PUEBLO, Colo. — With the PBR Camping World Team Series preparing to officially cross into the second half of the summer series slate this weekend in Springfield, Missouri, just two teams sit above the .500 mark ahead of Week 7.

Which makes it pretty clear the No. 1 Carolina Cowboys and No. 2 Kansas City Outlaws have figured some things out …

… while reminding fans just how close the other eight units are in both the league standings and when it comes to talent, in general.

The hometown No. 3 Austin Gamblers broke the league’s streak of teams winning two games during their respective homestand, eventually bouncing back on Sunday afternoon to end the weekend 1-2. Exiting the showcase as one of two teams with a 7-7 record, the green and black contingent knows they have more to offer, but just haven’t been on the same page as much as we’re used to seeing.

But at the same time, they’re doing what they need to survive until the postseason.

And it could be much, much worse.

Rocking the tour’s longest current win streak and tying both the Gamblers and Cowboys for the longest of the 2024 campaign, the Outlaws turned in a flashy 2-0 record, thus extending their streak to five-straight while J.W. Hart’s unit continues looking like one of league’s top teams once again.

And if Cassio Dias keeps riding like he has been, they’re 100% championship contenders come the fall.

For the No. 4 Nashville Stampede, who can’t seem to shake their roller coaster season, the ride continued in Week 6, with the team ultimately dropping both of its contests, albeit still 7-7 on the season.

Head Coach Justin McBride has seen his team flash on and off over the first half of the season. As long as they can collect a win for each of their losses here to round out the season, they’ll very much be dancing inside T-Mobile Arena.

From there it’s been, and continues to be, about who wants it most, as the six other teams are separated by merely two wins, with the (6-7) Florida Freedom at the five spot and sliding (4-9) Arizona Ridge Riders currently living in the basement.

Six regular season events are in the books, which means at least six opportunities remain for teams to storm into any given market and make it known they’re the best at doing their jobs.

And while the league’s bottom-four ranked teams will get at least one additional opportunity to showcase their skills come season’s end (with the Top 6 squads automatically punching their ticket to the 2024 PBR Teams Championship and bottom 4 forced to duke it out at the “win or go home” showdown inside South Point Casino, Hotel & Spa, which will ultimately determine the postseason tournament’s final two competitors), they’d be wise to mix things up here over the back stretch if they want to stay out of said territory.

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Thankfully for each of those eight teams who find themselves at or below the .500 mark, they’re surrounded by seven other teams who are smack-dab in the middle of the exact same, drama-fueled sprint in hoping to get a chance to win it all in Las Vegas Oct. 18-20.

We’re used to seeing quite a dramatic set of events play out within the thrilling 5-on-5 format.

Typically, though, the drama tends to ramp up closer to the end of the regular season. Which has been far from reality in 2024, as teams continue to bounce up and down the standings as the parity-driven league is alive and well.

RELATED: #InCaseYouMissedIt: Cowboys continue dominant season at Gambler Days

With the seventh of 12 regular season showdowns quickly approaching, the camaraderie-driven action continues this weekend inside Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield, Missouri, with all of this summer’s action set to air on Merit Street and the Merit+ App, continuing Friday night at 8 p.m. CT.

Fans can stay tuned to the league’s official 2024 PBR Camping World Teams Series standings here throughout the action-packed season and are encouraged to share their own rankings with us on @PBR social media channels!

No. 1: Carolina Cowboys (Week 6 Rank: No. 1) The Carolina Cowboys may have suffered their first loss of the season but they’re still easily the league’s darlings. Especially when you consider the team they lost to was the trending Outlaws. Throw in the fact that Jerome Davis’ squad bounced back with the circuit’s fourth-ever perfect game on Sunday, now the third-highest scoring game in PBR Teams history, and it’s easy to see why the 11-1-1 Cowboys remain atop both the official league standings and Week 7 power rankings. Daylon Swearingen turned in a productive 2-for-2 effort while maintaining his No. 9 spot in the PBR Teams MVP race. Knowing Cooper Davis (No. 3; 9-for-13) and Sage Steele Kimzey (No. 4; 9-for-12) are within the Top 10 as well, it makes an easy case as to why Carolina is public enemy No. 1 at the season’s midpoint. With their homestand coming up here next month, things seem to be just fine for Carolina right now.

No. 2: Kanas City Outlaws (Week 6 Rank: No. 2) Turning in a perfect 2-0 record in Austin, Texas, en route to extending their red-hot win streak to five in a row, the Kansas City Outlaws are the hottest team on tour right now. Hell, they were one of the spiciest teams coming into Week 6, bringing a three-game heater along with them. But with the 2024 PBR World Champion Cassio Dias seemingly returning to his typical elite form, the Cowboys need to keep winning should they want to continue enjoying that No. 1 rank.

