Kaue Flora successfully rode two bulls on his way to winning The Next Gambler professional bull riding competition on Saturday, June 14, at The Williamson Expo Center in Taylor.
Flora, a Brazilian who currently lives in Gainesville, was the only one of 33 riders invited from around the world, to make the eight seconds on each of his rides. With the win in the individual competition, Flora has a chance to claim a provisional spot on the defending champion, star studded Austin Gamblers professional bull riding roster.
“Whenever you see someone cover two bulls in one competition, it raises your eyebrows,” said Austin Gambler head coach and PBR Hall of Famer Michael Gaffney. “You are always looking for someone with that kind of mental toughness and big-time ability to perform under pressure.
I didn’t know a lot about him coming into the competition, but we are definitely going to take a look and see what we can learn about him.”
The 25-year-old Flora covered “Grumpy” in his first ride, which was good for 76.5 points and a spot in the top 10 finishers. Then, after being awarded a re-ride, Flora, as the next to last rider of the night, successfully rode “Black Gold” for a score of 83.5, securing his place as the champion in the competition.
“It means a lot,” said Flora through his wife Andressa. “It is the biggest opportunity of my professional life. There are many great riders on the Gamblers like Jose Vitor Leme, and they have Adriano Moraes from Brazil. From the moment I came here, I felt like I could win this event.”
The event was the second annual Next Gambler competition held in conjunction with the Taylor Rodeo Association. In addition to the individual competition, the event featured a team competition in which six groups of riders were split up into groups of five, each coached by a different legendary coach.
These coaches included Michael Gaffney (Team Yeti), former Navy SEAL, Mike Sarraille (Team Rhino), Dener Barbosa (Team Tecovas), newest Austin Gambler Sage Kimzey (Team Rock and Roll Denim), female bull rider and TV star Jorden Halvorsen (Team Can-Am) and fourtime PBR finalist Brian “Peewee” Herman out of Victoria, who coached the winning team Land.com.
Last year’s inaugural event winner was Tristen Hutchings of South Dakota. Another competitor from last year’s event, Ayden Dale of Burnet, was recently selected in the second round of the PBR Draft by the New York Mavericks.
The packed Williamson County Expo Center also featured a round of mutton bustin,’ a trick riding demonstration by Decotah Jackson of Elgin, entertainment by legendary rodeo clown Leon Coffee and a concert by Montana Lane and The Traffic Jam.
