The ABBI held their fourth annual Wild Card event at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on Oct. 29.

This was the first qualifier event held at the Finals. In past years, the format has changed every year. The first Wild Card drew 300 bulls and was bucked in a single day’s event; many called it the “Bull Marathon.”

Last season, this event was held in four different locations. This season the Wild Card was added to the festivities held during the ABBI finals.

The first year, many thought it would be easy to bring a good bull and walk away with the $50,000 offered to the winner. After seeing the quality of bulls, the contractors realized it was going to take a special bull to win, and the numbers have been lower ever since.
After seeing great bulls that were bucked in competition bucked this season, it is exciting to see bulls that have been held from much of the competition all come together for a crapshoot with four bulls advancing to the regular ABBI Classic competition and a chance to win $250,000.

In the past, many bulls have advanced from this Wild Card and finished in the top 10 in the Classic championship. Last season’s champion, Black Pearl, placed second. Showtime was third and Red Dirt Road placed fifth, all qualified from the Wild Card. The motto from the first Wild Card was, “No bull left behind.” and last season sure backed up the ABBI’s beliefs.

This season the Wild Card drew 66 bulls and again there were better bulls showing up for this last-chance event. When you enter this event, you better have a bull you capable of winning the Finals.

This year, Lightning C Cattle Co.’s 632 Copp Hou picked up right where he left off last season, when he was crowned the ABBI Futurity champion. 632 recorded a 90-point performance and won the top advancing spot, picking up the big $50,000 check. If you add up 632’s total earnings, he has won over $200,000 in his young career. 632 was the best Futurity bull the ABBI has seen since their start of Futurity competition. This season he is picking up at the same pace, only this time with a rider. If you watch him buck, it is with the same intensity he displayed with the bucking dummy and rarely have you seen a bull handle the rider like this bull has.

632 may be the first Triple Crown winner with the ABBI. Jerry Copp, 632’s owner, described his bull’s performance: “I sure feel blessed today with our bull winning. He hit the ground good and he is one great bull and we are sure proud of him. There were a lot of really good bulls here today and winning is sure special. I guess from here we will see just how special he is.”

632 was sired by Houdini and out of cow Copp B-84, Copp/Newman breeding.

Second place went to Julio Moreno/Richard Oliveria’s MO 350 13/6 Bushwhacker with 89 points. Moreno remarked, “350 13/6 had a great day, but he is better than today and I hope he gets to show just how good he really is and wins the Classic Finals. He has only been bucked six times and is a 3-year-old, so he is just beginning to show how good he really is.”

350 13/6 was sired by Reindeer and is out of MO 110.

Third went to Martinez/Richard Oliveria’s 522 Tiddy Kat with 88.5 and in fourth place was BRH Ranch & Gene Baker’s bull 61 Moon at 87.75.

Baker gave this take on the Wild Card: “We were the sixth bull out today and I sweated watching all these good bulls bucking here. I sure feel great picking up the final spot in the Finals. Our bull 61 must be bi-polar because he has so many different trips, but today he was exciting.”

It’s a shame that only four bulls advanced to the Finals because of the quality of bulls bucked in the Wild Card. One little bobble or the rider bucking off fast sent many good bulls home that sure could have added to the competition in this year’s ABBI Classic Finals.
There were only two bulls out of the 66 that some judge didn’t mark at least 20 points or better, and one of these came out backwards and didn’t score well.

These stats say volumes about this year’s crop of bulls entered in the exciting and unpredictable Wild Card event.