TACOMA, Wash. – As the top two riders in the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) world title race faltered on Sunday afternoon in Tacoma, Alan de Souza (Taubate, Brazil) stepped up to win the Unleash The Beast (UTB) PBR Tacoma, presented by Cooper Tires, as the only man to go 3-for-3 across the weekend.
Just days following his sweeping win at the rare midweek event in Everett, Washington, the 30-year-old Brazilian collected his second UTB event title of the 2024 season, earning 114 Unleash The Beast points. The win tightened his hold on No. 5 in the UTB World Championship standings the narrowed the gap between himself and No. 4 ranked Dalton Kasel (Muleshoe, Texas) to a mere one point.
Souza now trails world leader Cassio Dias (Sao F. de Sales, Brazil) by 543.33 points with one event remaining before the 2024 PBR World Finals, beginning May 9 in Fort Worth, Texas.
The two-day event at the Tacoma Dome marked the third consecutive season and 15th overall that the elite tour has visited Tacoma and the second-to-last UTB event of the 2024 season.
Souza spoiled seven-time PRCA Champion Sage Kimzey’s (Hulbert, Oklahoma) bid for his first win of the 2024 season. Kimzey had led the pack with a whopping 91.5-point ride on UTZ BesTex Legend (Blake Sharp/ Chris Utz/ Carey Brothers) in the final round until Souza dashed his hopes with his third qualified ride of the weekend.
Souza started the weekend by conquering Fort Knox (D&H Cattle Co/ Tripp Ranch/ RF Livestock) for 81.5 points for a 16th place finish in Round 1. When Saturday’s second round began, he had his eyes set on Hell Bound (Hawkins Bucking Bulls), who he rode for 80.75 points for a 13th place round finish. The two combined scores put him at No. 6 on the event leaderboard as the final round approached.
Heading into the championship round, the steadfast Brazilian cowboy set his sights again on Centerfold (Blake Sharp/ Michael Floyd), his final opponent from Everett who earned him 85.5 points and clinched the win.
Launching from the chutes aboard the high-flying animal athlete, Souza received 84.75 points, securing the No. 1 spot. Souza’s fate then rested on the final out of the weekend, Kasel’s matchup with DirtyBru (D&H Cattle Co/ Gordon/ OK Corralis). However, Kasel was bucked off at 3.34 seconds, securing the win for Souza.
The veteran rider, who rides for the Nashville Stampede in the separate PBR Teams League, leaves the Pacific Northwest with a check for $47,276 and the No. 5 spot.
With competition at an ultimate high and the clock winding down on the season, the top three riders in the world had a rough weekend in Tacoma, all going 1-for-3.
Dias started the weekend strong, earning a solid 85.25-point score for his opening round ride aboard Sky Walker (Lacey Scott / Dakota Rodeo / Chad Berger / Nancy and Susan Nunnally). But that is where his luck ran out. After being unseated in Round 2 after 5.6 seconds, he did not make the cut for the final round.
Now sitting 494.5 points behind world leader Dias, rookie sensation John Crimber (Decatur, Texas) also started the weekend out strong, splitting second place in Round 1 after an 87.25-point ride aboard Kwik Lock (Long Ranch/ Diamond C Cattle Co).
Round 2 brought a shocking buck-off as Wild Card (Blake Sharp/ UB Bucking Company) dispatched him after 5.98 seconds. Searching for redemption and to gain momentum in the world title race, the 18-year-old rider selected Snake Eyes (D&H Cattle Company) as his championship round opponent.
As the crowd gasped, Crimber faltered and bounced to the ground at a mere 2.92 seconds, leaving him at ninth overall in the event.
Despite the low hold on the event aggregate in Tacoma and not riding in the championship round, last weekend in Billings, Dias clinched the top spot in the Unleash The Beast standings heading into the Elimination Rounds of the PBR World Finals and a chance to ride for the PBR Championship inside AT&T Stadium the following weekend.
Now enjoying his fourteenth consecutive week occupying the No. 1 spot in the standings, the 22-year-old Brazilian cowboy who rides for the Kansas City Outlaws in the PBR Camping World Team Series is currently 10-for-15 (66.67%) in Championship Rounds, the second-highest riding percentage in the final round for all riders with multiple championship round performances.
Kimzey nabbed second place for the weekend, moving from No. 34 to No. 21 after his 2-for-3 weekend and down-to-the-wire loss to Souza.
