OCALA, Fla. – 2004 NASCAR Cup champion Kurt Busch stood atop the vibrating bucking chutes inside the Southeastern Livestock Pavilion and he would take a glance into the crowd in between the heart-pounding action of man vs. beast that was taking place in front of him.
The Ocala, Florida, PBR fan base was electric with excitement as the town was hosting its first-ever premier series event in the league’s 28-year history.
It is that kind of diehard support that pushes any athlete forward, and Busch will be feeding off NASCAR fans’ energy in four weeks when the 2021 Daytona 500 takes place 80 miles away.
“I love live sporting events,” Busch told PBR.com during the PBR Monster Energy Invitational. “This pandemic makes everything so difficult, and I am proud of the effort the PBR put together and for the state of Florida to make this happen.”
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Busch has attended PBR events before, including the 2016 season-opening, Monster Energy Buck Off at the Garden in New York City, and he jumped at the opportunity to make the less than 2-hour drive to Ocala to watch the PBR begins its 2021 season. Busch was in Daytona for meetings and he was excited to see his schedule aligned with the PBR’s.
Obviously, the 2021 Unleash The Beast: American Roots Edition is far from normal. Instead of the PBR opening its premier series indoors, such as at the iconic Madison Square Gaurden, the PBR has opted to take the UTB tour to historical outdoor rodeo venues for at least the first two months of the season.
“I was talking with (PBR CEO and Commissioner) Sean Gleason about how cool it is to come back to your roots,” Busch said. “Sports, and people, you get big sometimes and you lose track of your roots and it is really neat to this intimate event to kick off their season. Everybody is doing it together. It took everybody’s heart to pull it together. I am proud to see this today.
“Our fan base (in NASCAR) and bull riding fans are similar. It is true blue-collar fans. I am happy to see people’s smiles. You can’t anymore with masks. But I know they are smiling and enjoying a live event.”
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Of course, driving a race car and riding a bull are two completely different tasks, but Busch does see similarities between race car drivers and bull riders.
“I talk to J.B. Mauney, and a few of the other riders, and you have to be part nuts and an adrenaline junkie,” Busch said. “Yet you have to focus on your craft to be better than the next guy. A lot of these guys do different strength training exercises that you would see in gymnasts for their balance. They know how to stay center and how to protect their body when they are about to fall or when the bull is right on top of them.
“You always have to find a competitive advantage, and that is what every athlete does and that is the same in NASCAR as it would be in bull riding.”
Busch told Kate Harrison on CBS Sports Network later in the day that he would give the edge to two-time World Champion J.B. Mauney if the two athletes switched roles.
So, any chance PBR fans will be seeing Busch get on a bull any time soon if he decides to take a break from his No. 1 Monster Energy race car?
“Oh, hell no,” Busch said. “I got a roll cage. I got my safety in my car. I am feeling good with that. I always went to the rodeo in Vegas growing up. Last year I won my hometown track in Vegas and got the belt buckle. The South Point 400. I got my buckle.
“I am good with what these boys are doing. It is pretty wild.”