hold PBR memberships.

This List of Professional Bull Riders Champions provides lists of all the world champion title winners, including one livestock award which are won during the PBR World Finals event in Las Vegas, Nevada. There are the World Champion bull riders, World Finals event champions, World Champion Bulls, and Rookie of the Year, for example. Also listed are the winners of various awards that are given out at the PBR World Finals. The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization based in Pueblo, Colorado, United States. In the United States, PBR events have been televised on CBS and CBS Sports Network since 2012 and streamed on the PBR RidePass channel on Pluto TV since 2021. More than 1,200 cowboys from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Australia and other countries hold PBR memberships. This article lists all the various champions and awards that have been bestowed since the founding of the PBR in 1992.

Red Rock #007 was a bucking bull who competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). Bull riders attempted to ride Red Rock 309 times and not one was able to stay on him until the eight-second whistle required for a scored ride. He was also chosen as the PRCA 1987 Bucking Bull of the Year. However, Red Rock is most famous for his association with 1987 PRCA World Champion bull rider Lane Frost and their famous matchup called the Challenge of the Champions. In 1990, both Frost and Red Rock were inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. In 1994, Hollywood released 8 Seconds, a biopic based on Lane Frost's life, which includes his duel with Red Rock. He was the first livestock inducted into the St. Paul Rodeo Hall of Fame in 2017.

Red Wolf #112 was a bucking bull in the sport of bull riding. He won the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) Bull of the Year title in 1996 as well as many other honors throughout his career. He bucked until 2000 when he was 12 years old, considered an old age for a bull to buck, and he did it at a very high level. He bucked more than 100 times at all levels, which very few bulls manage. In 2013, he was inducted into the Professional Bull Riders’ Brand of Honor. He is also known for the accidental death of bull rider Brent Thurman.

Shepherd Hills Tested #20U was the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) 2013 bucking bull of the year, the world champion title for animals in bull riding competition. Tested bucked on the PRCA and Professional Bull Riders (PBR) circuits from 2011-2014. His first title was the 2012 American Bucking Bull (ABBI) Classic World Champion. He went on to win the 2012 PRCA Bucking Bull of the NFR Finals title at the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) that same year. In 2013 he won the PRCA Bucking Bull of the Year and was also the PBR Reserve World Champion Bull. In his last year bucking, he repeated as the 2014 PBR Reserve World Champion Bull. In 84 times out of the bucking chute over a four-year period, Tested only allowed cowboys four qualified rides, two rides by two-time World Champion J.B. Mauney and two rides by Kasey Hayes. His owners retired him after the 2014 season. He died from injuries sustained from an accident on April 14, 2017.

Skoal Pacific Bell #14 was a bucking bull best known for being the only three-time consecutive Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) Bucking Bull of the Year (1988–1990) and for only being ridden 5 times in 150 attempts. In 2007, he was inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame. As of 2016, he was the seventh and most recent bull so honored. The PRCA said in an official YouTube induction video that "Skoal Pacific Bell was a crowd pleaser and a cowboy challenger."

Tornado was a bucking bull. He has been inducted into the ProRodeo Hall of Fame and the Bull Riding Hall of Fame inductee.He went to the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) at least four times. He was voted Bucking Bull of the NFR four times consecutively from 1962 to 1965. Owned by rodeo champion Jim Shoulders, Tornado was named the "meanest bull alive" at the NFR four times. Tornado is best known for his matchup with ProRodeo Hall of Fame bull rider, Freckles Brown, which is most often referred to as "The Ride." It was Brown who, in 1967, broke Tornado's undefeated streak of 220 buckoffs in six years. Tornado, Brown, and Shoulders all have been recorded in The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture maintained online by the Oklahoma Historical Society.

The Unleash the Beast Series (UTB) is the Premier Series of the Professional Bull Riders since 2018. Prior to that, the Premier Series was known as the Bud Light Cup Series (BLC) from 1994 to 2002 and the Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS) from 2003 to 2017. The top 35 riders and top bulls compete at each event. It culminates in the PBR World Finals at the end of the regular season. The UTB series includes 20 events across the United States each year. Pyrotechnics, pulsating music, and special effects open each event. Each UTB event contains a round with 35 bull rides. For a two-day event, the 35 bull riders will compete in Rounds 1 and 2. The top 12 scores advance to the Championship Round. The event winner is the rider with the highest combined score from all three rounds. For a three-day event, the 35 bull riders will compete in Rounds 1, 2, and 3. The top 12 scores advance to the Championship round. The event winner is the rider with the highest combined score from all four rounds.There are some events on the UTB series that are considered major events. The first major of the year is the Monster Energy Buck Off event at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York.Next comes the Iron Cowboy, which took place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas from 2010 to 2018 before moving to the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California in 2019.The third Major of the year was the Last Cowboy Standing, which took place in Las Vegas, Nevada from 2011 to 2018, except for the one-off year in 2012 when the event was held at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. In July 2019, the Last Cowboy Standing event found a new home at Cheyenne Frontier Days in Cheyenne, Wyoming. In 2020, Cheyenne Frontier Days was canceled for the first time in its 124-year history. This was due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It ultimately effected the Last Cowboy Standing event as well. Cheyenne Frontier Days returned in 2021, as did the Last Cowboy Standing event. As of 2022, Cheyenne is no longer a stop on the UTB schedule.The last major event of the season was the Music City Knockout, which took place at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2020, this event was canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions, but returned in 2021. Like Cheyenne, as of 2022, Nashville is no longer a stop on the UTB schedule.

V-61 was a hall of fame bucking bull known only by his brand, V-61. In 1970 he was the Bucking Bull of the NFR. In 2012, the Texas Rodeo Cowboy Hall of Fame inducted V-61. In 2015, the Bull Riding Hall of Fame inducted him into its inaugural class. In 930 attempts, only four bull riders managed to complete rides on him for a total of five qualified rides. His owner retired him in January 1974 and he died later that year.