Game Notes – Edmonton

LAST STOP, EDMONTON – This weekend, for the third time in history, PBR Canada will hold its National Finals in Edmonton, Alberta, bucking into the state-of-the-art Rogers Place on Nov. 17-18 for the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products. PBR has only thrice prior held an event inside the home of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers, launching the Global Cup in the venue in November 2017 and debuting the National Finals at the facility in November 2021, before returning in 2022. The 2023 PBR Canada National Finals will mark the richest in history, set to award more than $225,000 in prize money to the 21 competing athletes, including a $100,000 bonus for the 2023 PBR Canada Champion.

RELATED: Click here for the complete 2023 PBR Canada National Finals Game Notes.

THIS WEEKEND’S FORMAT – The 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products, will feature four rounds of bull riding. Each rider will get on one bull in Round 1 and Round 2 on Friday and Round 3 on Saturday. The 12 bull riders with the top combined ride scores will then advance to the championship round on Saturday where they will attempt one final bull in an effort to win the PBR Canada National Finals event and earn crucial points to be crowned the 2023 PBR Canada Champion. During the event Round 2, Round 3 and the championship round will feature a rider drafted draw, while Round 1 will be pre-determined.

LET’S TALK POINTS & PAYOUT – At the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, a maximum 360 points are available to one rider via the rounds and aggregate, with an additional 36 maximum ride-score points up for grabs. As a result, the Top 12-ranked riders in the nation are all in contention for the 2023 PBR Canada Championship. The points table for the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals are as follows:

 

	2023 PBR Canada National Finals		Ride Score Points
	Rounds	Aggregate	Score	Points
1	40	200	70-79.75	7
2	20	126	80-89.75	8
3	18	90	90-99.75	9
4	16	54
5	14	46
6	12	36
7	10	24
8	8	16
9	6	10
10	4	6
11	2	4

 

During the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, each round winner will earn $3,750, with a combined $9,375 paid out each round. More than $87,000 will be paid out to riders via their overall finish in the aggregate, with the winner of the event slated to earn $30,625. Additionally, the 2023 PBR Canada Champion will earn the historic $100,000 bonus, with the total payout for the event being $225,000.

A FIELD OF CHAMPIONS – Ahead of the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, the Top 4 ranked riders in the feverish battle for the year’s Championship are all past title winners, each in pursuit of history.

No. 1 Cody Coverchuk: When the dust settles inside Rogers Place, should current Canadian No. 1 Cody Coverchuk remain on top of the standings, he would tie Aaron Roy for must national titles won by one rider with three. After winning his first title in 2018, Coverchuk was the first PBR Canada Champion crowned in Edmonton, Alberta, in 2021. Coverchuk has gone an impressive 44-for-78 (56.41%) on Canadian soil in 2023, riding to three Touring Pro Division event wins, and five round wins on the organization’s developmental series. While Coverchuk is battling a hand injury, he concluded his season on a high note, finishing second at the final regular season event in Yorkton, Saskatchewan. Part of the PBR’s Touring Pro Division, Coverchuk went a perfect 4-for-4 at the Mazergroup PBR, furthering his stronghold on the No. 1 rank, pulling an increased 68.5 points ahead of the No. 2 contender Nick Tetz. As competition gets underway for the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products, Coverchuk will first face Foo Fighter in Round 1.

No. 2 Nick Tetz (-68.5 points): Last November, Nick Tetz delivered a come-from-behind surge to be crowned the 2022 PBR Canada Champion. Fast forward a year and Tetz is now chasing history, attempting top become the first back-to-back Champion in Canadian history. The 2018 PBR Canada Rookie of the Year has delivered one of the top riding percentages in Canada his season, going 31-for-46 (67.39%). Along with winning the Cup Series event in Lethbridge, Alberta, Tetz earned three Touring Pro Division victories. The young 23-year-old leads PBR Canada in Touring Pro Division round wins with nine and was responsible for the top score of the regular season, having ridden Time Marches On for a monstrous 92 points en route to his victory in his hometown of Calgary, Alberta. While Tetz missed two of the season’s final events due to a shoulder injury sustained while competing in the PBR Teams League for the Arizona Ridge Riders, Tetz returned in triumphant form at the final regular season Canadian event of the year in Yorkton, Saskatchewan. Going 3-for-4 to finish third, Tetz earned a crucial 49.2 points, leapfrogging a then injured Dakota Buttar for the No. 2 rank in the national standings. Eager to pick up where he left off last season inside Rogers Place, Tetz has drawn a rematch in Haunted Creek in Round 1 of the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products.