Starting the two-day event paired with The Judge (Burch Pro Rodeo/ Nixon Bucking Bulls), the PRCA World Champion was flung to the ground at 6.5 seconds.
Matched with Tijuana Two-Step (Blake Sharp/ Michael Floyd) in Round 2 on Saturday, he came back with a vengeance, recording a solid 88-point ride to tie for the round win.
Selecting UTZ BesTex Legend, the No. 2 ranked bull in the world, as his championship partner, the Carolina Cowboys’ athlete’s hopes of advancing up the leaderboard were fulfilled when he rode the talented bovine for 91.5 points, the highest score of the weekend.
The incredible ride also earned the magnificent animal athlete the YETI “Built for the Wild” Bull of the Event honors with a 44.75-point bull score.
Despite the loss to Souza, Kimzey left Washington with 102 Unleash The Beast points.
Kasel claimed third place in Tacoma after going 2-for-3.
After sitting out for over a week to let his body heal, Kasel came back on fire. Paired with Pookie Holler (Dakota Rodeo / Brian & Ashley Pintar / Clay Struve / Chad Berger) in Round 1, the determined Texas cowboy who rides for the Austin Gamblers earned 88.5 points and won the round.
Kasel resumed his newfound momentum in Round 2 matched with Ridgeway (Blake Sharp), earning a crowd-pleasing 88-point ride to tie for the round win.
He then came into the championship round first in the aggregate as his wife and daughter cheered from the stands.
With the first overall pick in the draft, he chose DirtyBru. Despite the momentum of the full house and his family looking on, the bull unexpectedly twisted in midair and Kasel was dispatched after 3.34 seconds.
His 2-for-3 weekend earned him 87 Unleash The Beast points and leaves him holding at No. 4 in the standings.
Shane Scott (Molalla, Oregon) kept the 2-for-3 streak going for a fourth-place finish.
The 18-year-old cowboy started the second UTB event of his career on a high note Saturday night when he was paired with Zeus (Blake Sharp/ Michael Floyd). He came out victorious against his bovine counterpart marking his first ever 8-second ride on the premier tour for 87.25 points, forcing a three-way tie for second place in the opening round.
Sunday’s second round started with the same energy, as he was victorious aboard Jelly Roll (Tommy Julian/ D&H Cattle) for 85.25 points to tie for eighth.
Scott’s Sunday luck stopped there as his championship round opponent, Little Tex (Humpz and Hornz/ Frances Dandy), bested him at 7.23 seconds.
With the fourth-place finish, Scott earned 49.5 Unleash The Beast points to move him to No. 50 in the standings.
Nashville Stampede’s Kaiden Loud (Kaufman, Texas) rounded out the Top 5 of the PBR Tacoma, presented by Cooper Tires.
After a solid 85-point ride on Saturday night aboard Nitty Gritty (Dakota Rodeo/ Chad Berger) in Round 1, the 19-year-old cowboy fired from the chutes in Round 2 aboard Brown Bomber (Culp Bucking Bulls) and again conquered the powerful animal athlete for 86.25 points, and a fourth-place finish in Round 2.
Going into Sunday’s Championship Round, Loud selected Dark Thoughts (Blake Sharp/ Henry Wilson).
Blasting into the air clinging to the muscular bovine, he unfortunately was dispatched at 2.91 seconds.
RELATED: Nashville Stampede star Kaiden Loud back on track with Top 15 in sight
Earning 41.5 Unleash The Beast points, Loud, was able to hold his No. 20 spot in the standings with his fifth-place finish for the weekend.
In the bull pen, Cool Whip (Julian / Staci Addison / D&H / Crooked W), earned his 40th consecutive buck off on Sunday afternoon when the talented snow-white animal athlete launched Jesse Petri (Dublin, Texas) to the ground in 3.2 seconds -- putting him just two buck-offs short of Bushwacker’s historic 42-out run.
Bushwacker’s buck-off streak, the longest in premier series history, spanned from November 1, 2009, to August 16, 2013. It was ended when two-time PBR World Champion J.B. Mauney (Stephenville, Texas) made the 8 for a monstrous 95.25 points in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Cool Whip’s current streak dates back to May 12, 2022, when he bucked off the soon-to-be-crowned World Champion Daylon Swearingen (Piffard, New York) in 3.91 seconds.
After finishing fourth in the 2023 PBR World Champion Bull race, the powerful animal athlete has bucked off all ten riders he has faced on the elite Unleash The Beast this season thus far.
