FORT WORTH, Texas – As the 2024 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) World Finals: Unleash The Beast – Championship got underway Saturday evening inside AT&T Stadium, teenage phenom John Crimber (Decatur, Texas) inched closer to his dream of becoming the youngest PBR World Champion in history. Crimber posted a ride in Round 1 to gain ground on No. 1 Cassio Dias (Sao F. de Sales, Brazil), who was shut out as he returned from injury.

Dias was the talk of the Western community as the season’s dominant rider prepared for his out Saturday inside the home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys. During Round 3 of Eliminations roughly one week prior, Dias was slammed down and stepped on, then transported to the hospital after sustaining a multitude of injuries. After obtaining the necessary medical clearances, in true cowboy form, Dias returned to the lineup, keen to conclude his season with a PBR World Championship. In his return, Dias donned a special article of apparel, wearing the chaps of the late Lane Frost.

Crimber was first to take to the chutes among the duo, initially tasked with Doze You Down (Dozier Cattle Co./Martinez Bucking Bulls). While dispatched before the requisite 8, Crimber was awarded a re-ride.

However, before the 18-year-old sensation retook the chutes, it was Dias’s turn to attempt his first bovine athlete opponent inside AT&T Stadium. While Dias was initially centered atop Mike’s Motive (Blake Sharp/High Voltage/Wetzel/Knott), he was ultimately unseated at the 7.64-second mark.

Crimber then capitalized on the open door. Next taking on Skippy (Skippy & Linda Johnson/Hookin’ W Ranch), Crimber matched the powerful bovine athlete jump-for-jump, making the whistle with ease. He was awarded 88 points, the fourth-best score of Round 1.

The 8-second effort, which netted Crimber 40 Unleash The Beast points, coupled with Dias’s buckoff, allowed the young gun to climb within 447.5 points of his fellow Brazilian after first stepping foot inside AT&T Stadium 487.5 points behind the No. 1 spot.

Following Round 1, both Crimber and Dias stumbled in Round 2. After Crimber was thrown off the side of Fierce’s Dirtnap (Blake Sharp/UB Bucking Co./Fierce Firearms) in a swift 0.88 seconds, Dias was bested by Big Chew (Hillcrest Bucking Bulls/Gene Baker/Richardson Land & Cattle Co.) in 3.05 seconds.

With both riders bucking off, the standings went unchanged, and No. 1 Dias will begin Championship Sunday with a 447.5-point lead over No. 2 Crimber. One rider has the chance to earn 578 Unleash The Beast points on the final day of the Championship, including ride-score points.

While No. 3 Eduardo Aparecido (Gouvelandia, Brazil) and No. 4 Dalton Kasel (Muleshoe, Texas) both began the PBR World Finals – Championship still in contention for the coveted gold buckle, their showings in the opening two rounds were not enough to keep them in the title race.

While Aparecido rebounded from a 1.75-second buckoff dealt to him by Hunter (Dozier Cattle Co./Martinez Bucking Bulls) in Round 1 with an 89-point ride atop John 14:6 (Jenkins Cattle Co./CIL Cattle) in Round 2, the 42 Unleash The Beast points he earned were not enough to keep the pace needed to climb the standings. He’ll begin Round 3 644.33 points behind No. 1 Dias.

Kasel also went 1-for-2. The charismatic Texan came down in a close 7.25 seconds aboard Manaba (Joe & Nina Webb/Julian/D&H Cattle Co.) in Round 1, only to then conquer Down Payment (Joe & Nina Webb/Zane Walker/BS Cattle Co.) for 89 points in Round 2. While he garnered 42 Unleash The Beast points, he is now only within 709.33 points of No. 1 Dias.

Despite being eliminated from the World Championship race, both Aparecido and Kasel are in contention for the World Finals event win, locked in a four-way tie for fourth alongside Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil) and Caden Bunch (Tahlequah, Oklahoma).

Pacheo and Bunch also both rebounded from Round 1 buckoffs with 89-point scores in Round 2, riding I’m Legit Too (Hart Cattle Co./Hale) and Hundred Bad Days (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.), respectively.

Atop the leaderboard for the World Finals event standings is Thiago Salgado (Navirai, Brazil), who logged just the second 90-point ride of bull riding’s most prestigious event to surge to the lead.

RELATED: Salgado leads World Finals event aggregate with Fielder hot on his heels

Salgado was dispatched by Whiskey Trip (Lari Crane/Gene Owen) in 1.68 seconds in Round 1 but returned in resilient form in Round 2. Tasked with Renegade (Hale/Vela/Ogden/Hart), Salgado was a near picture of perfection aboard the bull, converting for a monstrous 90 points. In addition to 89 Unleash The Beast points, the 8 seconds of work earned Salgado $50,000, the highest-paying World Finals round purse in history.

Brady Fielder (Clermont, Queensland, Australia) also earned a check for $50,000 Saturday evening by winning Round 1 of the PBR World Finals – Championship via an 89.75-point ride on Hoka Hey (Blake Sharp/Chris Utz/Carey Brothers).

Elsewhere in the event, Cort McFadden (Novice, Texas) took on Dana White’s Twisted Steel (Dana White/DD Bucking Bulls) in a $100,000 bounty matchup.

By drawing the prized bovine athlete of UFC President Dana White, if McFadden made the requisite 8, PBR and White would award him $50,000 while also presenting BMF Kids Camp Foundation a check for $50,000. BMF Kids Camp Foundation is the organization launched by retired UFC fighter Cowboy Cerrone, who had been scheduled to attempt Twisted Steel tonight in a promotional ride before tearing his bicep off the bone in a practice session. However, if McFadden bucked off Twisted Steel, the entire $100,000 would be donated to BMF Kids Camp Foundation.

Undeterred by the stakes, McFadden became just the sixth rider in 42 outs to cover the powerful bull, marked 87 points to earn the $50,000 bounty. The score also positioned McFadden, who bucked off Snap Chatter (Flying S Bucking Bulls/Dozier) in 3.35 seconds in Round 2, eleventh on the World Finals event leaderboard.

Saturday night also featured the final round of competition for the 2024 Women’s Rodeo World Championship.

The fifth edition of the world's richest women's rodeo concluded with the event paying out more than $750,000. The event crowned four new event champions, each taking home a minimum of $60,000.

Kindyl Scruggs (Southaven, Mississippi) won the 2024 Women's Rodeo Barrel Racing event with a winning time of 15.384 seconds. In breakaway roping, 18-year-old Amy Ohrt (Victoria, Texas) had the fastest time of the evening, clocking a show-stopping 1.76 seconds to claim the golden finish. The team roping duo of Kenna Francis (Las Vegas, New Mexico), and Whitney Desalvo (Wilmar, Arizona) had fans on the edge of their seats with their remarkable 7.18-second time, which was the only qualified time of the evening. Since its launch in May 2020, the WRWC has awarded more than $3 million in prize money to women's rodeo athletes.

The 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast – Championship concludes with Round 3 and Round 4 on Sunday, May 19 at 1:45 p.m. CDT. Tickets are still available and can be purchased online at ATTStadium.com, SeatGeek.com and PBR.com/WorldFinals, or by phone at 1-800-732-1727.

PBR RidePass on Pluto TV will offer re-airs and on-demand replays of every PBR Unleash The Beast event. PBR RidePass is available on desktops, laptops and mobile devices via www.pluto.tv. Click here for on-demand PBR programming.

Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media