TUCSON, Ariz. – In the first out of John Crimber’s Unleash The Beast debut, he was slammed to the ground by Border Wall in 3.71 seconds.
Welcome to the big leagues, kid.
With 10 PBR Canada and Challenger Series event wins already under his belt – and, as the son of PBR great and Arizona Ridge Riders head coach Paulo Crimber – Crimber showed up at the PBR Tucson in Tucson, Arizona, with a big reputation and the highest of expectations.
Border Wall proved that he is, in fact, human, but Crimber arrived at Tucson Arena on Saturday with redemption on his mind.
And redemption is what he got, to the tune of 89 points on Sky Walker and the Round 2 victory.
“Oh, it felt amazing,” Crimber said. “Yesterday, I bucked off. I have no excuses. But it feels really good to get my first one under my belt.
“I’ve seen (Sky Walker) before, and they’ve been 89 on him. They’ve won rounds on him. Actually, they won a round on him here last year. So I was pretty excited, but I didn’t know which way he was going to go. He could go right or left, so I just stayed in the middle and let him buck. I was pretty excited because he’s a round-winner bull, and that’s what I needed today.”
While Crimber has had plenty of success already, plenty of people were quick to point out that the premier series is a different beast (pun intended) entirely. The stage is bigger, the lights are brighter, the bulls are ranker, and a learning curve is to be expected.
“It’s just another bull riding, but with bigger money and all that stuff,” Crimber said. “I think it’s just another bull riding, and I don’t see it as another level. A lot of people said that, but today shut them up a little bit, I guess.”
It also got everybody talking, as he celebrated with the same dance his dad used to during his career.
“I was getting ready to get on the bull, and I heard (CBS Sports Network’s) Kate (Harrison) back there like, ‘Oh, has he got the dance down?’” Crimber said, grinning. “I’m like, ‘You know what? I’m going to do it today.’
“It’s pretty cool. I’m not very good at doing my dad’s dance, but I tried to today.”
The elder Crimber was on hand in Tucson to be with his son for the start of his UTB career and was on the back of the chutes as John reached the 8-second whistle for the first time.
“I think he’s more nervous than me,” John said with the fond exasperation of a teenager. “I think sometimes before I’m fixing to get on, he’s fixing to pass out or something. My dad, he’s the one who always pushed me through my whole career, and now I just started my professional career. For him to be back there on the back of the bucking chutes at my first PBR, it means a lot.”
While Crimber has had a fast start in building his career, he’s still carrying around the family name and following in the footsteps of his father’s legacy. It’s hard for him to get away from that, but he says he doesn’t want to.
“I love talking about my dad,” Crimber said. “I could talk about my dad all day. He’s my hero and my idol.”
One of the benefits of having a dad who’s been there before is getting some advice from an expert before your big-league debut.
“He told me not to think about it too much,” Crimber said. “It’s just another bull riding. And to have fun, because I always have fun at the other bull ridings I’ve been to. And to just think of it as another junior bull riding, and have fun like I always do, and ride my bull.”
Crimber qualified for the first championship round of his career in the last spot before ultimately bucking off Almost Sober in 6.19 seconds, finishing in a three-way tie for 11th place overall.
It wasn’t the result he’d been hoping for, but he’s happy with his performance as a stepping stone for the rest of the season.
“Yesterday was a learning phase, and today was too,” he said. “I was really pressured because I had to stay on a good one to make the short round, and that’s what I did. I did my job.”
He did his job alongside the likes of two-time World Champion Jose Vitor Leme (3-for-3, fourth place) and seven-time PRCA world champion Sage Kimzey (3-for-3, second place).
“That fires me up even more, I think, because I want to be like them guys,” Crimber said. “I’m here, and Sage is right next to me, and being next to a guy like him, it fires me up. I want to be better, too, and it’s pretty fun being around those guys.”
Now ranked No. 9 in the extremely early 2024 Unleash The Beast World Championship standings, Crimber will look to climb even higher when the UTB heads to St. Louis for the PBR St. Louis on Dec. 2-3.
And nobody will be more excited to be there than him.
“It’s a dream come true,” Crimber said. “I’ve always wanted to be here in this situation. I’m just blessed. That’s all I’ve got to say.”
Photo courtesy of Bull Stock Media
