Dakota Buttar Wins PBR Canada Cup Series Event in Calgary

By Kacie Albert

CALGARY, Alta. – Reigning PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Canada Champion Dakota Buttar (Kindersley, Saskatchewan) inched closer to history Saturday evening in Calgary, Alberta. Delivering a flawless 2-for-2 performance inside the Nutrien Western Event Centre, Buttar won the elite Cup Series’ Pendleton Whisky Classic, furthering his stronghold on the No. 1 rank in the national standings as he attempts to become the first back-to-back PBR Canada Champion in league records.

The defending Calgary Cup Series event victor got off to a hot start in Round 1, tying for the third-best score when he covered Langham Kid (Two Bit Bucking Bulls) for 84 points.

With an early pick in the championship round bull draft, Buttar was quick to architect a rematch that had previously propelled him to glory. Opting to go head-to-head once again against Norse God (Wild Hoggs Bucking Bulls), Buttar covered the fierce bovine for 90 points this past September en route to a victory on the Touring Pro Division in Ponoka, Alberta.

Buttar again delivered a picture-perfect ride, reaching the requisite 8 for a championship round-best 89.5 points in the Stampede City.

For his efforts, the Saskatchewan man netted 72.5 national points, further cementing his position atop the race for the 2021 PBR Canada Championship and accompanying $50,000 bonus.

After travelling to Calgary 31.16 points out front, Buttar now leads No. 2 Zane Lambert (Ponoka, Alberta) by 96.16 points.

Should Buttar be crowned the 2021 PBR Canada Champion, not only would he become the first rider to win the honor in consecutive seasons, but he would become just the third multi-time title holder in league history, joining three-time Champion Aaron Roy (Yellow Grass, Saskatchewan) and two-time Champion Lambert.

Also in position to make history in 2021, Roy finished third at the PBR Canada Cup Series’ Pendleton Whisky Classic to net 42.5 national points.

In Round 1, Roy tied for third alongside Buttar after posting a matching 84-point score atop Irish Rebel (Wilson Rodeo).

Roy then handcrafted a showdown of champions in the final round, selecting 2020 PBR Canada Bull of the Year Catch My Drift (Two Bit Bucking Bulls/K Rose Ranch) as his last animal athlete opponent. A familiar showdown, Roy had climbed aboard the bull three times prior, but had never made the 8.

With a raucous crowd watching on, Roy reversed his fates in Calgary, outmatching 2021 PBR World Finals selected Catch My Drift for an 86-point score.

Roy’s bronze showing allowed him to gain five positions in the national standings, climbing from No. 13 to No. 8. He now trails No. 1 Buttar by 188.83 points.

Should Roy, who is the lone Canadian to earn more than $1 million in PBR competition, earn the 2021 PBR Canada Championship he would become the only four-time title holder in league history.

Second was Albertan sensation Lonnie West (Cadogan, Alberta).

West registered matching 86-point scores, riding Spooky Lukie (Two Bit Bucking Bulls) in Round 1 and Al Capone (Wild Hoggs/Sure Fire) in the championship round.

The 25-year-old collected 57 national points, cracking the Top 5 in the heated battle for the 2021 PBR Canada Championship, which will be decided Nov. 12-13 at the 2021 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products, in Edmonton, Alberta, at Rogers Place.

West is now the No.3-ranked bull rider in the nation, a mere 137.16 points behind No. 1 Buttar.

As the final rider to go a perfect 2-for-2 in Calgary, Jordan Hansen (Okotoks, Alberta) was fourth.

In a business decision, Hansen declined a re-ride in the opening round of competition after earning a 68-point score aboard All Bananas (Chase Kesler Bucking Bulls). The decision, however, proved dividends, with the 8-second effort proving enough to earn him one of 10 spots in the championship round.

Facing off against Tractorland’s Pound Sand (Wild Hoggs/Corey Chmelnyk) in the final round, Hansen was poised, remaining centered as he reached the whistle for an 86.5-point score.

Hansen collected 32 national points, rising from No. 9 to No. 6 in the Canadian standings.

Rounding out the Top 5 in fifth was 2017 PBR Canada Rookie of the Year Coy Robbins (Camrose, Alberta).

Robbins’ efforts in Calgary were headlined by his Round 1 win, scored 88 points atop Up Shift (Vold Rodeo).

Earing 25 national points, Robbins gained one position in the national standings, now ranked No. 18.

In the bull pen, 2021 PBR World Finals bound Unkle Kranky (Vold Rodeo) and Norse God tied for the Bull of the Event honor.

Both marked 44 points, Unkle Kranky posted the score for his 6.99 seconds of work against Robbins, while Norse God turned in the points when he was covered by Buttar in the final round.

The 2021 PBR Canada Sup Series will next travel to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and SaskTel Centre for the PBR Saskatoon Classic on October 29-30. Action will get underway at 7:00 p.m. CST on both Friday, October 29 and Saturday, October 30.

