IMG aiming to boost stud to star status
Bull riding is about to get a lot more sexy. WME-IMG, in an attempt to raise the profile of its Professional Bull Riders competition, has been working for several months to exploit the muscles and good looks of its riders as much as their riding abilities.
The first rider to get the IMG star treatment is Bonner Bolton, a 28-year-old Texan with six-pack abs and, it would seem based on early promotional shots, a propensity for taking off his shirt.
IMG signed Bolton to a modeling contract, got him on the cover of some magazines and will parade its star rider in front of 30 fashion editors — including some from Vogue — when the PBR tour stops Jan. 6-9 at Madison Square Garden, sources said.
Bought 18 months ago by WME-IMG — which reps celebrities, models and athletes — the PBR had its best year ever in 2016 with a 12 percent rise in its television ratings on CBS and a 7.4 percent increase in attendance.
But the agency is looking to have the PBR burst through to the next level — and beefcake is part of that recipe.
“We are working diligently to get multiple stars broken out,” said PBR Chief Executive Sean Gleason, who reports that Madison Avenue has been more receptive to his pitches since the presidential election.
“The interest in our brand has definitely ramped up,” he told The Post on Monday.
Bolton, for one, has appeared in ads for Saks Fifth Avenue and he just returned from London and Paris, where he met with reps from apparel and fragrance brands interested in partnering with him.
Injured in a nasty fall, Bolton hasn’t competed in a year. He hopes to get back on a bull soon — but for now, IMG hopes his best times will be as a model, and not a model rider.