Latest news with #bullriding
Yahoo
22-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Professional Bull Riders Move to Block Dr. Phil's Merit Street Media's Bankruptcy
Professional Bull Riders Move to Block Dr. Phil's Merit Street Media's Bankruptcy originally appeared on Daytime Confidential. Several weeks after the -helmed media network and streamer Merit Street Media filed for bankruptcy, the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) organization is filing an objection. Their reason? Via contract arbitration, they want to recoup claims that they are disputing—to the tune of $181 million—according to the Dallas Morning News. RELATED: The biggest bull-riding league worldwide, PBR filed this objection last week. PBR went its separate ways from Merit Street in November 2024, pulling their programming and alleging Merit Street had committed a contract breach and that it had not paid rights fees. The partnership apparently deteriorated as Merit Street's finance problems and relationship with Trinity Broadcast Network got worse; Merit Street is now suing Trinity. In a statement released on Friday, PBR said: PBR honored its contract with Dr. Phil's Merit Street Media, delivered on every performance metric, and brought more than one million viewers to the new network. Dr. Phil and his company completely reneged on the deal just five months in. PBR is pursuing all available pathways to recovering the monies owed by Merit Street and Dr. Phil. The Morning News added that PBR is looking into avenues that could potentially hold McGraw responsible for the money that Merit Street allegedly owes, but his legal team has rejected this so far. Merit Street has not apparently explained why it hasn't paid part of its media agreement with PBR from 2024, but it has argued that PBR didn't live up to its contractual obligations and filed counterclaims (for things such as fraud). While Merit Street has between $100 and $500 million in assets, according to its bankruptcy filings, it has over 200 creditors. PBR claimed that it was left off the list of the biggest creditors, although Merit Street chief restructuring officer Gary Broadbent did make clear in filings that the PBR lawsuit was a reason for filing for bankruptcy. Reps for McGraw, Merit Street Media, and Trinity Broadcasting did not get back to the paper right away with a comment. This story was originally reported by Daytime Confidential on Jul 22, 2025, where it first appeared. Solve the daily Crossword
CBS News
22-07-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Colorado State University hosts rodeo and concert series at Canvas Stadium
For the first time since opening Canvas Stadium in 2017, Colorado State University in Fort Collins hosted a major event in the stadium that wasn't a football game or graduation. Professional Bull Riding Inc. picked Canvas Stadium to host a bull riding competition and concert series for Monday and Tuesday nights. "There is a significant amount of work that goes into putting this event on," said John Weber, CSU's director of athletics. "There is a lot pre-planning that we did." The university partnered with PBR and other contractors to transform the football stadium into a rodeo arena and concert venue. A 50-foot-tall stage was constructed in the center of the stadium floor. Between the west stands and the stage VIP seating and the dirt arena floor was retrofitted. While CSU jumped at the opportunity to host such an event for the surrounding community, the timing and location of the event was no coincidence in comparison to the nearby Cheyenne Frontier Days. CFD, known as the "Daddy of 'em All," was originally partnered with PBR. The two entities worked together for many years to host bull riding competitions on Monday and Tuesday night of the annual Wyoming-based rodeo. However, CFD elected to part ways with PBR in 2025, instead choosing to sign a contract with PRCA Xtreme Bulls, a direct competitor of PBR. In an interview with CBS Colorado on opening night of CFD, rodeo chairman Jason Bain explained why the major outdoor rodeo changed partners. "We just kind of felt like we needed to bring it back to more traditional things. So we went with Xtreme Bulls," Bain said. "We will have the top 40 bull riders in the PRCA in the world coming here. And it gives them gentlemen more opportunity to win money to qualify for the Wrangler National Finals." When the split was initially publicized, PBR's ownership took to social media expressing their distaste for the change and later announcing a direct competing event at CSU on the same nights. Cheyenne Frontier Days attracts many Coloradans each year, many from the Denver metro area. Canvas Stadium is located directly between Cheyenne and Denver, potentially offering some a commute cut in half. CFD declined to provide further comment on the matter, noting their pleasure with their decision to partner with Xtreme Bulls in 2025 and focus on their product for customers visiting Cheyenne's arena. CBS Colorado reached out to PBR's team seeking interview on this story and has not heard back as of this story's publication. Meanwhile, without any direct involvement to the split between CFD and PBR, Weber said CSU is thrilled to expand their portfolio of events they can host. "This is an opportunity for us to bring world class entertainment to Northern Colorado," Weber said. "We have a phenomenal city and a phenomenal campus, and it is an opportunity for us to shine a light on that with some great partners." Weber added it was a pleasure for the university to host its first multi-use major event at Canvas Stadium alongside PBR. Weber also noted the economic impact the event would have on the community, bringing thousands of guests to the middle of Fort Collins for two nights of rodeo and concerts. "The opportunity to run this here for the first time, learn from that and improve it going forward, we are really looking forward to that opportunity," Weber said.