The PBR Unleash The Beast next travels to the KFC YUM! Center in Louisville, Kentucky, for the Cooper Tires, the final regular-season event of 2024, on Friday, April 26 and Saturday, April 27.
Elsewhere in the PBR, the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour was in action in Wichita, Kansas.
Inside INTRUST Bank Arena, Marcelo Procopio Pereira (Rinopolis, Brazil) and Paulo Ferreira Lima (Bezerros, Brazil) rode supreme, tying for the event win at PBR Wichita.
Pereira and Lima delivered matching scores in both of the tour stop’s two rounds of competition.
In Round 1, the Brazilian duo logged 82.5-point efforts, tying for the second-best score of the round, as Pereira went the distance atop Thunder (LH Cattle Co./Chandler Cattle Co.), and Lima conquered Down & Dirty (Kevin Foreman Bucking Bulls).
The veteran competitors then split the championship round win, both cementing the event win, when they reached the requisite 8 for 83.5 points. Pereira topped Midnight Mover (Burkham Contracting #2) and Lima dominated Tulsa King (Robinson/Squirrel Ridge/Eland).
Each rider netted 105.5 points in the race for the 2024 PBR Velocity Tour Championship.
The PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour next travels to Grand Forks, North Dakota, on Saturday, April 27 for the final regular season event of the year. Action for PBR Grand Forks at Alerus Center begins at 7 p.m. CT.
PBR Unleash The Beast– PBR Tacoma
Tacoma Dome - Tacoma, Washington
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Alan de Souza, 81.5-80.75-84.75-247.00-114 Points.
2. Sage Steele Kimzey, 0-88-91.5-179.50-102 Points.
3. Dalton Kasel, 88.5-88-0-176.50-87 Points.
4. Shane Scott, 87.25-85.25-0-172.50-49.5 Points.
5. Kaiden Loud, 85-86.25-0-171.25-41.5 Points.
6. Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 86-83.5-0-169.50-34 Points.
7. Leonardo Castro, 86-78.5-0-164.50-26 Points.
8. Alex Cerqueira, 71.75-85.75-0-157.50-20 Points.
9. John Crimber, 87.25-0-0-87.25-20 Points.
(tie). Jesse Petri, 87.25-0-0-87.25-20 Points.
11. Mason Taylor, 86.75-0-0-86.75-16 Points.
12. Thiago Salgado, 0-86.5-0-86.50-17 Points.
13. Julio Cesar Marques, 86-0-0-86.00-13 Points.
14. João Ricardo Vieira, 85.5-0-0-85.50-11 Points.
(tie). Brady Fielder, 0-85.5-0-85.50-13.5 Points.
(tie). Conner Halverson, 0-85.5-0-85.50-13.5 Points.
17. Cassio Dias, 85.25-0-0-85.25-10 Points.
(tie). Cody Jesus, 0-85.25-0-85.25-11.5 Points.
19. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 85-0-0-85.00-8.5 Points.
(tie). Kyler Oliver, 0-85-0-85.00-10 Points.
21. Paulo Eduardo Rossetto, 83.75-0-0-83.75-8 Points.
(tie). Ednélio Almeida, 83.75-0-0-83.75-8 Points.
23. Eduardo Aparecido, 0-83.25-0-83.25-8 Points.
(tie). Ezekiel Mitchell, 83.25-0-0-83.25-8 Points.
