OGDEN, UTAH  –  There was high drama inside the Golden Spike Arena in Ogden Utah on Friday night.  The Wasatch Mountains provided the backdrop for an action-packed BFO Utah Championship.

With 12,000 points on the line, this event is already one of the most anticipated of the year.  Additionally, there is the added pressure that the Top 4 in the Pendleton Whisky World Standings then qualify for the historic “Fight for Fifty” at the South Point Hotel in Las Vegas on August 19th.

Three athletes were on the outside looking in, each with a mathematical chance to move into the Top Four with a successful showing in Ogden.  Only one of these athletes, rookie Layton Woodbury, advanced into the Hooey Championship Round.

When the calculations were done, Woodbury would need to finish at least third in the event to displace Califorian Cole Bates and advance to Vegas.  With a tense fight that included a display of skill and toughness beyond his years, the 18-year old Kansan won the Utah Championship, his second BFO Major win in a month.  After the win, the winded and enthused Woodbury explained, “My main focus coming in here was winning enough to fight for my share of that fifty thousand.  I knew I was sitting in 5th place and I needed to bust my butt and get after it.”

Other standouts in Ogden included Colton Orcutt, putting on an electric fight in the Championship Round that nearly won the Kersey Colorado native his first BFO title.  In addition, the 4-time BFO World Champion Weston Rutkowski had excellent fights that placed him second for the Utah Championship and put him back in the familiar position of #1 in the Pendleton Whisky World Standings.

BFO’s “Fight for Fifty” is the richest one-head competion in freestyle bullfighting history.  This historic event takes place during The Run for a Million presented by Teton Ridge, the richest event in the history of Reining.  Competing for his share of $50,000 will be:

– 4x World Champion Weston Rutkowski

– Reigning World Champion Tyler Mansell

– Rookie Luke Ballard

– Rookie Layton Woodbury

Catch all the action on Facebook LIVE at 6PM CST on August 19th.  Tickets for the event are sold out.

BFO was founded by bullfighters and is Freestyle Bullfighting’s Premier Professional League. BFO features an international roster of elite athletes competing against the most treacherous fighting bulls for the largest purses in the history of the sport. BFO is committed to the humane treatment of our extraordinary animal athletes.