Exhibit 31.1

                                 CERTIFICATIONS


I, Robert L. G. Watson, certify that:

         1. I have  reviewed  this  quarterly  report  on Form  10-Q of  Abraxas
            Petroleum Corporation;

         2. Based on my knowledge,  this  quarterly  report does not contain any
            untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact
            necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances
            under which such  statements  were made, not misleading with respect
            to the period covered by this quarterly report;

         3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial
            information included in this quarterly report, fairly present in all
            material respects the financial condition, results of operations and
            cash flows of the  registrant as of, and for, the periods  presented
            in this quarterly report;

         4. The registrant's  other certifying officer and I are responsible for
            establishing and maintaining  disclosure controls and procedures (as
            defined in  Exchange  Act Rules  13a-15(e)  and  15d-15(e))  for the
            registrant and have:

            (a) designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such
                disclosure  controls  and  procedures  to be designed  under our
                supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the
                registrant,  including its  consolidated  subsidiaries,  is made
                known to us by others within those entities, particularly during
                the period in which this quarterly report is being prepared;

            (b) evaluated  the  effectiveness  of  the  registrant's  disclosure
                controls  and  procedures,  and  presented  in this  report  our
                conclusions about the  effectiveness of the disclosure  controls
                and  procedures,  as of the end of the  period  covered  by this
                report based on such evaluation; and

            (c) disclosed in this report any change in the registrant's internal
                control  over  financial  reporting  that  occurred  during  the
                registrant's third fiscal quarter that has materially  affected,
                or is reasonably likely to materially  affect,  the registrant's
                internal control over financial reporting.

         5. The  registrant's  other  certifying  officer and I have  disclosed,
            based  on our  most  recent  evaluation  of  internal  control  over
            financial  reporting,  to the  registrant's  auditors  and the audit
            committee  of  the  registrant's  board  of  directors  (or  persons
            performing the equivalent functions):

            (a) all  significant  deficiencies  in the  design or  operation  of
                internal  controls  which are  reasonably  likely  to  adversely
                affect the registrant's  ability to record,  process,  summarize
                and report financial information; and

            (b) any fraud, whether or not material,  that involves management or
                other employees who have a significant  role in the registrant's
                internal control over financial reporting.


Date: November 7, 2005

/s/ Robert L.G. Watson
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Robert L.G. Watson
Chairman of the Board, President and
Principal Executive Officer