Age: What's the prime age for a bull rider? How many in the top fifteen are older than that?
Answer: Eight are 25 or under. Four are between 25 and 30. Three are over 30.
Height: Does bull riding favor the short guys? Does the height of the top fifteen prove that?
Answer: About half are 5'10" or over, half are 5'9 or under.
Home state: Where do the best riders live?
Answer: 5 in Brazil, 4 live in Texas, 2 in Oklahoma, 2 in North Carolina, 1 in Kansas, 1 in Idaho.
Back numbers: Where are they ranked now, going into the Finals, compared to where they ended up last year? (Remember, the back number is their final ranking at the end of last year's season.)
Answer: Four riders have current standings significantly higher than their final rank last year. They are Ben Jones, Skeeter Kingsolver, Mike Lee, and McKennon Wimberley. The rest are within 6 points of their 2009 ranking.
Rank | Rider | Age | Height | Home State | Back Number |
1 | Austin Meier | 23 | 5'11" | Oklahoma | 6 |
2 | J.B. Mauney | 23 | 5'10" | North Carolina | 2 |
3 | Renato Nunes | 29 | 5'7" | Buritama, SP, Brazil | 9 |
4 | Valdiron de Oliveira | 31 | 5'9" | Aparecida de Goiania, GO, Brazil | 4 |
5 | Ryan McConnel | 23 | 5'11" | Oklahoma | 7 |
6 | Mike Lee | 27 | 5'8" | Texas | 28 |
7 | Robson Palermo | 26 | 5'6" | Rio Branco, Acre, Brazil | 5 |
8 | McKennon Wimberley | 22 | 5'9" | Texas | 19 |
9 | Guilherme Marchi | 28 | 5'10" | Leme, SP, Brazil | 3 |
10 | Travis Briscoe | 23 | 5'7" | Texas | 16 |
11 | Shane Proctor | 25 | 5'8" | North Carolina | 11 |
12 | Silvano Alves | 22 | 5'7" | Pilar do Sul, SP, Brazil | 467 |
13 | Skeeter Kingsolver | 21 | 5'10" | Kansas | 31 |
14 | Ben Jones | 31 | 5'11" | Texas (from Australia) | 47 |
15 | Wiley Peterson | 31 | 5'11" | Idaho | 10 |