PUEBLO, Colo. – With the ever-dominant Austin Gamblers bringing a record-breaking 17-5 record into this weekend’s Ridge Rider Days in Glendale, Arizona, the team has a pair of magic numbers top of mind as the organization prepares to set it sights for the 2023 PBR Teams Championship in Las Vegas Oct. 20-22.

No, not the ones shaved into the back of teammate Adriano Salgado’s head (though, definitely a cool touch!)

We’re talking about the number of wins Michael Gaffney’s squad needs to secure both a coveted first-round bye in Sin City during next month’s PBR Teams Championship (1 win away), while putting an exclamation mark on a successful 2023 campaign by capturing its second PBR Teams regular season title (2 wins away).

Continuing to tower above the other seven teams atop this season’s standings, Jose Vitor Leme, Dalton Kasel and company have earned their team a five-game lead over the No. 2 Kansas City Outlaws.

Representing the only other team above the .500 mark as the season’s end quickly approaches, Kansas City currently holds the best odds to potentially secure the other first-round bye at 12-10.

RELATED: 2023 PBR Teams Game Notes: Ridge Rider Days

But just five games back with six contests to be played, including a huge showdown with the Gamblers to kick Saturday’s slate of competition off inside Desert Diamond Arena, the Outlaws aren’t ruling out a late-season surge.

While teams around the league have seen encouraging flashes from young riders, no team has witnessed a breakout comparable to what Kansas City’s seen in supporting rookie Cassio Dias.

Racking up an insane 14-for-19 record (73.7%) during his first campaign in orange and black, the white-hot Brazilian is coming off another MVP title-worthy performance in Greensboro, North Carolina, after ripping off another flawless 3-for-3 performance.

Continuing to trail Leme in this year’s electric MVP race (with the league set to reward $100,000 the rider with this season’s highest individual aggregate score) by just two ride scores (163 points), will Dias be able to team up with Wingson Henrique da Silva, Koltin Hevalow in closing the gap in both the MVP race and overall 2023 team standings?

As much as both teams, and fans around the world, are looking forward to Saturday’s electric showdown, Kansas City will first have to deal with the No. 5 Carolina Cowboys (10-12) Friday night as 2016 World Champion Cooper Davis, No. 1 overall selection in the 2023 PBR Teams Draft Sage Steele Kimzey and crew look to make a late-season push of their own inside Desert Diamond Arena.

RELATED: By the Numbers: Sage Kimzey finding his stride upon return to PBR Teams

Meanwhile for the No. 1 Gamblers, they’re set to duel the No. 4 Oklahoma Freedom during the opening night of Ridge Rider Days competition. With just five losses documented throughout the team’s 22 appearances this season, easy math says the team’s one-two punch should be able to get the job done early into the three-day showcase, but if J.J. Gotsch and team aren’t able to clinch the elusive first-round bye during its first two matchups of the weekend, perhaps a Championship Sunday date with the No. 7 Nashville Stampede (8-14) will provide an easier opportunity.

In a league where guaranteed wins are no more, and within a series where both teams are 1-1, could Sunday’s showdown between the Gamblers and Stampede conclude a weekend of upsets for the Gamblers?

Or will the dominant, decorated squad put a cap on what’s already become a record-breaking season?

With the 5-on-5 circuit set to invade Glendale, Arizona, during the ninth event of the 2023 PBR Camping World Team Series season, let’s take a look at the starting lineups for Friday night’s competition inside Desert Diamond Arena (With action set to begin at 7:45 p.m. MT on Pluto TV).

RIDGE RIDER DAYS STARTING LINEUPS

*Denotes a rematch

No. 2 Kansas City Outlaws (12-10) vs. No. 5 Carolina Cowboys (10-12) Wingson Henrique da Silva vs. Whatever (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Ken Barnhart) Cladson Rodolfo vs. First String (Hawkins Bucking Bulls) Koltin Hevalow vs. Happy Hour (Hawkins Bucking Bulls) Daniel Feitosa vs. Dynamite (Evan Matthews) Sandro Batista vs. Jasper (Hawkins Bucking Bulls) Conner Halverson vs. All Shook Up (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Ken Barnhart) Kyler Oliver vs. Carlos Danger (Farris Cattle/Big Schott Rodeo) Sage Steele Kimzey vs. Blood Moon (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Mark Baker/M Rafter E) Cassio Dias vs. Sky Walker (Lacey Scott/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/M Rafter E) Cooper Davis vs. Younts Brody’s Pet (Farris Cattle/Big Schott Rodeo)

