J.B. Mauney

James Burton "J.B." Mauney (born January 9, 1987 ) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding.

James Burton Mauney was born on January 9, 1987, in Charlotte, North Carolina.

He is 5ft 10in and 140 lb. He joined the PBR in 2005 and the PRCA in 2009.

Mauney joined the PBR in 2005 and won the PBR world championship title twice, in 2013 and 2015.

At the very beginning of his career, he rode in both the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) and Championship Bull Riding (CBR) circuits, before deciding to ride full-time in the PBR in early 2006.

In his first year of competition, he won the Rookie of the Year in 2006.

He qualified for the PBR World Finals 15 times in his career (2006 through 2020).

He also won the PBR World Finals event twice, in 2009 and 2013.

Although he joined the PRCA in 2009, he only competed sporadically at PRCA events from 2009 to 2020.

In July 2021, Mauney announced that he would step away from riding in the PBR to focus solely on riding in the PRCA and try to qualify for the National Finals Rodeo (NFR).

He would qualify for and compete at his first NFR in December of that year.

Mauney was well on his way to qualifying for the NFR again in 2023.

However, on September 6, during the PRCA Xtreme Bulls Division 2 event at the Lewiston Round-Up in Lewiston, Idaho, Mauney was bucked off by the bull named Arctic Assassin and landed on his head.

The wreck ended up breaking his neck and he had surgery two days later, which required a rod, plates, and screws, as well as the removal of a disc.

Four days later, Mauney announced his retirement from bull riding.

"This is not the way I wanted to go, but everything happens for a reason", he said.

In early 2024, Arctic Assassin, now retired himself, was moved by his owners to spend his remaining days on Mauney's ranch in Stephenville, Texas.

On February 27, 2024, it was announced that Mauney would return to the PBR to be the head coach of the Oklahoma Wildcatters; one of two new teams for the PBR Team Series in 2024.

The PBR and the fans consider Mauney a legend due to his records and accomplishments.

He is also one of only five riders to get a qualified ride on Asteroid which he accomplished on the BFTS in San Antonio, Texas, in August 2012, for a score of 93.50 points.

Asteroid, the 2012 World Champion bull, earned a high score of 46.25 points.

Mauney competed the first several years of his professional career with a helmet.

He won the PBR Rookie of the Year title that same year and was a top contestant in said organization for several years; eventually winning the PBR world championship in 2013 and 2015.

During the last few years of his career, he competed full-time in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA).

He is considered one of the greatest bull riders of his generation.

In 2023, Mauney was ranked No. 9 on the list of the top 30 bull riders in PBR history.

In May 2024, Mauney will be inducted into the Bull Riding Hall of Fame.

Mauney is one of only two bull riders to stay on Bushwacker for the full eight seconds on the Built Ford Tough Series (BFTS), the elite series of the PBR (for a score of 95.25 points in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in August 2013), and one of three bull riders to stay on Bushwacker for the full 8 seconds during the bull's career.

However, by 2013, he was riding with a cowboy hat.

On November 5, 2016, Mauney made PBR history by being the first bull rider to reach the $7 million mark in career earnings.

In 2017, Mauney suffered a significant injury to his right arm, requiring surgery to install a screw and 13 anchors.

Mauney's career has been plagued with many injuries, but he has continued to pursue professional bull riding history.

"It's part of being a cowboy", he stated in an interview with Monster Energy, "when you crawl in to a chute, nothing else matters. You tie your hand and you don't give up until you hit the dirt".

In January 2018, he became the third bull rider to reach 500 rides on the Premier Series when he rode All The Way Up for 87.25 points during Round 1 of the Monster Energy Buck Off at Madison Square Garden in January 2018.

In addition to his two world championships, he has 32 PBR Premier Series wins (tied for first with fellow two-time PBR world champion Justin McBride) and has 75 90-point rides to his credit (the second most; behind fellow two-time PBR world champion Chris Shivers).

He also won more money than any other bull rider, at over $7.6 million (combining both PBR and PRCA earnings).

In 2019, Mauney tied another two time world champion Justin McBride for the most televised wins within the 26 year history of the PBR.

In an interview for the PBR, Mauney said "What gets me is when people who don't ride bulls for a living try to tell me when it's time to hang it up".

Since 2020, Mauney has been part owner of Ultimate Bullfighters (UBF), an American freestyle bullfighting organization.

After struggling to find success during the first few events of the 2021 PBR season, Mauney decided to try his luck in the PRCA.