HONDO RODEO FEST AND BULL RIDING ICON J.B. MAUNEY’S BUCKTOWN LAUNCH NEW ATHLETE PATHWAY TO HONDO’S MILLION-DOLLAR STAGE
Partnership expands opportunity across the sport as BuckJam Season 2 champion Daniel Keeping earns invitation to compete at Hondo Rodeo Fest Phoenix
Daniel Keeping by Chad Cloud. Click here for high-resolution photos and videos.
STEPHENVILLE, Texas (Aug. 5, 2026) – Hondo Rodeo Fest announces a new partnership with Bucktown, the athlete-first bull riding organization founded by two-time PBR World Champion and professional bull rider J.B. Mauney, connecting one of the sport’s most respected grassroots bull-riding events with Hondo’s invitation-only, million-dollar area.
The collaboration creates a new pathway for proven competitors to earn access to Hondo’s growing national stage, beginning with Montague, Texas, native and professional bull rider Daniel Keeping. After bringing home the Bucktown Season 2 championship this past May, Keeping earned an invitation to compete at Hondo Rodeo Fest Phoenix and will join many of the world’s top rodeo athletes at Chase Field Nov. 13-15, where competitors will battle for a share of the event’s $1 million purse.
“J.B. Mauney is one of the most respected names in rodeo and has spent his career championing rodeo athletes. That’s exactly what this partnership is about,” said James Trawick, CEO of Hondo Rodeo Fest. “Hondo and Bucktown’s BuckJam are built around the same philosophy: putting athletes first and creating meaningful opportunities that move the sport forward. Daniel proved himself at BuckJam, and we’re ready to see him compete in Phoenix.”
Considered by many as the greatest of all time, Mauney won the PBR World Championship in 2013 and 2015 and recorded 538 qualified premier series rides in his career, second all-time in PBR. As the highest–earning Western sports athlete in history, he founded BuckJam in 2025 as a relatively informal proving ground to buck bulls and give riders a chance to earn money for practice rides. By its second season in 2026, it evolved into a public, sponsored, six-event competition with an aggregate championship and a $20,000 season-finale prize.
“From day one, Bucktown and BuckJam have been about creating opportunities for rodeo athletes and rewarding the best competitors,” said J.B. Mauney, founder of Bucktown. “Hondo is taking that same idea to a bigger stage. Daniel earned this opportunity, and now he gets to line up against some of the best in the world. That is how you move rodeo forward.”
The partnership reflects a shared commitment between Hondo Rodeo Fest and Bucktown to put athletes first, reward excellence and give competitors a real path to perform on premier elite stages.
Hondo Rodeo Fest returns to Chase Field Nov. 13-15 for its third consecutive year in Phoenix. The three-day event features an invitation-only rodeo competition with a $1 million purse, a free Western-themed street fest and nightly concerts with Tim McGraw, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, Turnpike Troubadours, Parker McCollum and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
For more information and ticket sales information, visit thehondorodeofest.com/phoenix.
Digital press kit HERE.
ABOUT THE HONDO RODEO FEST
The Hondo Rodeo Fest is a three-day premium event featuring elite rodeo competition, a country music concert series, and a Western culture fan festival. For more information, including sponsorship and premium suite experiences, visit thehondorodeofest.com.
ABOUT THE BUCKTOWN
Founded by retired professional bull rider and World Champion J.B. Mauney, Bucktown is an athlete-first rodeo brand dedicated to creating competitive opportunities for bull riders while growing the sport. Through its BuckJam series and other events, Bucktown showcases top talent, rewards elite performance and provides competitors with pathways to perform on some of rodeo’s biggest stages. “The sport hasn’t changed. The way it’s presented has,” said J.B. Mauney, founder of Bucktown.
Learn more at bucktownxv.com.