Bull riders might be the most frequently injured athletes. But sticking to their "no work, no pay" credo, it typically takes something extraordinary to keep a bull rider out of competition.

Justin McBride, a former member of the UNLV rodeo team, competed in the Professional Bull Riders World Finals in 2003 despite a punctured lung and two broken ribs. He rode in the 2004 Finals, nearly winning his first championship, with a broken ankle.

But the circumstances that led the reigning world champion to voluntarily miss eight major PBR series events this year were a lot less painful. In fact, they were downright joyous.

McBride and his wife, Jill, welcomed their first child, daughter Addisen Claire, on March 20.

"I had people telling me this and that, but until you experience it for the first time you can't be prepared for it," said McBride, who lives in Elk City, Okla. "I probably could have come back out to ride sooner, but I didn't want to leave home. I wanted to stay around a little longer with her. It really wasn't much of a decision."

McBride, 27, surpassed the $3 million mark in PBR career earnings this year when he won three events, including the regular-season finale two weeks ago in Columbus, Ohio.

McBride said fatherhood has helped develop his other rodeo skills.

"Changing diapers is like a timed event for me," he said. "I look at changing diapers like I'm a calf roper. I try to get it done fast."

When the PBR World Finals open tonight at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, McBride will stand fifth in points, 2,902.25 behind leader Guilherme Marchi of Brazil. McBride has competed in 21 events, eight fewer than Marchi.

The points system, however, places greater emphasis on the Finals than on the regular season. Each of the 45 qualifiers can earn up to 6,500 points during the seven-day Finals, which are spread over two weekends.

The $3.5 million event finishes up Nov. 2 to 5 at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Last year, McBride arrived in Las Vegas with a big lead and a negative view of the points system.

"I like it this year," he said in a telephone interview from New York City. "It's all in the eye of the beholder. When you come in with a points lead, you don't like it, but when you come needing to make up ground, you love it."

McBride held off all challengers in Las Vegas last year, earning the $1 million championship bonus to push his season total to a record $1.48 million. The title came down to McBride's last eight-second ride as he held off Marchi, who won the Finals event title.

McBride said he's confident he can "win a lot of money" in the Finals but that he's a long shot to retain his world title.

"The guys up front would have to do bad, and they didn't get to their positions up front by doing bad," he said. "I'd have to have a lot of things go my way. ... Winning the championship doesn't have to happen for me again. I have one and I can only wear one (championship belt) buckle at a time."