TRANSACTIONS The Kansas City Outlaws acquired Sandro Batista from the Carolina Cowboys in exchange for future considerations The Kansas City Outlaws released Julio Cesar Marques from the Protected Roster and signed him to the Reserve Roster The Kansas City Outlaws removed Leonardo Castro Ferreira from Injured Reserve and added him to the Protected Roster The Carolina Cowboys traded Sandro Batista to the Kansas City Outlaws in exchange for future considerations The Carolina Cowboys signed Conner Halverson to the Reserve Roster

Outlaws (2-1) vs. Cowboys (1-2) Game Preview Kansas City may be considering its odds of traversing the pack for another two weeks in hopes of avoiding a first-round matchup inside T-Mobile Arena (via earning a bye as one of the Top 2-ranked teams at the end of the regular season), they’ll first need to lock in for their Friday night matchup against the No. 5 Carolina Cowboys. With MVP contender Cassio Dias continuing to produce 90s and fellow Brazilian Wingson Henrique da Silva building on his impressive finish at the 2023 World Finals: Unleash The Best while rounding out 2023 as a year to remember, J.W. Hart has one of the toughest jobs on tour in deciding which of his dedicated riders will join the productive pair. Recently seeing Koltin Hevalow go a perfect 3-for-3 last weekend at Cowboy Days, he joins his teammates atop the team’s leaderboard as the only other rider to meet the 8 at least five times this season.

Opting into making some noise ahead of the league’s roster freeze en route to solidifying some additional team depth, Kansas City acquired Sandro Batista from its Friday night opening (Carolina) earlier this week, in exchange for future considerations. Slated to dance with Jasper during his inaugural ride donning the orange and black outfit, Batista will get a chance to make an impression right off the bat for Hart, Guilherme Marchi and company, who will welcome any type of qualified ride action as they attempt to dethrone the No. 1 Gamblers.

Meanwhile for Jerome Davis and his checkered flag squad, the Richard Childress Racing entity will look to put last weekend’s 1-2 performance amidst its hometown crowd in the rearview mirror. Entering Ridge Rider Days, Carolina is one of six teams mathematically still capable of securing the coveted first-round bye at the 2023 PBR Teams Championship. With five of the six teams essentially fighting for the second spot, assuming Austin is able to complete their historic run sooner than later, the Cowboys may have the most talented squad out of the remaining teams hoping to earn the bye, but with Daylon Swearingen on the team’s Injured Reserve, will guys like Boudreaux Campbell and Dawson Branton be able to fill the void alongside a pair of World Champions in Sage Steele Kimzey and Cooper Davis?

No. 4 Oklahoma Freedom (11-11) vs. No. 1 Austin Gamblers (17-5) Bill Henry vs. Erik The Red (Tommy Julian/Craig Moore/D&H Cattle) Dalton Kasel vs. Cold Shot (Jeb Fredericks/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger) Alex Cerqueira vs. Smoked Down (D&H Cattle Company) Rafael dos Santos vs. No Cigar (D&H Cattle Co/Payson Parker) Thiago Salgado vs. Buffalo Heifer (Sterk/Ogden/Hart Cattle Co) Ramon de Lima vs. Grey Smoke (Farris Cattle/Big Schott Rodeo) Grayson Cole vs. Time Bomb (Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger) Lucas Divino vs. Copper Point (Wacey Hart/Plummer) Caden Bunch vs. Sweet Train (D&H Cattle Co/Gordon/OK Corralis) Jose Vitor Leme vs. Flapjack (Parker/OK Corralis/Gordon/D&H Cattle)

TRANSACTIONS The Oklahoma Freedom released Cody Coverchuk from the Reserve Roster The Oklahoma Freedom signed Trevor Reister to the Reserve Roster The Oklahoma Freedom signed Grayson Cole to the Reserve Roster

