DENVER -- Jake Brown's 2016 season got a big boost when he won the bareback riding title at the National Western Stock Show Rodeo.

He's back in Denver this year and working towards a similar result. After riding for 74 points on Monday afternoon, he had his second horse on Tuesday night and wowed the crowd with an 85.5-point effort.

Brown, from Cleveland, Texas, is now leading the second round and is in fifth place overall. He has a good chance of being here on Wednesday, Jan. 22, for the U.S. Bank Championship Finals. The top 12 contestants will advance.

After winning the National Western Stock Show Rodeo last year, he was at the top of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association world standings and was on track to qualify for his second Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. Then in Jasper, Texas, last May, he sprained his thumb on his riding hand.

Bareback riders need a healthy and strong thumb to grip the handle in their riggings, so Brown had surgery to repair it in June. He missed three of the busiest months of the season. He came back and won two rodeos to get to rodeo's championships in ninth place.

His injury list is long and extensive and got a little longer in Las Vegas. He sustained a concussion and had to watch from the sidelines before returning. He is completely healthy and riding like a champion in Denver.

Jordan Hansen had his second successful bull ride on Tuesday night. The Okotoks, Alberta, resident scored 85.5 points on Cervi Brothers' Hangin Ten to move into second place in the round and take command of the overall lead.

Hansen has a total of 173 points on two rides. Dustin Bowen from Waller, Texas, is now in second with 168.5. Joe Frost also moved into the bull riding standings. The three-time NFR qualifier from Randlett, Utah, is currently fourth with 161.5.

There are two rodeos on Wednesday in the Denver Coliseum. The afternoon session begins at 1:30 PM, and the evening performance begins at 7 PM.

-Information Courtesy of Susan Kanode

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