The Auto Channel
The Largest Independent Automotive Research Resource
The Largest Independent Automotive Research Resource
Official Website of the New Car Buyer

Introducing Team Chevy Rodeo


chevrolet rodeo
Chevy Silverado is teaming up with professional rodeo stars Tuf Cooper, Fallon Taylor, Richmond Champion, Luke Branquinho and Travis Graves, now known as Team Chevy Rodeo. The team will be driving new 2016 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD High Country pickups. Silverado HDs are engineered to make the toughest jobs easier, with integrated cruise control, powertrain grade braking and diesel exhaust braking to enhance control when towing.

DALLAS -- Oct. 6, 2015: Chevy Silverado is teaming up with professional rodeo stars Tuf Cooper, Fallon Taylor, Richmond Champion, Luke Branquinho and Travis Graves, now known as Team Chevy Rodeo.

This team is as hardworking on the ranch as they are in the arena,” said Paul Edwards, U.S. vice president, Chevrolet Marketing. “There isn’t a more authentic group to convey the message that the Silverado is the most dependable, longest-lasting pickup on the road.”

The team will be driving new 2016 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD High Country pickups. Silverado HDs are engineered to make the toughest jobs easier, with integrated cruise control, powertrain grade braking and diesel exhaust braking to enhance control when towing.

The Silverado 2500 is well-suited to get these stars and their gear from rodeo to rodeo in style and comfort. With its Duramax turbodiesel engine, well-appointed interior and advanced technologies, the 2016 Silverado 2500 HD High Country offers a blend of premium accommodations and truck capability.

Team Chevy Rodeo
Tuf Cooper
Event:
Tie-down Roping
Born: 1/31/1990 Childress, Texas
Career Earnings: $1,423,024
World Titles Won: 3 (2011-12, 2014)
Wrangler National Finals Rodeo Qualifications: 7 (2008-14)
Tuf Cooper is a cowboy with rodeo in his blood. The son of eight-time world champion and ProRodeo Hall of Famer Roy "Super Looper" Cooper, Tuf won his first all-around title at the age of six at an Earth, Texas High Plains Junior Rodeo Association event in 1996. After achieving a personal best of 6.6 seconds at the Snake River Stampede in 2009, Tuf Cooper would go on to win three world titles while becoming the youngest cowboy to surpass $1 million in career earnings.

Fallon Taylor
Event:
Barrel Racing
Born: 7/18/1982 Tampa, Fla.
Women’s Professional Rodeo Association Career Earnings: $716,069
World Titles: 1 (2014)
Wrangler National Finals Rodeo Qualifications: 6 (1995-98, 2013-14)
Fallon Taylor made a splash in the rodeo world after qualifying for four consecutive National Finals Rodeos (1995-98) as a teenager. Though a career in acting and modeling drew her away from the sport, Taylor has always had the drive to ride — even after breaking her C2 vertebra in 2009.In 2014, Fallon and her horse Babyflo won their first world title. That kind of drive and dedication makes Fallon Taylor a perfect fit for Team Chevy Rodeo.

Richmond Champion
Event:
Bareback Riding
Born: 12/16/1992 Orange County, Calif.
Career Earnings: $1,361,234
Wrangler National Finals Rodeo Qualifications: 1 (2014)
A rising star who doesn't seem like he'll ever come down, bareback rider Richmond Champion became the first man in rodeo to win $1 million in one day when he took first place at The American in 2014. Though he started as a bull rider at age 13, Champion switched to bareback riding in 2010 at the urging of his brother and hasn't looked back, with the determined rider making his way to third in the world standings in just a few short years.

Luke Branquinho
Events:
Steer Wrestling
Born: 9/17/1980 Santa Maria, Calif.
Career Earnings: $2,285,732
World Titles Won: 5 (2004, 2008, 2011-12, 2014)
Wrangler National Finals Rodeo Qualifications: 13 (2001-04, 2006-14)
The most decorated member of Team Chevy Rodeo, Luke Branquinho embodies strength and resilience unlike anyone else. No matter what happens   — whether managing his type I diabetes while riding with an insulin pump, or coming back from a season-ending back injury to win his fifth world title in 2014 – this  steer wrestling champion never backs down from a challenge.

Travis Graves
Event:
Team Roping (Heeling)
Born: 3/1/1984 Jay, Oklahoma
Career Earnings: $1,147,091
Wrangler National Finals Rodeo Qualifications: 6 (2008, 2010-14)
Heeler Travis Graves has been focused on winning his first world title ever since he won the International Finals Youth Rodeo heeling title in 2001. After breaking the regular-season earnings record for team roping heelers in 2010, the five-time WNFR qualifier has been steadily climbing the world standings, landing in second place in 2014.