Freedom (0-3) vs. Gamblers (3-0) Game Preview After losing Chase Outlaw to the Nashville Stampede last week (as a result of placing Outlaw on the team’s Reserve Roster, thus leaving him unprotected), and sending captain Eli Vastbinder to the Texas Rattlers, some may have questioned what direction the league’s No. 4-ranked team was heading. But after seeing newcomer Dawson Gleaves find some success during his first weekend in red, white and blue while watching on as Caden Bunch continues to wow the crowd (and his own team) via his insane 7-for-9 record this season, perhaps Cord McCoy has a plan after all. At 11-11, just one game back from the Kansas City Outlaws, the Freedom will have every opportunity to spring to the No. 2 rank as soon as Friday night. But they’ll have to go through the league’s top dog in doing so.

While the Gamblers have recorded wins in each of the first three showdowns between the squads this year, including a 178-0 win last weekend in Greensboro, they’ll need to be concentrated on making it a perfect four straight on Friday night. With the aforementioned first-round bye at stake for Austin, the only team who can actually secure one this weekend, they’ll look to MVP frontrunner Jose Vitor Leme (paired against Flapjack) and Dalton Kasel (set to dance with Cold Shot) once again. With Kasel going an uncharacteristic 0-for-3 last weekend, he’s almost guaranteed to find the whistle on Friday night. That said, contributions from any of Lucas Divino, Rafael dos Santos or Ramon de Lima could go a long way in starting the weekend with celebrations for the league’s most marketable team.

No. 8 Missouri Thunder (7-15) vs. No. 3 Texas Rattlers (11-11) *Andrew Alvidrez vs. Two Socks (Dakota Rodeo/Mark Baker/Clay Struve/Chad Berger) Joao Ricardo Vieira vs. Pete’s Dejavu (JD Nix Rodeo Co.) Briggs Madsen vs. Doc Holiday (M Rafter E Bucking Bulls) *Brady Fielder vs. Yelawolf (M Rafter E Bucking Bulls) Felipe Furlan vs. Tigger (M Rafter E Bucking Bulls) Eli Vastbinder vs. War Department (M Rafter E Bucking Bulls) *Manoelito de Souza Junior vs. Cool Whip (Julian/Staci Addison/D&H/Crooked W) Braidy Randolph vs. CR’s Brindle T (Mann Creek Buck N’ Bulls) Kade Madsen vs. Boo Ray (D&H Cattle Company) Cody Jesus vs. Snake Eyes (D&H Cattle Company)

REMATCHES Andrew Alvidrez vs. Two Socks (90.5 points in Livingston, Montana; 86.5 points in Thief River Falls, Minnesota; 6.19 seconds in Thief Falls, Minnesota) Brady Fielder vs. Yelawolf (87.25 points in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) Manoelito de Souza Junior vs. Cool Whip (3.33 seconds in Nampa, Idaho)

TRANSACTIONS The Texas Rattlers placed Cody Jesus on the Protected Roster from Injured Reserve The Texas Rattlers added Trace Redd to the Protected Roster from the Reserve Roster

Thunder (2-1) vs. Rattlers (1-2) Game Preview Fresh off capturing a tight 88.25-85.75 victory over the Rattlers at Cowboy Days, the Missouri Thunder are looking to run it back Friday night when they face Texas for the final time during the 2023 regular season. Despite enduring a rather rough first half of the season, Luke Snyder and Ross Coleman have coached their team to a 5-4 record throughout the last three events, including encouraging 2-1 performances at their hometown event in Ridgedale, Missouri, and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Remaining dedicated to their dynasty approach while seeing promising prospects evolve into proven producers in Kade Madsen, Joao Lucas Campos, Felipe Furlan and beyond, there will be brighter days for the 7-15 contingent. But after seeing last year’s defending champions enter the postseason ranked No. 8, they understand they have just as good a chance as any of the other seven squads in Las Vegas. Friday’s competition against the Rattlers, who bring the second-most qualified rides into the matchup, will surely be a good measuring stick for the up-and-coming Thunder.

