After making history at the 2019 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Global Cup USA as the first all Native American team to compete at an international sporting event in modern history, Team USA Wolves will return to action for the next edition of the global bull riding event in February 2020 in Arlington, Texas, coached by Olympic bull riding gold medalist Ted Nuce of Escalon and INFR (Indian National Finals Rodeo) President Mike “Bo” Vocu.
The fourth edition of the PBR Global Cup, the only nation vs. nation bull riding competition, will make its second stop at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Feb. 15 and 16, 2020. The new team tournament debuted in Edmonton, Alberta, in November 2017, visited Sydney, Australia, in June 2018, and most recently stopped in Arlington this past February.
At the 2020 WinStar World Casino and Resort PBR Global Cup USA, presented by Monster Energy, Nuce and Vocu will lead a smaller contingent of riders, six cowboys and an alternate.
All the Global Cup team coaches will now have full selection power over their rosters. The competitive change gives the coaches more control of their rosters, with complete autonomy over which bull riding athletes will don their country’s jersey and put it all on the line for the title of “Toughest Nation on Dirt.”
A PBR co-founder and member of the inaugural class of inductees to the PBR Ring of Honor in 1996, Nuce is arguably one of the most accomplished bull riders in the history of western sports.
After being named the bull riding 1980 Rookie of the Year by the PRCA (Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association), Nuce captured the association’s World Championship in 1985. He was a four-time Reserve World Champion, finishing second in the world in 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1991.
Additionally, Nuce qualified for the NFR (National Finals Rodeo) a record 14 consecutive times, and won the inaugural PBR World Finals in 1994.
Nuce rode for Team USA at the 1988 Winter Olympics when the sport of rodeo made its debut at the Olympic Arts Festival.
Competing head-to-head against Team Canada, the bull riding event awarded Gold, Silver and Bronze medals to the top three finishers across seven rounds, with a Gold medal also on the line for the top performing overall team.
Nuce won three of the event’s final four rounds, overtaking fellow Team USA bull rider Tuff Hedeman to capture the first-ever Olympic gold medal in the sport of bull riding. More broadly, Nuce earned a second Gold medal when Team USA bested their northern rivals in the overall team event. He called the performance one of the hallmark moments of his storied career.
A member of the Lakota Sioux, Vocu will return as the Team USA Wolves’ assistant coach after helping to lead the contingent to a third-place finish in 2019. A former bull and saddle bronc rider, Vocu competed with both the PBR and PRCA, while additionally qualifying for the INFR in multiple seasons during his career.
Team USA Wolves is the fifth coaching staff announced for the upcoming Global Cup. The second American contingent, Team USA Eagles will be coached by Justin McBride and J.W. Hart, Team Brazil will be led by head coach Renato Nunes and assistant coach Guilherme Marchi, Troy Dunn and his assistant Brendon Clark are at the helm for Team Australia, and Gerardo Venegas and Jerome Davis will pilot Team Mexico.
The remaining head coach and assistant coach pairings will be announced in the coming weeks.
Tickets for the 2020 WinStar World Casino and Resort PBR Global Cup USA, presented by Monster Energy are on sale now and start at just $10. They can be purchased at the AT&T Stadium Box Office, online at ATTStadium.com or SeatGeek.com, or via the phone at (800) 732-1727.
For more information on the event, including premium experience and elite seats offerings, visit PBR.com/GlobalCup.
Launched in November 2017, the PBR Global Cup is the only nation vs. nation bull riding competition where riders compete for record purses, glittering horns from the Global Cup trophy and the very dirt they compete upon. At the inaugural event in Edmonton, Team USA made an incredible come-from-behind surge on the final day of competition, overcoming a resilient Team Canada, to return home with the Canadian horn with soil from Rogers Place encapsulated inside. Six months later, Team Brazil, which finished second in Edmonton, held off a persistent Team Australia by 0.75 points to be crowned the Global Cup Champions inside Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney. The most recent edition of the event, held inside the home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys in February 2019, was decided yet again by the final two outs. Team Brazil claimed a second Global Cup horn when they won the first edition of the event on U.S. soil.
