PUEBLO, Colo. – Some may say that Andrew Alvidrez has become an overnight success in 2023.

The thing about overnight success stories, though, is that it takes a whole lot of work and toiling out of the spotlight to become an overnight success.

He began competing in the PBR’s Touring Pro Division in 2015 and won the Touring Pro Division Championship in 2018. He competed sparingly on the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour before really breaking in at that level in 2019, and then made his Unleash The Beast debut in March of 2020.

Alvidrez finished second overall in his debut event, but in the ensuing two-plus years, logged only six more Top-10 finishes.

This year, however, has been a different story. In six events, he’s notched Top-10 finishes in five, plus a fourth-place showing in his first 15/15 Bucking Battle.

Most notably, Alvidrez earned his first two Unleash The Beast event wins, going back to back in Manchester, New Hampshire, and Albany, New York, in December.

The guy who went nearly three years without an event win to his name is now the world No. 1 bull rider.

“I’ve been visualizing and dreaming of hearing those words since I was a little kid,” Alvidrez said during the Monster Energy Buck Off at the Garden in New York City. “Replaying them in my head, getting on my bouncy ball, hearing, ‘No. 1 bull rider, Andrew Alvidrez.’ It’s all now accustomed to me because I visualized it, and I put it out there in the world so frequently that, now that it’s here, I don’t feel any different.

“I’m having fun, man,” he added with a laugh.

Fun indeed. Alvidrez has managed to stay ahead of 2016 World Champion Cooper Davis and has fended off a two-win streak by two-time World Champion Jose Vitor Leme to start the year to remain in that No. 1 position heading into the PBR Gwinnett Chute Out on Jan. 21-22 in Duluth, Georgia.

Alvidrez takes on Nigel (2-0, all levels) in Round 1 (Saturday at 6:45 p.m. ET on RidePass on Pluto TV).

Known for his faith, Alvidrez largely credits the work he’s done to his relationship with God for his successes this year.

“God’s just been putting stuff in front of me, opportunities. I just take advantage of it,” he said. “I’m just letting it be to him. I’m tired of trying to make things happen by myself. It’s all good stuff, and I’m having fun. When you’re living in the Holy Spirit, it all lines up. And I’m not perfect, trust me. Shoot, man. Trust me, I ain’t perfect at all. But I’m trying to just pursue the faith, and I feel like when there comes pursuit, things happen.”

Coincidentally – or maybe not coincidentally at all – the week Alvidrez started doing Bible affirmations is the week he won his first event.

“I didn’t expect nothing in return. I was looking for peace in my life, because I always say bull riding’s easy; life is hard,” Alvidrez said. “So I was trying to construct my life in order, not bull riding. And when I started doing that, I won my first event. I’m not saying that if you read the Bible and praise God that you’re going to get success, but for me, I took it as a sign. Like, ‘Look what I can put in front of you to capture when you follow that narrow road.’ And that’s the truth, and I’m going to keep screaming it. God. It’s all God. Don’t look at me. Look at his grace, because through him is what I’m able to achieve.”

However, Alvidrez isn’t sitting back and hoping for divine intervention to get him where he wants to go. As much as his faith defines his life, so too does hard work. Years of grinding away went into those first two event wins, and he’s as dedicated in the gym as he is on bulls to get himself in top physical shape.

“I only start counting when it hurts,” Alvidrez said with a grin of his ab workouts. “So when it starts hurting, start counting.”

Alvidrez is a man who knows where he wants to go and is willing to put in the time and effort to get there. He only reached the No. 1 ranking because he never got complacent, and has no plans to start now.

“Every year, I saw that I had to level up in my work ethic. Literally every year,” he said. “I came short, came short, came short. And me and my cousin Harvey talk about it all the time – if you want to go places you’ve never been, you’ve got to (do things) you’ve never done either. We’ve all heard the quotes and all that cliché stuff, but that’s the truth. I have never been in this No. 1 position, so to acquire this position, I had to do things I’ve never done before, whether that’s adding more cardio, adding better nutrition, and going back to reading the book, the Bible. Every year. This isn’t the first year. I thought I was working my ass off five years ago, and now I laugh at myself because I don’t even think I was working that hard five years ago.

“Every year, my grind has to level up. That’s all I consistently tell myself: level up in your grind.”

Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media