As far as Cody Lambert and the Rattlers are concerned, they’d like to get back to .500 in the regular season series after dropping two of its first three matchups of the year against the league’s basement dwellers. Sitting tied with the Freedom with matching 11-11 records, Texas has been one of the most potent teams in the league for a second-straight year. With the most four-ride wins of the league, Texas’ riders 100% feed off each other hearing the whistle, and will definitely be a threat during next month’s season-ending gauntlet inside T-Mobile Center. But if they want to feel even more comfortable heading into Sin City, they’ll do everything they can do to beat out the Freedom and Outlaws in attempting to climb into the No. 2 spot. That journey starts Friday night, as Brady Fielder and Joao Ricardo Vieira look to improve on their team-best 10 qualified rides.

No. 7 Nashville Stampede (8-14) vs. No. 6 Arizona Ridge Riders (10-12) Chase Outlaw vs. Old School (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger/Pronghorn Well Service/M Rafter E) Nick Tetz vs. Scarface (Evan Matthews) Dener Barbosa vs. Cyrus (Evan Matthews) Vitor Losnake vs. Macho Man (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger) Ednelio Almeida vs. JAG Metals Grand Theft (D&H Cattle Co./Philip Elkins) Eduardo Aparecido vs. I’m Your Daddy (Cooper/Scruggs Bucking Bulls) Bruno Carvalho vs. Big Twist (D&H Cattle Co/Ireland) Chase Dougherty vs. Try Me (D&H Cattle Company) Silvano Alves vs. Ah Hell (Cooper/Scruggs Bucking Bulls) Keyshawn Whitehorse vs. Night Hawk (Logan Clancey/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger)

Stampede (1-2) vs. Ridge Riders (2-1) Game Preview Two teams who began the season 0-7 quickly ditched their winless ways as the Arizona Ridge Riders and Nashville Stampede prepare to battle for the final time this season Friday night. With six games left in the 2023 slate, however, they find themselves in rather different situations leading into Las Vegas.

Arizona, now 10-12 on the season, is technically still in the running to secure a bye for the 2023 PBR Teams Championship, but now seven games back from the Gamblers after going 1-2 in North Carolina, it will have to be the second bye, as the regular season bragging rights are officially out of the question. But if Colby Yates has anything to say about it, he’ll have his guys motivated to the nines, as momentum heading into T-Mobile Center could be the key to winning it all. Between Nick Tetz, Vitor Losnake, Keyshawn Whitehorse, Colten Friztlan and beyond, the black and white contingent has plenty of heavy hitters capable of getting the job done. They just have to settle in, nod their head and hang on.

Across the chutes, Justin McBride has quietly assembled another veteran-heavy team that’s more than capable of winning any given game. Chase Outlaw quickly reminded the industry of how dangerous the blue and yellow squad can look after going 2-for-3 during his debut weekend with the Stampede. Age continues to just be a number for three-time World Champion Silvano Alves, who continues to lead Nashville with his 11-for-21 record. Now just two rides away from becoming just the fourth rider to record 500 qualified rides, will Silvano provide his team with some momentum of their own with just two events remaining before the season-culminating showdown?

FOLLOW ALONG This weekend’s competition in Glendale, Arizona, is set to begin Friday, Sept. 29 at 7:45 p.m. MT as the Kansas City Outlaws and Carolina Cowboys get the three-day showdown started inside Desert Diamond Arena. With competition set to resume Saturday, Sept. 30 at 6:45 p.m. MT, the seventh of eight homestand events will conclude Sunday, Oct. 1 at 1:45 p.m. MT as the No. 6 ranked Arizona Ridge Riders look to inch closer to securing a first-round bye at the 2023 PBR Teams Championship amidst their hometown crowd.

Fans can tune into ViX and RidePass on Pluto TV Friday, Sept. 29 beginning at 7:45 p.m. MT to take in the four opening night games live, while the first three games from Day three’s slate are set to begin airing at 6:45 p.m. MT on Saturday, Sept. 30. This Week’s “Game of the Week” between the Missouri Thunder and Arizona Ridge Riders will debut on CBS Television Network at 1 p.m. MT, while day three’s action will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network Sunday, Oct. 1 at 4 p.m. MT, featuring all of this weekend’s Championship Sunday action.

Fans can keep an eye on PBR.com and PBR social media channels for the latest news, scores, wrecks and more!

Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media