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| 2009
World Champion Brittany Pozzi,
WPRA
photo by Dan
Hubbell. |
All
day long, Brittany Pozzi didn't want to know.
She
didn't want to know the math and different scenarios
needed for her to win a second WPRA barrel racing
world title.
But
as the final round of the Wrangler National Finals
Rodeo approached, Pozzi couldn't take it anymore.
"I
called some friends and said, 'Tell me, tell me,'
" laughed the 25-year-old cowgirl from Victoria
, Texas . "So by the time it was my turn
to run, I knew.''
Pozzi
knew that two-time world champion Sherry Cervi
needed to slip past reigning world champion Lindsay
Sears in the average if Pozzi had any chance at
a second gold buckle.
Cervi
did, edging Sears by a blink-and-you'll-miss five
one hundredths of a second. Cervi, of Marana ,
Ariz. , ran 10 rounds in 139.01 seconds, while
Sears finished at 139.06 seconds. "I was
leaning over the rail, watching,'' Pozzi admitted.
Pozzi,
the last barrel racer out for the 2009 season,
did her part, placing third in the round with
a time of 13.81 seconds.
By
also placing third in the average, Pozzi claimed
the world championship by $7,091 over Sears.
"I
had everything figured, so I knew exactly what
I had to do,'' said Pozzi, who won her first world
championship in 2007. "I am actually so much
more excited about this one and I don't know why.
Last time, it was a lot of pressure and it was
just like, 'Whew. It's over. This year it was
a race.''
It
was one of the most dramatic races in WPRA history.
Pozzi
finished with $279,434, while Sears was second
with $272,343. Cervi was also in the picture with
$219,62
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Two-time World Champion
Sherry Cervi captures the average title
at the 2009 Wrangler NFR. WPRA photo by
Dan Hubbell.
|
Cervi
was the high-money winner among the barrel racers,
cashing $149,099 over 10 days. Sears won $131,125,
while Pozzi won $123,569. This was Cervi's second
NFR average title. She won in 1999.
Lisa Lockhart, of Oelrichs ,
S.D. , won the 10th round with a time of 13.77 seconds.
Pozzi won the world title riding
Duke, a six-year-old gelding. She had run Stitch
to the world championship in 2007.
"People thought I was crazy,''
said Pozzi of going with the younger horse. "But
I had all the confidence in Duke. He loves the smaller
arenas. I think it showed my ability to ride different
horses and to win world titles on different horses.''
Pozzi did ride Stitch in the
seventh round and knocked over a barrel. "I
thought at first, 'It's over. I lost the title,'
" Pozzi said. "I just had to stay calm
and keep it together.''
She closed by placing 1-2-3 in
the final three rounds for another championship.
"I can honestly say this
is the first National Finals Rodeo that I've come
to where I'm excited to be here and I don't want
to leave,'' Pozzi said. "Let's go do 10 more
rounds.''
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