Stay tuned in to PBRCanada.com and follow the tour on Facebook (PBR Canada), Twitter (@PBRCanada), and Instagram (@PBRCanada) for the latest results, news, stats and more.

PBR Canada Cup Series
PBR Pendleton Whisky Classic
Nutrien Western Event Centre – Calgary, Alberta
(Round 1-Round 2-Event Aggregate-Event Points)

1. Dakota Buttar, 84-89.5-173.50-72.5 Points.
2. Lonnie West, 86-86-172.00-57 Points.
3. Aaron Roy, 84-86-170.00-42.5 Points.
4. Jordan Hansen, 68-86.5-154.50-32 Points.
5. Coy Robbins, 88-0-88.00-25 Points.
6. Ashton Sahli, 0-87-87.00-17 Points.
7. Micheal Ostashek, 0-85.5-85.50-7 Points.
8. Blake Smith, 83.5-0-83.50-7 Points.

Zane Lambert, 0-0-0.00

Cody Coverchuk, 0-0-0.00

Callum Miller, 0-0-0.00

Jake Gardner, 0-0-0.00

Jared Parsonage, 0-0-0.00

Garrett Green, 0-0-0.00

Todd Chotowetz, 0-0-0.00

Tyler Craig, 0-0-0.00

Chad Hartman, 0-0-0.00

Wacey Finkbeiner, 0-0-0.00

Dawson Shannon, 0-0-0.00

Weston Davidson, 0-0-0.00

Riley Gagnon, 0-0-0.00

Fabian Dueck, 0-0-0.00

Tim Lipsett, 0-0-0.00

Nicholas Klinck, 0-0-0.00

Landon Schmidt, 0-0-0.00

2021 PBR Canada National Standings
(Place, Rider, Events, Wins, Top 5’s, Points, Total Winnings)

1. Dakota Buttar, 24, 4, 14, 310.16, $30,500.98
2. Zane Lambert, 15, 2, 8, 214.00, $13,878.04
3. Lonnie West, 13, 2, 5, 173.00, $11,808.01
4. Cody Coverchuk, 22, 2, 9, 169.50, $13,491.53
5. Callum Miller, 20, 1, 6, 155.50, $11,383.90
6. Jordan Hansen, 5, 0, 2, 136.50, $6,862.07
7. Griffin Smeltzer, 21, 1, 7, 135.50, $12,462.25
8. Aaron Roy, 18, 0, 2, 121.33, $4,970.24
9. Nick Tetz, 17, 2, 7, 120.66, $12,710.48
10. Garrett Green, 8, 1, 3, 114.00, $5,893.49
11. Jared Parsonage, 21, 3, 4, 105.50, $10,979.66
12. Ashton Sahli, 24, 0, 3, 104.50, $9,035.79
13. Jake Gardner, 6, 1, 2, 100.33, $5,149.81
14. Todd Chotowetz, 11, 0, 3, 61.50, $3,194.29
15. Tanner Eno, 10, 1, 3, 57.50, $5,518.36
16. Micheal Ostashek, 20, 0, 3, 56.50, $3,604.28
17. Logan Biever, 13, 0, 2, 54.50, $2,937.76
18. Coy Robbins, 15, 0, 1, 47.00, $2,817.23
19. Brock Radford, 12, 0, 1, 40.00, $1,570.00
20. Tyler Craig, 22, 0, 2, 34.83, $4,094.90
21. Chad Hartman, 11, 0, 2, 31.00, $3,800.19
22. Cole Young, 4, 0, 1, 28.33, $2,635.74
23. Edgar Durazo, 1, 0, 1, 15.00, $2,078.04
24. Wacey Finkbeiner, 13, 0, 1, 8.00, $1,151.47
25. Tim Lipsett, 17, 0, 0, 7.83, $145.00
26. Blake Smith, 14, 0, 0, 7.00, $140.00
27. Dawson Shannon, 20, 0, 1, 7.00, $929.88
28. Daylon Swearingen, 1, 0, 1, 7.00, $1,079.50
29. Weston Davidson, 12, 0, 1, 4.00, $482.46
30. Dakota Louis, 2, 0, 0, 0.50, $188.91
31. Dayton Johnston, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
32. Shay Marks, 12, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
33. Fabian Dueck, 15, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
34. Wyatt Gleeson, 6, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
35. Rosendo Ramirez, 4, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
36. Riley Gagnon, 7, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
37. Cawl Braithwaite, 4, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
38. Marcos Gloria, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
39. Zachery King, 1, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
40. Nicholas Klinck, 16, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
41. Landon Schmidt, 9, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
42. Ethan Schultz, 3, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
43. Wyatt Laughlin, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
44. Cooper Zur, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
45. William Barrows, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
46. Zane Tully, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
47. Lonnie Phillips, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
48. Tanner Skene, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
49. Eric O’Flynn, 2, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
50. Travis Maguire, 1, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
51. Coy Doore, 1, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
52. Austen Watier, 1, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00
53. Billy West, 1, 0, 0, 0.00, $0.00