LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Mason Taylor had no problem running his mouth and having some pep to his step five months ago.

The 19-year-old had won the Velocity Tour event in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, to earn his first trip to the premier series in September.

Taylor boasted that he was here to stay and that he had no plans on failing to qualify for the 2018 PBR World Finals.

Even after going 0-for-2 in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Taylor went back to the Velocity Tour and won another event, this time in Rochester, New York, to earn another trip back to the PBR’s tour.

However, Taylor ultimately finished 55th in the 2018 world standings, and he did not back up his mouth with his riding.

The Maypearl, Texas, bull rider now wishes he had handled the spotlight better.

“My mindset is different,” Taylor said earlier this year at the Sacramento Invitational. “As of last year, you heard me talking and saying I am one of the best. That is definitely not what I wanted to do. There is a difference between confidence and cockiness, and I was being a little bit arrogant last year.

“I paid for it. I learned my lesson. This year, you guys can ask me questions and I will answer them. But I am here to do my job and stay on my bulls.”

Both of Taylor’s parents also reminded him to stay humble in his success this offseason.

“My mom was like, ‘Yeah you are riding good, but we don’t want people around the house thinking that now that you are on TV you're an asshole.’”

Taylor’s father Chris is an “old school cowboy” and he also reminded his son to let his riding do the talking and to “keep his mouth shut.”

Taylor has let his riding do the majority of the talking in 2019, and he is on pace to join the Unleash The Beast tour full time.

He's ranked 23rd in the world standings ahead of this weekend’s Bad Boy Mowdown in North Little Rock, Arkansas.

He faces Buckeye Bill (16-6, UTB) in Round 1 on Friday night at Verizon Arena (8:30 p.m. ET on RidePass).

Taylor finally earned his first premier series qualified ride (86.25 points on Blackberry Smoke) in January in Sacramento, California, and he advanced to the final round of competition last weekend in Los Angeles at Iron Cowboy, presented by Ariat, by going a career-best 2-for-3.

Prior to heading to Los Angeles, Taylor spent a few days in Bowie, Texas, at Cody Lambert’s ranch.

Lambert was the second PBR Ring of Honor inductee that Taylor has reached out to for advice this season as he looks to mature into a full-time contender on the Unleash The Beast.

“Just keep things simple and be a cowboy,” Taylor said of any advice he received. “If you can see them, you can ride them."

Taylor met with 2018 PBR Ring of Honor inductee Gary Leffew earlier this season as well.

“I was hanging out with Gary Leffew, and he changed my whole mindset,” Taylor said. “He didn’t change my riding none, but he saw some things I was doing wrong (mentally). We got them fixed.”

Taylor has posted at least one qualified ride at all levels in his last six events, and he is sitting fifth in the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour standings courtesy of two second-place finishes and a 50-percent riding average (5-for-10).

He is 3-for-7 in two Unleash The Beast events in 2019.

Taylor believes he has fine-tuned his riding some more this season.

“The way we are supposed to riding bulls front to back,” Taylor said. “Instead of me actually going forward and front and setting my hips, I was just kind of popping up. It was getting me out of time with them. Jerking me loose. So we got everything fixed out. We got us a buckrite at the house. I have been riding that every day.”

The Unleash The Beast is where Taylor wants to be, and he is on pace to earn a full-time draw spot following this weekend’s UTB cut when the majority of riders from last year’s Top 30 run out of their guaranteed exemptions.

“I just feel better this year,” Taylor concluded. “I am not anxious or jittery. I am anxious to get on, but last year I blew my head up. I didn’t fill expectations last year so now it is time for me to grow up and put big boy pants on and show them.”

Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko