LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Cooper Tires PBR Louisville, presented by Pneu-Dart, is the final regular-season Unleash The Beast event, which means it’s crunch time in the world title race.
The 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast begins on May 9 in Fort Worth, Texas, but No. 4 Dalton Kasel is as laid-back as ever.
“I’m all ready,” Kasel said during Round 1 at the KFC Yum! Center. “I’ve thought about it and stuff, and I’ve just got to keep doing what I know how to do and not treat it like anything different. As hard as that is, and with as much on the line, but really, it is just another bull riding. Just more money and more points on the line. Just got to treat it as another bull riding.”
Kasel’s 2024 has been a tale of two seasons.
He’s competed in 18 events (Louisville is 19). In the first 10, he finished in the Top 5 just twice, going 8-for-21 (38%). In the subsequent eight, he’s placed in the Top 5 six times, including an event win in Indianapolis in March, and is 15-for-25 (60%).
His secret has been simply letting go of control.
“I think just trusting that the Lord has a plan with everything, and not worrying about what’s going on in the rest of the world and just allowing him to work through me,” Kasel said. “And it’s going to work out, whether I was supposed to be the 60th bull rider in the world or No. 1 bull rider in the world. It’s all in His plan, and I’m happy with whatever he’s got.”
Certainly, Kasel is pretty happy to be making the 8-second whistle. In Round 1 in Louisville, he did so aboard Tick for 85 points, good for fifth place heading into Championship Saturday (Sunday at 8 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network).
Unfortunately for him, No. 1 Cassio Dias finished third in Round 1 thanks to his 86.75-point effort on Let’s Roll.
Dias, who is chasing his seventh event win this season, is 499.33 points ahead of No. 2 Eduardo Aparecido.
“He won Sioux Falls, and it was like, ‘Cassio won another one,’” Kasel said with a good-natured shrug. “It’s one of those. It is what it is. He’s an amazing bull rider, and he’s kicking everybody’s butt. It’s plain as day, and it’s simple, and he’s the best bull rider going right now. I’m happy for him.”
Being able to laugh at the situation has been vital in trying to run Dias down these last few months.
“I think it’s just keeping it simple,” Kasel said. “I’m not overthinking each and every weekend because he does have such a far lead. It’s like, I’m not going to catch him this weekend, but I’m going to do what I can to catch him. So it’s one of those things – it doesn't add any pressure because it is so far ahead. I’m going to get closer to him this weekend or next weekend, but I’m not going to beat him this weekend. So it’s not a big pressure situation.”
Perhaps more pressure has come from the race between the Nos. 2-5 bull riders in the Unleash The Beast World Championship standings. Currently separated by a mere 61 points, Kasel, Aparecido, John Crimber and Alan de Souza have been jockeying for position each week.
In Louisville, Aparecido placed fourth in Round 1 with 85.75 points on Always Been Crazy to pass Crimber for the No. 2 rank again after he held it briefly earlier this month. (Aparecido was knocked out on the get-off and is doubtful for Round 2.) Kasel and Crimber have done their fair share of flip-flopping, and No. 5 Souza is fresh off of two consecutive event wins in Everett and Tacoma, Washington, rapidly closing the gap on the pack.
Before Louisville, Souza trailed Kasel in the standings by a single point.
“It’s almost like, ‘Who’s going to end up the second-best bull rider this weekend?’” Kasel said with a laugh. “It’s fun. It’s so close. If two guys get ahead of you, it’s like, ‘Big deal. I’ll get them next weekend.’ It’s been switching in and out each and every weekend, and it’s been a blast.”
Kasel, the 2019 PBR Rookie of the Year, still has designs on his first World Championship. And, with more than 1,000 points available at the World Finals, the door is definitely open for a come-from-behind win.
All he has to do is keep it simple.
“Try to win. Try to stay on,” Kasel said. “That’s all I’ve come up with, and I think that’s all you can do, because you can’t expect (Dias) to fail.”
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
