{{short description|American bull rider}} {{other uses|Tony Mendez|Tony Méndez|Toni Mendez}} {{Use American English|date=March 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=March 2026}} {{Infobox sportsperson | image = | imagesize = <!--Only for images narrower than 220 pixels.--> | caption = | birth_name = | fullname = Tony Mendes | nickname = | nationality = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1977|8|10}} | birth_place = Reno, Nevada, U.S. | death_date = | death_place = | height = {{height|ft=5|in=10}} (2019) | weight = {{convert|170|lb|kg}} (2019) | website = | country = | sport = Rodeo | event = Bull riding | collegeteam = | club = | team = | turnedpro = 1996 | coach = | retired = 2015 | coaching = | worlds = | regionals = | nationals = | highestranking = 1996 PRCA Bull Riding Rookie of the Year | pb = }}
'''Tony Mendes''' (born August 10, 1977) is an American former professional rodeo cowboy who specialized in bull riding.
==Background== Mendes was born in Reno, Nevada, on August 10, 1977.<ref name="ProRodeo">{{cite web |title=Tony Mendes Profile |url=http://www.prorodeo.com/prorodeo/cowboys/cowboy-biographies?id=1615 |website=Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association |publisher=www.prorodeo.com |access-date=June 17, 2019}}</ref> He continued to live in Reno and then in Jensen, Utah. He is the younger brother of Scott Mendes, who was the 1997 PRCA World Champion bull rider, and a co-founder of the PBR. Tony started riding at age three on top of a sheep. Over the years, he progressed from sheep to calves and steers, before climbing on his first bull at age 14.<ref name="RockyBoots">{{cite web |title=Rocky Boots Announces Endorsement Signing Of Tony Mendes And Jody Newberry |url=https://pbr.com/news/2005/04/rocky-boots-announces-endorsement-signing-of-tony-mendes-and-jody-newberry/ |website=Professional Bull Riders |date=January 2016 |publisher=pbr.com |access-date=June 17, 2019}}</ref><ref name="ProRodeo" /> Tony was recorded to be 5' 10", and 170 pounds during competition.<ref name="ProRodeo" />
==Career== Tony was the 1996 Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) Bull Riding Rookie of the Year,<ref>''2017 PRCA Awards'', ''Rookies of the Year - Overall Rookie of the Year'', p. 625.</ref> as well as the 1996 PRCA Wilderness Circuit Champion bull rider. He competed in said organization in 1996, 1998 to 1999, 2008 to 2009, 2011 and 2012.<ref name="ProRodeo" /> He also competed in the Bull Riders Only (BRO), Professional Bull Riders (PBR), and Championship Bull Riding (CBR) circuits. He qualified for his first PBR World Finals in 1999 and recorded a 93.5 score atop the 1900-pound Clayton's Pet of Double J Rodeo Palace in the short-go. He was often referred to as the "Wild Man" because of the energy he displayed.<ref name="RockyBoots" />
Tony qualified for the PRCA's National Finals Rodeo twice (1998 & 1999)<ref name="ProRodeo" /> and the PBR World Finals eight times (1999 to 2005, 2007).<ref name="RockyBoots" /> His brother Scott also qualified for the PBR World Finals in 1994 and 2001, the latter case marking the only time that both brothers qualified for a world championship event together. Tony also qualified for the CBR World Finals in 2012.
Tony's last professional bull-riding out was at the PBR Velocity Tour event in Portland, Oregon, on February 28, 2015.<ref>{{cite web|title=Tony Mendes|url=https://probullstats.com/riders/outlist.php?guy=Tony+Mendes|website=ProBullStats|access-date=October 15, 2024}}</ref>
==Personal life== On January 2, 2008, Tony was featured on the CBS game show ''Power of 10''. He was defeated without winning any money. He was featured in ''Bullrider'', a documentary by Josh Aronson. Mendes is married to Abby, with whom he has two children.<ref name="ProRodeo" /> The Mendes' reside in Fruita, Colorado, as of 2019.<!--Cowboy profile matches Facebook.-->
==References== {{Reflist|30em}}
==Sources== *{{cite book|title=PRCA Awards|publisher=Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association|url=https://prorodeo.cld.bz/2018-PRCA-Media-Guide-PRCA-Awards|access-date=June 17, 2019}}
==External links== * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2AyUDWaxtg Tony Mendes VS Tommy Gun - YouTube] * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqIrocwkR4A Tony Mendes vs Lights Out - 00 PBR Finals (90 pts) - YouTube]
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendes, Tony}} Category:Living people Category:1977 births Category:Sportspeople from Reno, Nevada Category:People from Uintah County, Utah Category:Contestants on American game shows Category:Bull riders Category:American people of Portuguese descent