No. 3 Dakota Buttar (-95.66 points): For the first time in four years, 2020 PBR Canada Champion Dakota Buttar will not begin the Canadian National Finals ranked No. 1 in Canada. However, while he is not the rider everyone is chasing, he is still in Championship-contending position, presently No. 3, 95.66 points behind the top spot. Should Buttar conclude the campaign back atop the standings, he would become just the fourth rider in Canadian history to be crowned Champion multiple times. Inside Rogers Place, Buttar will compete for the first time since breaking his collarbone in early October during his dismount from his event-winning ride in Grande Prairie, Alberta. The win briefly propelled Buttar to the No. 1 rank in the nation, however, he has since been surpassed. Throughout the season, Buttar has gone 24-for-44 on Canadian soil, covering 54.55% of his animal athlete opponents. In addition to his Cup Series victory in Grande Prairie, Buttar won three Touring Pro Division events during the 2023 season, including in Czar Lake, Alberta, when he rode Hot Carl for a mammoth 90 points. Buttar also won two Cup Series rounds, and seven Touring Pro Division rounds, the second most of any rider on Canadian soil in 2023. When he returns to the dirt inside Rogers Place, Buttar has drawn Young Blood in Round 1 of competition.

No. 4 Aaron Roy (-146.16 points): While Aaron Roy already has his name firmly etched in the PBR record books, he will look to enter even more rarified air as he chases his unprecedented fourth PBR Canada Championship. As the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals get underway, Roy will begin the year-end event ranked No. 4 in the nation, 146.16 points behind No. 1 Coverchuk. The veteran won a PBR Canada best five Touring Pro Division events and four rounds this season, having gone 31-for-72 (43.06%) in Canadian competition. Roy also logged a victory on the elite Cup Series, dominating the tour stop in Brandon, Manitoba. At the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, Roy has drawn Wolf Bait in Round 1.

HALVERSON MAKES YORKTON COUNT – The regular season for the 2023 PBR Canada campaign came to a dramatic conclusion on Nov. 4 in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, as riders vied for final points in their effort to earn a berth to the Canadian National Finals. Making the most of the four rounds was American young gun Conner Halverson, going a perfect 4-for-4 to win the event and qualify for his first PBR Canada National Finals by a mere 0.66 points. Halverson first put points on the board in Round 1 when he rode Jam It for 81.5 points. The Nebraska native then climbed the leaderboard when he delivered the second-best score of Round 2, topping Samcro for 85 points. As Championship Saturday got underway, Halverson looked to record his third score in as many attempts as he settled in atop Freaked Out. Remaining in perfect time with the powerful animal athlete, Halverson reached the requisite 8 for a Round 3 best 84 points. Halverson then clinched his event win on Canadian soil with an 84-point score atop Tactical Error in the final round. Compliments of the golden finish, Halverson netted a crucial 78.7 national points. He rose from No. 23 to No. 17 in the national standings, clinching his first berth to the PBR Canada National Finals. This season marked Halverson’s first on Canadian soil. In addition to his event win in Yorkton, Halverson, who made his Canadian debut in June at the elite tour event in Regina, Saskatchewan, rode to an additional five Top-10 finishes, including a fourth-place finish at the Cup Series event in Medicine Hat, Alberta, in mid-October. Compliments of his first-season success on Canadian soil, Halverson was crowned the 2023 PBR Canada Rookie of the Year. Keen to conclude the Canadian season on a strong note, Halverson will attempt Crazy Little Thing as the last man out in Round 1 of the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products.

AUSSIE, AUSSIE, AUSSIE – As part of the transcontinental partnership forged last season between PBR Australia and PBR Canada, reigning Australian Champion Macaulie Leather and seven-time PBR World Finals qualifier Lachlan Richardson will compete at the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products. Leather will make his Canadian debut fresh off being crowned the 2023 PBR Australian Champion in Townsville, Queensland, finishing a commanding 334.17 points ahead of four-time Champion Aaron Kleier. The 22-year-old’s season was highlighted by an impressive seven event wins across all levels of competition, going a torrid 37-for-65, covering 56.92% of his bovine athlete opponents. In Townsville for the 2023 PBR Australia Grand Finals, Leather went 2-for-5 en route to a fourth-place finish. Throughout the season, Leather’s successes earned him a historic $171,000 in prize money. In his Canadian debut, Leather has drawn Knee Knocker.

