STEPHENVILLE, Texas - J.B. Mauney is atop the world standings, a place he hasn't been since 2010.

In the two years between, he went through a season-long slump, became a father, and went from being a perennial title contender to having his dedication to the sport questioned.

"In all sports, it's funny how quickly we as fans forget," said nine-time World Champion Ty Murray in his weekly podcast. "By the end of last year that's the category J.B. was going in - people forgot so fast 2008 and 2009, and how big a threat J.B. was for a World Championship."

Murray recalled that Mauney was one of the most dominant riders in contention and won the PBR World Finals in 2009 - the same year he won the Lane Frost /Brent Thurman Award, something he's done three times - along with the Touring Pro Division title for a second time.

'It's funny how quick it can all go away when you're a little off your game.'

He was also the 2006 Rookie of the Year.

In five full seasons on the Built Ford Tough Series, he's never finished outside the Top 10, and twice he's been the reserve champion, finishing behind Guilherme Marchi in 2008 and Kody Lostroh a year later.

"It's funny how quick it can all go away when you're a little off your game," Murray said. "He hasn't had horrible seasons."

By his own standards, 2011 was less than what Mauney expected.

In one 18-event stretch, he was in the Built Ford Tough Championship Round only twice, and his eight Top 10 finishes and four Top 5 finishes were the lowest totals since 2006, when he rode in only 15 events.

His 43.18 percent riding average was an all-time career low.

Yet he still finished seventh in the world standings and earned over $214,000 for the fifth consecutive year.

In the first five BFTS events of 2012, he's twice split 13th and 14th in the average (New York and Sacramento, Calif.) or done better, including his first event win of the season last weekend in Baltimore.

"Who knows how much momentum this could give him?" said Murray.

Mauney was 4-for-4 at the 1st Mariner Arena, including two 90-point rides, and has yet to go 0-for-the-weekend this season, or even buck off two bulls in a row.

'Right now, he's healthy. How long that can stay that way, I think, is always a big question mark.'

He now leads Valdiron de Oliveira by 214.75 points in the standings.

Murray said going back to the PBR 15/15 Bucking Battle in Sacramento, when Mauney rode Larry the Cable Guy's Git-r-Done for 91.5 points, the 25-year-old from Mooresville, N.C., looks like he's getting back to his old self.

He also noted that Mauney seems healthier than he has in a long time.

"There were a lot of times we saw him where he looked like a 90-year-old man walking out of the arena," Murray said. "A mad 90-year-old man walking out of the arena."

Murray pointed out Mauney, who doesn't train or work out, is thin and lanky, and that when "he's beat up" it's that much harder on him.

"Right now, he's healthy," Murray said. "How long that can stay that way, I think, is always a big question mark."

WATCH THE WINSTAR WORLD CASINO INVITATIONAL IN OKLAHOMA CITY Friday at 9 p.m. ET on the PBR Live Event Center; Saturday at 9 p.m. ET on NBC Sports Network (formerly VERSUS); and Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network.