Bull Rider's Momentum Keeps Rolling with $17,000 Payday in Reno
A hot streak was going to end during the Reno Rodeo Xtreme Bulls competition on Thursday night. Maverick Smith made the decision it wasn’t going to be his.
The up-and-coming bull rider took down a pair of previously unridden bulls in 2024 at the event, continuing his June surge to keep climbing in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association World Standings.
“I don’t know (what’s going on). I’ve just been drawing good for the most part,” Smith joked. “(My confidence,) it’s definitely high. When I get back to my buddy’s house, he’ll probably tell me my ego is getting big.”
While Smith can’t pinpoint an exact reason for his success, his rise since the calendar flipped to June has certainly been unprecedented and noteworthy.
At the Reno Rodeo Xtreme Bulls, he placed fourth in the opening round, won the finals and secured the average title, resulting in a $17,019 payday for the evening. Along with three second-place showings since the month began, Smith has secured $25,509 in June alone, giving him more than $71,000 for the year. When the standings reset following Thursday’s results, Smith found himself sitting eighth in the world standings.
By comparison, during his rookie campaign last year, he earned just $28,025 for a 75th overall showing in the world.
His biggest outcome to date required a significant challenge, starting with Rosser Rodeo’s Sweet Justice. The second-year bull had bucked off all four previous cowboys who attempted to ride him in 2024, but Smith was able to notch an 85-point effort that set the stage for the evening.
“I really didn’t know nothing about him and didn’t really look him up or nothing. My buddy, Tristen Hutchings, told me that he was a good bull and he was pretty good,” Smith said.
In the finals, Smith was matched with Western Rodeos’ Macho Man, a bull that had bucked off three previous riders in an unblemished season so far. This time around, the Mountain Grove, Mo., cowboy posted an 89-point ride, easily winning the round and giving him a total score of 174. That was more than enough to best Hawk Whitt’s two-head total of 167.5 points to secure his second career PRCA victory. Smith won the Xtreme Bull Bash in Lufkin, Texas, back on March 2.
The goal moving forward is to keep that momentum rolling. Smith hopes the win in Reno is the start of a big summer run that can carry him all the way to his first Wrangler National Finals Rodeo appearance this December. He’s headed to Minnesota for two events this weekend before coming back to Nevada to ride at the Reno Rodeo next Tuesday.
If anything, a win like this certainly puts Smith in position to make his Vegas dream a reality.
“It’s everything, especially starting off summer this way. It’ll give me a good jump on the year and I’ll just keep going at them,” Smith said
ALEX RILEY
Alex Riley is a writer for Sports Illustrated's feature, Rodeo Daily. Formerly working at news outlets in South Carolina, Texas, Wyoming and North Carolina, Alex is an award-winning writer and photographer who graduated from the University of South Carolina.