Richardson will return to Canadian soil for the first time since 2018 when he nearly became the first Australian to be crowned PBR Canada Champion, finishing the year No. 3 in the nation. His appearance will mark the second time the New South Wales native has ridden at the Canadian National Finals. In 2023, Richardson logged two event wins and an accompanying nine Top 5 finishes before concluding the campaign No. 6 in the Australian national standings. He went 20-for-46, riding 43.48% of his draws. Richardson’s outing at the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals will begin with a showdown against Upstairs Basement.  

While not part of the transcontinental partnership, the field of contenders for the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals includes a third Australian, Cody Fraser. The Australian qualified for his first PBR Canada National Finals ranked No. 15 in Canada. His season has been headlined by his career-first event win in Marwayne, Alberta, in addition to seven accompanying Top 10 finishes. Fraser concluded the season amid a hot streak, logging three consecutive Top 10 efforts. Fraser will be the first rider to nod his head at the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, drawing Night Stalker.

PAST PBR CANADA CHAMPIONS – Set to ride at the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products, are five former Champions, all looking to make further history. The contingent is led by two-time Champion Cody Coverchuk who after winning his first title in 2018, captured the first Championship awarded inside Rogers Place in 2021. Should Coverchuk win the 2023 PBR Championship, he would tie Aaron Roy for most titles won by one rider in Canadian history with three. Roy also remains in the hunt for this season’s honor, chasing his unprecedented fourth national title. Presently No. 4 in Canada, Roy will begin the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals 146.16 points behind No. 1 Coverchuk. After a shoulder injury sidelined him for two events at the end of the regular-season, Tetz returned with a vengeance at the final Canadian event of the regular season in Yorkton, now ranked No. 2 in Canada ahead of the National Finals, 68.5 points behind No. 1 Coverchuk. Should Tetz make a come-from-behind surge much like he did last season to win the 2022 PBR Canada Championship, he would become the first rider in history to win the Championship in back-to-back seasons. For the first time in four years, Dakota Buttar will travel to the Canadian National Finals not ranked No. 1 in Canada. Buttar, who has been sidelined since breaking his collarbone in early October following his event win in Grande Prairie, Alberta, is currently No. 3 in the nation, 95.66 points back of No. 1 Coverchuk. Seeking history of his own, should 2020 PBR Canada Champion Buttar win the 2023 title he would become the fourth multi-time title holder in Canadian history.

The complete list of past PBR Canada Champions is:

2022 Nick Tetz
2021 Cody Coverchuk
2020 Dakota Buttar
2019 Daylon Swearingen
2018 Cody Coverchuk
2017 Zane Lambert
2016 Ty Pozzobon
2015 Tanner Byrne
2014 Stetson Lawrence
2013 Zane Lambert
2012 Aaron Roy
2011 Tyler Thomson
2010 Aaron Roy
2009 Beau Hill
2008 Aaron Roy
2007 Tyler Pankewicz
2006 Scott Schiffner

PAST NATIONAL FINALS EVENT WINNERS – In 2022, delivering a flawless 4-for-4 performance, Jared Parsonage won the second iteration of the PBR Canada National Finals inside Rogers Place. Parsonage first put points on the board in the opening rounds riding Slingin Stones for 84.5 points in Round 1 and Jayded for 82.5 points in Round 2. The 29-year-old, however, reached a new level of excellence on Championship Saturday. He surged to the top of the event leaderboard when he won Round 3 via an 88.5-point ride on Hard Not To Get. With the first pick in the championship round bull draft, Parsonage elected to go head-to-head with Al Capone. In a decision which proved dividends, Parsonage logged the high-marked ride of the event, scored 89 points to clinch the PBR Canada National Finals event win. The golden finish earned him 152 national points, propelling him from No. 12 to No. 9 in the national standings, while also earning him $39,531.25.

