At Sprint Center, Lockwood wins Round 1 of PBR Unleash the Beast’s Caterpillar Classic

It was a wild night of bull riding Saturday at Kansas City’s Sprint Center.

World No. 2 Jess Lockwood of Volborg, Montana, inched closer to a Professional Bull Riders championship by winning Round 1 of the two-day PBR Unleash The Beast’s Caterpillar Classic.

Securing his seventh round win of the season, Lockwood stayed aboard Suns Up from Joe & Nina Webb/BS Cattle Co. for the requisite 8 seconds and a massive 90.5 points.

The 90-point effort was Lockwood’s fourth of the season. He’s now tied with Jose Vitor Leme of Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil, for most PBR round wins and 90-point rides in 2020.

The qualified ride earned the two-time PBR world champ $3,580 and 20 world points.

No. 1 Leme still holds a 133.5 to 113.5 lead in the standings, but he did not record a qualified Saturday. He was bested by bulls called Little Hott (TM Cattle Co./BS Cattle Co.) in 2.06 seconds in Round 1 and The Right Stuff (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Clay Struve/Diamond Willow) in 6.24 seconds in the 15/15 Bucking Battle.

Colten Jesse of Konawa, Oklahoma, topped the field in the 15/15 Bucking Battle, riding Lil 2 Train (Jane Clark/Gene Owen) for 89.5 points in the special round. The high-marked ride earned him $7,500 and 50 points.

The Caterpillar Classic concludes Sunday at Sprint Center starting at 1:45 p.m.

This story was originally published March 1, 2020 at 12:54 AM.