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sask. teen makes big mark heading into Calgary Stampede bull riding final
A teenager from rural Saskatchewan is making a big impression on one of rodeo's biggest stages. Grady Young, 19, from Leader, Sask., is heading into Showdown Sunday at the Calgary Stampede as the top bull rider in the Pool B standings — and could walk away with the $50,000 grand prize. Earlier this week, Young scored an 87 and a 91 on two of the toughest bulls in the country — putting him at the top of the aggregate standings with $14,400 in winnings, despite getting bucked off during a midweek ride. The Calgary Stampede is a major milestone in a journey that started early. "I was wanting to be a bull rider since Day 1," Young said. "Just kind of grew up wanting that and then slowly just worked my way up." His father, Blade Young, a former pro bull rider himself, says it's not easy watching from the stands. "I was pretty choked up, actually, his first ride at Calgary when they announced the score," Blade said. "That makes a guy pretty proud, but a guy gets awful damn nervous." Blade trained Grady from an early age. He says part of the success comes from Grady's grounded perspective — especially when dealing with high-calibre animals bred for explosive performances. "Multiple generations of the best bucking bulls in the world bred up to the one you're getting on — he's just some cow's calf and he's kind of your vehicle to success," said Blade. Grady doesn't downplay how difficult bull riding is — or how much of it is out of a rider's control. "You're never gonna ride 100 per cent of your bulls. It's never going to go 100 per cent your way," he said. "The only thing that helps with that is just keep getting on bulls.… Getting a lot of animals underneath you is pretty much the only way you can learn and get better." He says he approaches each ride with the same calm and focus — no matter the size of the crowd or the stakes. "It doesn't matter who's watching. If you choke up, get nervous, you can't perform at your best." He's also trying to stay grounded despite the pressure of Sunday's final. "I mean, I don't know anyone who would want to turn down a $50,000 cheque," he said. "But really, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter. I'm happy to be there." Grady says it means a lot to represent Saskatchewan on the big stage — especially in a sport where the spotlight often shines on Alberta. "There's not a lot of bull riders come out of Saskatchewan," he said. "There's more bull riders in Alberta, but there's bull riders in Saskatchewan. Just to represent Saskatchewan, show everyone else from Saskatchewan it's definitely not impossible — you just gotta work at it." And no matter the outcome, he says he's just trying to stay true to who he is. "I'm just an ordinary person, not anything special. Just trying to make a living the funnest and best way I think possible."
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fox Nation, Latest Streamer to Tap Sports, Strikes Alliance With Professional Bull Riders
Fox Nation has in the recent past been known best for lifestyle programming for conservative set, offering everything from nature documentaries to Clint Eastwood movies. Now it's testing something new: sports. Starting Friday, August 8th, Fox Nation will offer 'PBR Friday Night Live' from Professional Bull Riders, and will over the course of ten weeks will offer team event from across the country. Fox Nation is a sibling of cable's Fox News Channel, but this new pact shows the growing interest streamers of all sorts are showing in sports, one of the last programming formats that can lure a broad, live, simultaneous audience in an era when more people are gravitating to streaming their video favorites on demand, at times of their own choosing. Advertisement More from Variety 'We could not ask for a better partner to kick off our first foray into live sports. PBR is an incredibly unique sport with an unrivaled, passionate fan base, and it's a great addition to the entire Fox Nation viewer experience,' said Lauren Petterson, president of Fox Nation, in a statement. As part of the pact, Fox Nation will roll out season two of 'Last Cowboy Standing' starting Friday, July 11. Over ten weekly episodes, eight amateur bull riders compete in a series of rides and one-of-a-kind challenges in a bid to gain entrance into the individual bull riding competition, Unleash the Beast, and the opportunity to join a PBR team. Viewers get behind the scenes access inside their journey as riders attempt to avoid elimination until there is one final winner. 'We're thrilled to build on our strong partnership with Fox Nation to deliver live coverage of Friday Night Teams and the second season of Last Cowboy Standing,': said Sean Gleason, PBR Commissioner and CEO, in a statement. A previous showing of 'Kid Rock's Rock N Rodeo' on May 16 performed well on Fox Nation, he says, and proves 'their devoted audience is eager for exciting Western sports content.' Advertisement PBR features more than 1,000 bull riders competing in over 200 events annually. The organization lured 1.43 million fans to its events in 2024. Its PBR Teams format, launched in July 2022, stages events in head-to-head matchups in a tournament-style format. In five-on-five games, the team with the highest aggregate score of qualified rides among its riders is declared the winner. Best of Variety Sign up for Variety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
CTV News
09-07-2025
- Sport
- CTV News
Sask. bull rider achieves top score for second straight day at Calgary Stampede
A bull rider from Leader, Sask. has been dominating the competition as the Calgary Stampede passes its halfway point. Grady Young, 19, achieved the top score of 87 on Tuesday riding a bull named 'Shake It Off,' which qualified him for Sunday's final. On Monday, he scored a career high of 91 riding a bull named 'Splash Tide,' which was also the top score of the day. Over two days of competition, Young has won a total of $14,400. Jason Parsonage, a fellow Saskatchewan bull rider from Maple Creek, finished sixth in Pool A after scoring 81 on day one. Parsonage did not qualify for Sunday's finale after being bucked off twice but still took home $4,000. Dakota Butter, from Eatonia, Sask. will ride Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, for his attempt to qualify for Sunday's final. The winner of the final will receive $50,000. - With files from Lee Jones