The complete list of past Canadian Finals event winners is:

2022 Jared Parsonage
2021 Daylon Swearingen
2020 *Multiple Riders*
2019 Daylon Swearingen
2018 Cody Coverchuk
2017 Zane Lambert / Edgar Durazo
2016 Zane Lambert
2015 Brady Oleson
2014 Aaron Roy
2013 Scott Schiffner
2012 Ty Pozzobon
2011 Dusty Ephrom/Harve Stewart
2010 Mike Lee
2009 Guilherme Marchi
2008 Jock Connolly
2007 Vince Northrup
2006 Brian Canter

FAMILIAR WATERS – Round 1 of the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products, will feature two rematches. Those riders facing familiar opponents are:

• Reigning PBR Canada Champion Nick Tetz will climb aboard Haunted Creek for the second time in his career. This past July, Tetz covered the powerful animal athlete for 88 points at the Touring Pro Division event in Calgary, Alberta.
• Garrett Green has drawn Time Well Spent for the second time. A rivalry renewed from the 2021 season, Green was bucked off by the bull in 3.08 seconds during Round 2 of the 2021 PBR Canada National Finals.

ONE LAST OUT – During this weekend’s PBR Canada National Finals, one renowned bovine athlete will buck for the last time before embarking on a much-deserved retirement – two-time PBR Canada Bull of the Year Happy Camper. Dubbed the “Bucking Sensation from the Two Bit Nation,” Happy Camper hails from Two Bit Bucking Bulls and the Berezay Family of Magrath, Alberta. With his name firmly etched in the record books, Happy Camper is the lone bovine athlete to be named the PBR Canada Bull of the Finals and Bull of the Year in multiple seasons, earning the honors in 2018 and 2021. Since making his PBR debut in June 2017, Happy Camper has been selected to buck at the World Finals five times (2017-2019 and 2021-2022), delivering seven outs on bull riding’s biggest stage. Among those outs, Happy Camper’s top out was a 44-point effort at the 2021 PBR World Finals when he was ridden by Dener Barbosa for 89.75 points. Happy Camper is also now a seven-time PBR Canada National Finals qualifier, having appeared annually at the event since 2017, twice posting a career-best bull score of 45.5 points. Happy Camper lit up the scoreboard at the National Finals first in 2018, awarded 45.5 points when he bucked off Tanner Byrne in 3.9 seconds, and again in 2019 when he delivered a matching score for his 3.48 seconds of work against Thor Hoefer. This season, Happy Camper has bucked just six times. The striking animal athlete began the 2023 campaign in commanding form, delivering a 44.5-point effort in February at the Cup Series season-launch event in Red Deer, Alberta, when he was covered by Jake Gardner for a monstrous 90.5 points. The effort earned Happy Camper his lone YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Event title. In the months since, Happy Camper has delivered three additional outs marked 44+ points, ridden just one additional time, by Jordan Hansen for 89.5 points en route to his runner-up finish at the Cup Series event in Brandon, Manitoba.

In addition to the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals marking Happy Camper’s final out, the bull also is in the running for his unprecedented third Bull of the Year title. Happy Camper is currently No. 4 in the Canadian Global Bull of the Year standings with a 43.9-point average, 0.7 points behind No. 1 Built Tough.

BULL PEN – In addition to crowning a 2023 PBR Canada Champion, this weekend’s year-end event in Edmonton will also crown the season’s top bovine athlete. The 2023 Canadian Global PBR Canada Bull of the Year will be the animal athlete with the top average score when combining his Top 5 outs from the regular season across all levels of competition and his one out at the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products, in Edmonton, Alberta, at Rogers Place Nov. 17-18.

The rank contingent of 11 bulls who will contend for the honor is led by Built Tough, currently 0.2 points ahead of the No. 2 contender Langham Kid. After making his PBR debut in 2019, Built Tough has had a career year in 2023, concluding the season with a 44.6-point average score. Bucking 10 times on home soil throughout the season, Built Tough has bucked to five Bull of the Event titles, three of which were earned via a career-best 45-point bull score. Built Tough first lit up the scoreboard on the Cup Series in Regina, Saskatchewan, marked a tour-stop best 45 points for his 2.68-second buckoff of current Canadian No. 5 Coy Robbins. The powerful animal athlete again posted the marks at the Touring Pro Division stop in Czar Lake, Alberta, awarded the commanding marks for his 2.44 seconds of work against 2022 PBR Canada Rookie of the Year Cauy Schmidt and most recently at the Cup Series event in Grande Prairie, Alberta, when he upended Jake Maher in a quick 2.75 seconds. Built Tough is unridden throughout 2023, last covered at the 2022 PBR Canada National Finals by Garrett Green for 88 points.  While Built Tough leads the standings, he is followed closely by No. 2 Langham Kid, who earned a PBR Canada-best eight Bull of the Event titles throughout the 2023 campaign. Langham Kid concluded the 2023 regular season with a 44.4-point average. Hailing from Two Bit Bucking Bulls, Langham Kid’s season was headlined by his career-best 45-point bull score delivered in London, Ontario, when he teamed with 2022 PBR World Champion Daylon Swearingen for a monstrous 91.5-point score en route to his event win. A rider favorite amongst the Canadian ranks, Langham Kid also propelled Jordan Hansen to the event win in Medicine Hat, Alberta, as the two teamed for an 89.5-point score in the final round, and most recently helped teenage phenom John Crimber clinch the event win in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, as the two danced to the whistle en route to a mammoth 91.5-point score. 

