Now that the PBR Season is all done and dusted in North America, all eyes shift to the 2020 PBR Australia Grand Finals.
This event is actually the third event of the 2021 PBR season, so riders outside of Gold Buckle contention will be looking to get off to a hot start for the new year.
Here is The PBR Rundown and make sure you check out all of the event details below:
| Date | Time (AEST) | Event and Location | RtR Coverage | PBR Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 20-Nov | 8:00 pm | 2020 PBR Australia Grand Finals Townsville, Queensland Round 1 + Round 2. | Live Updates RtR Score Centre | RidePass |
| Sat 21-Nov | 7:30 pm | 2020 PBR Australia Grand Finals Townsville, Queensland Round 3 + Round 4 + Championship Round. | Live Updates RtR Score Centre | RidePass |
2020 PBR Australia Grand Finals
For the third consecutive year, PBR Australia returns to Townsville in North Queensland on 20-21 November for the 2020 Grand Finals.
The field for the season’s final event features the top-22 available riders from the 2020 PBR Australian National Standings. They will battle it out over five rounds of competition at the Townsville Entertainment and Convention Centre with each rider attempting one bull each in Round 1 and Round 2 on Friday, and Round 3 and Round 4 on Saturday. The Top-8 riders in the event standings will then progress into the Championship Round.
A maximum of 200 points will be available across the 5 round event. 20 points will go to each of the round winners, and the aggregate event champion will receive 100 points.
Here is the full list of qualifiers for the 2020 PBR Australia Grand Finals:
Aaron Kleier (Clermont, QLD)
Bailey Woodard (Dingo, QLD)
Brady Fielder (Clermont, QLD)
Braydon Wellby (Townsville, QLD)
Brendan Buckholz (Bundaberg, QLD)
Brody Woodard (Dingo, QLD)
Caiden Sandilands (Rockhampton, QLD)
Cody Heffernan (Singleton, NSW)
Jackson Gray (Barcaldine, QLD)
Jake Curr (Mount Isa, QLD)
Jay Borghero (Beaudesert, QLD)
Joseph Down (Warrnambool, VIC)
Kelsey Pavlou (Toora, VIC)
Kurt Shephard (Mareeba, QLD)
Lachlan Richardson (Gresford, NSW)
Lachlan Slade (Tamworth, NSW)
Lane Mellers (Mundubbera, QLD)
Lawson Nobbs (Moura, QLD)
Mitchel Paton (Nebo, QLD)
Rohan Markham (Ravenshoe, QLD)
Sam Woodall (Heywood, VIC)
Ty Thomson (Mt Walker, QLD)
Congratulations!
All eyes will be on the battle for the Gold Buckle between the defending dual Australian National Champion Aaron Kleier (Clermont, QLD) and seven-time PBR World Finals Qualifier Lachlan Richardson (Gresford, NSW). Just 56 points separate the two cowboys in the National Standings with Kleier entering the Grand Finals holding the advantage.
Check back tomorrow for an in-depth look at the battle between Kleier and Richardson for the 2020 PBR Australian National Championship!
Nine bull riders have qualified for their first PBR Australia Grand Finals with No. 3 ranked Jake Curr (Mount Isa, QLD) the best placed to take out the Rookie of the Year award. The 22-year-old put together a stellar regular season, picking up a Monster Energy Tour victory in Beaudesert and adding a further seven top-6 finishes.
Curr was one of six cowboys who picked up their maiden PBR Australia Monster Energy Tour Event Champion’s buckle during the 2020 season. The other first-time winners were Jack McArthur (Cooyar, QLD), Kelsey Pavlou (Toora, VIC), Jackson Gray (Barcaldine, QLD), Lane Mellers (Mundubbera, QLD) and Sam Woodall (Heywood, VIC).
Heading into the 2019 Grand Finals, the average age of the field was 26.22 years of age. This year, that average age drops to just 22.91 years of age.
In 2019 the field had a combined 7402 outs in PBR competition around the world. This weekend it is just 3876 outs, and almost 56% of those belong to the four most experienced riders in the draw.
Those riders are Lachlan Richardson – 921 outs, Kurt Shephard (Mareeba, QLD) – 499 outs, Cody Heffernan (Singleton, NSW) – 415 outs and Mitchel Paton (Nebo, QLD) – 311 outs.
There are 8 qualified riders who have less than 40 PBR outs experience to their name, so, the future is here.
The 2020 PBR Australia season will go down as a transition year, with talented rookie bull riders emerging to take the place of experienced veteran riders who have retired over the past few seasons. Sure, COVID-19 travel restrictions and injuries have also played their part in reshaping the field but, the experience that these riders have gained on tour this season will be of significant benefit to them in the future.
There is bucket loads of potential in this field. As they continue to gain experience under the bright lights, I do not doubt that the new generation will provide us with just as many highlights in the next few years as past classes have over past 10-years.
Check back early on Saturday for The Morning Line where I will dive into the daysheets and highlight the best matchups, or you can find it on the PBR Australia website from mid-morning.
I will also have The Afternoon Line available on this website on Saturday before the final night of competition.
Stay tuned to Ride The Rage for live coverage of the Grand Finals and check back for a full wrap up of the weekend’s action early next week!