PUEBLO, Colo. –  The most visible athletes in Professional Bull Riders (PBR) will have a brand new look for the 2017 season, as the men protecting the riders become the MATADOR® Jerky Bullfighters.

MATADOR®, a Jack Link’s brand sold and distributed by Frito-Lay, a division of PepsiCo, has signed an agreement with PBR to sponsor the bullfighters at the PBR’s top two tours: the Built Ford Tough Series and the Real Time Pain Relief Velocity Tour. The partnership will provide the brand strong on-the-dirt visibility at the PBR's elite tour, retail marketing programs and branded content integration on PBR’s CBS and CBS Sports Network telecasts.

Branded content vignettes, “Bullfighting 101,” will bring fans up close and personal with the MATADOR® Jerky Bullfighters: Jesse Byrne, Shorty Gorham, Frank Newsom and Cody Webster. The vignettes will air on CBS telecasts during the second half of the 2017 PBR season.

The partnership also includes a strong retail component, as MATADOR® Jerky Bullfighters will make appearances at retail accounts. Additionally, PBR and MATADOR® will work together on flyaway promotions to the Built Ford Tough World Finals and other PBR Majors, which will be featured at MATADOR® retail partners across the country.

Sampling is another key component of the partnership, tapping into the passion and loyalty of PBR fans. MATADOR® and the PBR will provide product for fans at Built Ford Tough Series and Velocity Tour events, retail events featuring the MATADOR® Jerky Bullfighters, other PBR programming, PBR Fan Zones and anywhere else that PBR touches fans on a one-to-one basis. 

The MATADOR® Jerky Bullfighters will sport a new look based on their new sponsor’s brand colors, including a special patriotic themed jersey for the PBR Celebrate America Tour. The PBR’s elite Built Ford Tough Series opened its 2017 season at Madison Square Garden in New York from January 6-8.

“Matador is charging forward in 2017!  We wanted to make a bold move this year that would showcase the benefits of our great-tasting, easy-eatin’ Jerky, and we believe partnering with the PBR bullfighters is a perfect fit,” said Nicole Weber, the Marketing Director for Matador Jerky.

“We’re very excited to bring the amazing MATADOR® Jerky Bullfighters closer to PBR fans,” PBR CEO Sean Gleason said. “These athletes are essential to our riders’ safety and will benefit greatly from this partnership.”