Riders and officials are optimistic that this year’s Professional Bull Riders World Finals, which kick off today at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, could be the best in the 15-year history of the event. 
Most years, a clear favorite enters the World Finals with a major advantage in points. That’s not the case this year.
Twelve bull riders are still statistically alive for this year’s championship and three — Kody Lostroh, Guilherme Marchi and J.B. Mauney — all are within 1,000 points of each other, which is a very small margin.
The action begins 6 p.m. today and runs through Nov. 8, when the championship round will be held.
With the close competition, this year just one ride could be the difference in winning a championship.
Vegas Backstage Access (VBA) 