Bushwacker, a 2005 American Bucking Bull, is said to have done more for the professional bull riding industry than any other bull, and perhaps more than any of the riders themselves. Owned by Julio Moreno Bucking Bulls, Bushwacker has proved himself to be the best of the best on the Professional Bull Riders circuit and will make his final performance at the 2014 PBR World Finals in Las Vegas, Nevada before heading to retirement.


It's not the first time the bull has been "retired"--Moreno planned to retire him after his 2013 season and his second World Champion Bull title. However, PBR executives managed to talk him into a 2014 "farewell tour" for the bull, with Bushwacker headlining at eighteen different outs. This schedule would bring Bushwacker's total outs up to fifty. If the bull manages to win a third World Champion Bull title at the 2014 World Finals, it would tie the record set by bull Little Yellow Jacket.

But Bushwacker doesn't need to hold another title or set another record to make legend status: he's already a living legend and a household name who's reached international superstardom. Bull riding attendees have purchased tickets just to see Bushwacker perform. Bushwacker merchandise is worn all over the world. Fans have put "meeting Bushwacker" on their bucket lists and travel all across the country to get a glimpse of the big red bull.

In bull riding, both the bull and the rider are scored to make up a composite score for the ride.

Bushwacker averages a score of 46.29, meaning that cowboys who can make the eight second ride stand a good chance of scoring well enough to win it. However, with Bushwacker, making the time is much easier said than done: the bull has a career 96.36% buck-off rate, meaning he's been ridden only three times. His longest streak of buck-offs is a record-setting forty-two straight over four seasons; reigning world champion J.B. Mauney finally broke Bushwacker's streak in August of 2013--his only full ride on Bushwacker out of thirteen career meetings with the bull.

Some of the PBR's finest riders (who have all been bucked off Bushwacker at some point in their career) were asked to describe the bull:
Pistol Robinson: "He's hands-down the rankest bull to ever grace the world of bull riding.
L.J. Jenkins: "Words can't describe how powerful he was."
Austin Meier: "He's by far that next step above the rest."
Shane Proctor: "The athletic ability and height and extension of Bushwacker's kick and the power he brings when he starts to come down is unmatched."

Bushwacker's style itself sets him apart: most bulls will jump and then move either right or left, but Bushwacker is athletic enough to be able to jump and then move back and forth while still in the air, sending many cowboys sailing. The kind of torque he put on rider Douglas Duncan was enough to whip the cowboy's arm into slapping the bull and disqualifying his ride. That's some serious power. (Read more about how and why rodeo bulls buck here.)

The bull has been profiled by ESPN, Newsweek, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and the CBS Morning News,  hailed as "the baddest body in sports." He has over 26,000 fans on Facebook--a big accomplishment for an athlete who can't even use a computer. His final performances in October of 2014 are already being compared to Derek Jeter's last at-bat or Magic Johnson's last NBA Finals. When the trailer door closes on October 26, it will close on the long and storied career of the greatest bucking bull in rodeo history.

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