PUEBLO, Colo. – Katie Perschbacher still remembers the first time she and Laramie Wilson met Rafael Jose de Brito.

Persbacher and Wilson were bucking bulls at two-time World Champion Jose Vitor Leme’s ranch in Decatur, Texas, on March 16 when they noticed this new Brazilian they had never seen before.

Eventually, they got to talking and learned Brito was also in need of a ride to Texarkana, where they expected to attend a bull sale nine days later.

When they got to his apartment in Decatur to pick him up on March 25, Brito excitedly ran out the door to hop in the truck, not wanting to miss the opportunity to get a ride.

Perschbacher would then help Brito enter the bull riding in Texarkana, and Brito got back to doing what he does best.

The 30-year-old newcomer to the United States would get on 11 bulls that day and win the open bull riding competition.

His English may have been still very, very raw, but Brito knew how he wanted to describe his moment.

“I’m living the American dream,” he said.

It is a phrase Brito has continued to repeat as his stock has risen in the United States.

In the last few months, word has spread around the PBR community that Brito could be the latest Brazilian to make an impact in the PBR. He was a rider multiple teams added to their watch list ahead of the PBR Team Series Draft, presented by ZipRecruiter.

Brito may have only gone 4-for-13 (30.77%) in limited PBR competition, but those close to him knew the tide would turn in his favor. This past weekend, Brito, who also works for Wilson and Perschbacher, went 2-for-3 to win the season-opening PBR Challenger Series event in Evansville, Indiana.

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Brito began the Evansville PBR, presented by Shoe Sensation, with his first 90-point ride on American soil (90 points on Screamin Damon). He then rode Wild Bill for 88.5 points in Round 2.

“I haven’t seen any guys want to be as successful as he is,” Perschbacher said. “It is definitely going to be fun watching him. He also ropes and can ride a barrel horse. The guy is beyond talented.”

Rounding out the Top 5 in Evansville was Eli Vastbinder (2-for-3, 175.5 points), Daniel Keeping (2-for-3; 175 points), Leonardo Lima (88.5 points), Josh Baker (87.5 points) and Wallace de Oliveira (87.5 points).

“I am really, really happy to be here in the United States and ride really good,” Brito said on RidePass on Pluto TV with the help of 2002 World Champion Ednei Caminhas translating. “I have only been here for two months. It was my dream to be here. Thank you to all of my friends behind the chutes. Thank you, God.”

The win came less than a week after Brito decided to sign as a free agent with the Texas Rattlers. Teammate Joao Ricardo Vieira gave Brito a strong endorsement to head coach Cody Lambert, and Brito eventually decided to head to the Rattlers after also weighing an option from the Carolina Cowboys.

“Cody Lambert is a very good coach, and I thank him for trusting me,” Brito told PBR.com this week via a translation app. “I am very happy.”

Lambert said he had been targeting Brito before the draft once Vieira sent him some videos. The PBR co-founder also had a chance to watch Brito in Tulsa, Oklahoma, when he was the ABBI rider.

“He looks like he can ride,” Lambert said. “He hasn’t adjusted to the way the bulls buck here. That is rare that they come over here and can immediately ride like they did in Brazil. There have been a few. Like Jose showed up here, and our style of bulls fit him better. They are more explosive leaving the chutes than the bulls in Brazil. Bulls in Brazil are a little slower, and maybe some of them are bigger. They definitely don’t leave the chute as explosive as the American bulls.

“In Tulsa, he was set up for failure before he got there because he was getting on bulls somebody got disqualified for not getting out of the chute on. Then he was getting paid whether he stayed on them or not. I don’t want anybody getting paid for losing. He was set up for failure there. He didn’t understand the language and what we were doing and being rushed on a chute fighter. But I saw five or six videos that Joao sent me before the draft.”

The Rattlers have also signed Ednelio Rodrigues de Almeida, Marco Juarez and Travis Wimberley, per Lambert, and are looking into adding more riders to their 12-man roster.

Vieira showed Lambert videos of Almeida during the 2022 PBR Team Series Draft, presented by ZipRecruiter, on May 23.

"I told Cody Lambert to pick Rafael and Ednelio to be alternate guys for the team," Vieira said. "Rafael has been very good in Brazil and he is 30. He has good experience and he is a talent to ride bulls. His daddy ride bulls good. His family is famous for bull riding. Ednelio is a great bull rider too. I hope these two guys help the team to win."

RELATED: How a roster is built for PBR Teams

Brito, the 2011 Ekip Rozeta champion in Brazil, never really intended to come to the United States earlier in his career.

However, Brito began to consider making a late-career jump to the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic as rodeos throughout Brazil were shut down and at the encouragement of his wife. It has taken about two years for Brazil to see a turnaround in its events. PBR Brazil has been committed to offering riders an opportunity and has three events set to get underway this week in Divinópolis and Senador Canedo.

Brito next turns his focus to the PBR Bulls on the Beach Challenger Series event this weekend in Ocean City, Maryland, before taking part in a five- to six-day training camp Lambert and the Rattlers will be holding next week.

Professional Bull Riders - Evansville PBR Presented by Shoe Sensation
Evansville, IN, 2022 - Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)

1. Rafael Jose de Brito, 90-88.5-0-178.50-42.5 Points.
2. Eli Vastbinder, 86.5-0-89-175.50-28 Points.
3. Daniel Keeping, 87.5-87.5-0-175.00-16 Points.
4. Leonardo Lima, 0-88.5-0-88.50-11.5 Points.
5. Josh Baker, 87.5-0-0-87.50-6.5 Points.
(tie). Wallace Vieira de Oliveira, 87.5-0-0-87.50-6.5 Points.
7. Trace Brown, 86.5-0-0-86.50-2 Points.
(tie). Alecio Ferreira da Costa, 86.5-0-0-86.50-2 Points.
9. Caleb McCaslin, 85.5-0-0-85.50
10. Chase Wimer, 85-0-0-85.00
11. Matt Allgood, 0-84.5-0-84.50-1.5 Points.
(tie). Jake Morinec, 0-84.5-0-84.50-1.5 Points.
13. Cal Spence, 0-84-0-84.00-1 Points.
(tie). Rylie Jeffries, 84-0-0-84.00
15. Wyatt Rogers, 82.5-0-0-82.50
16. Ednei Caminhas, 81.5-0-0-81.50
(tie). Brandon Davis, 81.5-0-0-81.50
Cody Campbell, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Jenks, 0-0-0-0.00
Ueberson Duarte, 0-0-0-0.00
Lamar Lehman, 0-0-0-0.00
Marcus Mast [1], 0-0-0-0.00
Marcus Mast [2], 0-0-0-0.00
Levi Hershberger, 0-0-0-0.00
D.J. Parker, 0-0-0-0.00
Kevin Wickey, 0-0-0-0.00
Jared Avina, 0-0-0-0.00
Josh Norman, 0-0-0-0.00
Matt Oliver, 0-0-0-0.00
Beau Caplinger, 0-0-0-0.00
Eder Barbosa  [1], 0-0-0-0.00
Eder Barbosa  [2], 0-0-0-0.00
Perry Schrock  [1], 0-0-0-0.00
Perry Schrock  [2], 0-0-0-0.00
Joao Paulo Fernandes, 0-0-0-0.00
Tristan McCelland, 0-0-0-0.00
Storm Howard, 0-0-0-0.00
Brandon Ferguson, 0-0-0-0.00
Melvin Byler, 0-0-0-0.00
Adrian Stackhouse, 0-0-0-0.00
Andrew Decker, 0-0-0-0.00