Koltin Hevalow, 0-0-0-0.00
Daylon Swearingen, 0-0-0-0.00
Vitor Losnake, 0-0-0-0.00
Boudreaux Campbell, 0-0-0-0.00
Wyatt Rogers, 0-0-0-0.00
Bob Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Callum Miller, 0-0-0-0.00
Andrew Alvidrez, 0-0-0-0.00
Eli Vastbinder, 0-0-0-0.00
JaCauy Hale, 0-0-0-0.00
Dawson Branton, 0-0-0-0.00
Jake Morinec, 0-0-0-0.00
Daniel Keeping, 0-0-0-0.00
Jaxton Mortensen, 0-0-0-0.00
Elijah Monnett, 0-0-0-0.00
Alvaro Ariel, 0-0-0-0.00
2024 Professional Bull Riders Unleash The Beast Standings
(Place, Rider, Events, Wins, Top 5's, Points)
1. Cassio Dias, 22, 6, 8, 1,405.33
2. John Crimber, 20, 1, 8, 910.83
3. Eduardo Aparecido, 20, 2, 5, 907.00
4. Dalton Kasel, 18, 1, 8, 863.00
5. Alan de Souza, 20, 2, 7, 862.00
6. Koltin Hevalow, 23, 1, 6, 541.50
7. Austin Richardson, 8, 2, 3, 533.50
8. João Ricardo Vieira, 18, 1, 4, 504.00
9. Brady Fielder, 22, 2, 5, 460.16
10. Caden Bunch, 17, 2, 3, 430.83
11. Kaique Pacheco, 15, 0, 3, 389.33
12. Thiago Salgado, 13, 1, 2, 374.00
13. Leonardo Castro, 11, 1, 2, 371.50
14. Julio Cesar Marques, 22, 0, 3, 371.32
15. Cody Jesus, 14, 0, 3, 338.50
16. Cort McFadden, 14, 0, 2, 338.00
17. Alex Cerqueira, 21, 0, 3, 337.50
18. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 16, 0, 3, 328.66
19. Daylon Swearingen, 21, 0, 2, 326.00
20. Kaiden Loud, 20, 0, 3, 320.00
21. Sage Steele Kimzey, 11, 0, 2, 279.00
22. Wingson Henrique da Silva, 15, 1, 3, 272.83
23. Felipe Furlan, 18, 0, 2, 256.00
24. Vitor Losnake, 19, 0, 2, 252.50
25. Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 19, 0, 0, 240.00
26. Clay Guiton, 10, 0, 3, 238.66
27. Boudreaux Campbell, 20, 0, 1, 233.50
27. Paulo Eduardo Rossetto, 22, 0, 2, 233.50
29. Ednélio Almeida, 21, 0, 2, 231.00
30. Wyatt Rogers, 15, 0, 2, 225.50
31. Jose Vitor Leme, 6, 0, 1, 200.00
32. Bob Mitchell, 21, 0, 1, 196.00
33. Conner Halverson, 21, 0, 1, 194.00
34. Jesse Petri, 19, 0, 0, 189.00
35. Ezekiel Mitchell, 15, 0, 2, 185.50
36. Kyler Oliver, 9, 0, 2, 151.33
37. Marco Rizzo, 7, 0, 2, 147.83
38. Callum Miller, 12, 0, 1, 147.50
39. Luciano De Castro, 14, 0, 0, 137.33
40. Mason Taylor, 11, 0, 0, 130.50
41. Andrew Alvidrez, 12, 0, 1, 113.33
42. Silvano Alves, 15, 0, 0, 112.50
43. Eli Vastbinder, 16, 0, 0, 105.83
44. Braidy Randolph, 5, 0, 0, 92.50
45. JaCauy Hale, 4, 0, 0, 81.00
PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour - PBR Wichita
INTRUST Bank Arena – Wichita, Kansas
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2- Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Marcelo Procopio Pereira, 82.5-83.5-166.00-105.5 Points.
(tie). Paulo Ferreira Lima, 82.5-83.5-166.00-105.5 Points.
3. Ramon de Lima, 81.5-64.5-146.00-61 Points.
4. Claudio Montanha Jr., 86-0-86.00-49 Points.
5. Dalton Rudman, 74-0-74.00-24 Points.
Grayson Cole, 0-0-0.00
Dener Barbosa, 0-0-0.00
Marco Eguchi, 0-0-0.00
Qynn Andersen, 0-0-0.00
Dustin Herman, 0-0-0.00
Kyle Eaton, 0-0-0.00
Jean Fernandes Pereira, 0-0-0.00
Brandon Chambers, 0-0-0.00
Leandro Machado, 0-0-0.00
Quincey McDonald, 0-0-0.00
Leandro Zampollo, 0-0-0.00
Briggs Madsen, 0-0-0.00
Zane Cook, 0-0-0.00
Thor Hoefer II, 0-0-0.00
Adriano Salgado, 0-0-0.00
Dylan Smith, 0-0-0.00
Matt Hennelly, 0-0-0.00
Leonardo Lima, 0-0-0.00
Bill Henry, 0-0-0.00
Edgardo Figueroa, 0-0-0.00
Elijah Mora, 0-0-0.00
Elizmar Jeremias, 0-0-0.00
Francisco Morales, 0-0-0.00
Zach Miles, 0-0-0.00
Anthony Lyons, 0-0-0.00
Ricky Aguiar, 0-0-0.00
Brennon Eldred, 0-0-0.00
Garrion Hull, 0-0-0.00
Devin Hutchinson, 0-0-0.00
Adilson Junior, 0-0-0.00
Mason Ward, 0-0-0.00
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