Looking down the standings, two-time PBR Canada Bull of the Year Happy Camper will attempt to make further history in Edmonton, winning an unprecedented third year-end honor. Happy Camper is currently No. 4 in the Canadian Global Bull of the Year standings with a 43.9-point average, 0.7 points behind No. 1 Built Tough. Pen mate to Langham Kid, Happy Camper, dubbed the “Bucking Sensation from the Two Bit Nation,” began the season strong, crowned the YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Event at the season-launch Cup Series tour stop in Red Deer, Alberta. There, he posted a 44.5-point score as him and Jake Gardner logged a behemoth 90.5-point score. Throughout 2023, Happy Camper has logged just six outs, four of which were marked 44 points or more.

The complete list of contenders for this year’s Canadian Global PBR Canada Bull of the Year honor are:

No. 1 Built Tough (Thompson Rodeo Livestock) – 44.6 points
No. 2 Langham Kid (Two Bit Bucking Bulls) – 44.4 points (-0.2 points)
No. 3 Blue Magic (Outlaw Buckers Rodeo Corp.) – 44.35 points (-0.25 points)
No. 4 Happy Camper (Two Bit Bucking Bulls) – 43.9 points (-0.7 points)
No. 5 Time Marches On (Thompson Rodeo Livestock) – 43.8 points (-0.8 points)
No. 6T The Remedy (X6 Ranch Bucking Cattle/B2 Braithwaite Ranches) – 43.7 points (-0.9 points)
No. 6T Son Of A Sinner (Eno Bucking Bulls/Gaume Farms) – 43.7 points (-0.9 points)
No. 8 Ain’t About Fame (Thompson Rodeo Livestock) – 43.5 points (-1.1 points)
No. 9 Times A Tickin (Thompson Rodeo Livestock) – 43.4 points (-1.2 points)
No. 10T Chico (Vold Rodeo) – 43.3 points (-1.3 points)
No. 10T Master of Puppets (Eno Bucking Bulls/LS Johnson) – 43.3 points (-1.3 points)

PROVIDING PROTECTION – The bullfighters selected to work the 2023 PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Command Tubular Products, in Edmonton, Alberta, are Tanner Byrne, Logan Kadlec, and Brett Monea.

2023 5/5 BUCKING BATTLE SCHEDULE AND RESULTS - Each 5/5 Bucking Battle features the Top 5 riders from the event following Round 1 competing against the five highest-ranked bulls at the event for extra bonus points and an additional purse. Here are the winners of the special rounds in 2023:

March 3 in Lethbridge, Alberta | Coy Robbins, 89.5 points on Positively Bangin
September 30 in Grande Prairie, Alberta | Wyatt Gleeson, 89 points on Times A Tickin
October 28 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan | Jordan Hansen, 87 points on Edge of Tomorrow

EDMONTON COMPETITORS BY COUNTRY

Australia (3) – Cody Fraser, Macaulie Leather, Lachlan Richardson

Brazil (1) – Silvano Alves

Canada (15) – Dakota Buttar, Cody Coverchuk, Tyler Craig, Jake Gardner, Wyatt Gleeson, Garrett Green, Jordan Hansen, Chad Hartman, Jared Parsonage, Coy Robbins, Aaron Roy, Ashton Sahli, Blake Smith, Nick Tetz, Stefan Tonita

United States (2) – Conner Halverson, Daylon Swearingen

BREAKDOWN BY PROVINCE –

Alberta – Tyler Craig, Wyatt Gleeson, Garrett Green, Jordan Hansen, Coy Robbins, Ashton Sahli, Nick Tetz; British Columbia – Jake Gardner; Saskatchewan – Dakota Buttar, Cody Coverchuk, Chad Hartman, Jared Parsonage, Aaron Roy, Blake Smith, Stefan Tonita.