One of just two men on the weekend to produce 3-for-3 efforts, Dias may have been slumping through the first half of August. But that’s long in the past, as he, Sandro Batista and rookie Calixto Maikon Rocha held down the fort in Week 6. Rocha was eventually ruled out due to injury, but his countryman in Heitor Santos Ferreira stepped in and stepped up on Saturday as Kansas City knocked off the Carolina Cowboys to stay perfect on the weekend. This is the definition of both a playoff squad and a team stringing things together at the right time of the season.

No. 3: Austin Gamblers (Week 6 Rank: No. 3) Somehow becoming the first time to win just one game during their respective homestand this season, the Gamblers turned in a 1-2 record and are now 2-4 in their last six contests. Which doesn’t really make much sense given how involved the team is with the greater Texas community and how packed and rowdy the arena seemed. But regardless of how much hoopla an organization contributes to their team-hosted events, they still have to show up and punch the clock. Eventually dropping games to the New York Mavericks and Texas Rattlers, which served as the second showdown in the rivals’ best-of-three Texas Cup showcase, the Gamblers thankfully found pay dirt on Sunday.

The goal for the green and black unit is winning it all inside T-Mobile Arena. And as they occupy the No. 3 spot in both the league standings and Week 7 power rankings, they’re still on track to meet said goals. That said, they’ll need to find some consistency in their lineup, including from stars Dalton Kasel and Kaique Pacheco, who combined for just a 1-for-6 slate in Austin.

No. 4: Nashville Stampede (Week 6 Rank: No. 4) The Stampede’s roller coaster keeps on keeping along as the blue and yellow squad continues to endure the highest highs and the lowest lows. Going 0-2 on the weekend as the “big wins, big losses” trend continues, the Stampede technically had scores on the board in both contests, which was not the case in two of the team’s past three losses, so Nashville will be ok this season. Especially if Cody Jesus keeps finding his footing with his fresh squad.

Officially on the board in Nashville and most recently Austin, Jesus has made the 8 in both of the league’s latest events. Which is a good sign for the veteran, as they also represent his only two conversions on the season so far. As long as he, Alan de Souza, Kaiden Loud, Silvano Alves and company can keep knocking them down regularly, Nashville will be riding this roller coaster right into Las Vegas, where they experienced quite the run back in 2022.

No. 5: Florida Freedom (Week 6 Rank: No. 8) Things hadn’t been trending very well for the Florida Freedom heading into Week 6. But after producing a fruitful 2-0 record last weekend via wins over the Nashville Stampede and the Arizona Ridge Riders, they have two more reasons to believe their shot at qualifying for the playoffs is alive and well. Veteran Alex Cerqueira joined Daylon Swearingen as the only athletes to post perfect 2-for-2 records. Elizmar Jeremias stepped up in helping to secure the big win over Nashville. And while the young kid in John Crimber only contributed a 55-point effort to help clinch the win on Sunday, he climbed back within one ride score of Jose Vitor Leme in the MVP Teams race. A good sign for both the Freedom as a unit and Crimber’s odds of chasing down the skilled Brazilian in the individual aggregate score race. Preparing to take on the Austin Gamblers, Kansas City Outlaws and Texas Rattlers this weekend at PBR Teams: Thunder Days, they’ll need to bring their A-game to the chutes in Missouri if they want to maintain the No. 5 spot!

No. 6: Texas Rattlers (Week 6 Rank: No. 9) It hasn’t been a perfect season for the 6-8 Texas Rattlers. But they have to be pretty happy sitting in the No. 6 spot after enduring their six-game losing streak earlier this summer. Now winners in four of their last five, they went 2-1 last weekend in their home state, albeit inside the home of their rival Austin Gamblers. Besting both the Gamblers and Oklahoma Wildcatters after dropping an opening night go against the Outlaws, they nearly managed a perfect 3-0, but came up just four points short during their 2-for-5 slate. Posting two rides the following night against Austin, it wasn’t the flashiest performance, but two beats zero every time, especially when Brady Fielder is able to team up with newcomer Claudio Montanha Jr. for the win.

Just two games back from the .500 mark, the Rattlers have plenty of firepower to tap despite seeing Brady Oleson get roughed up on Friday. Bringing the third-highest team aggregate score (2169 points, trialing only Kansas City and Carolina), they’ve showcased their deep roster throughout the season. The defending PBR Teams Champions just have to take things five bulls at a time, though, if they want to ensure their spot at the 2024 PBR Teams Championship.

No. 7: Missouri Thunder (Week 6 Rank: No. 7) Just like the Rattlers, the Thunder were able to bring some good momentum into the weekend while walking out of Moody Center feeling pretty good, all things considered. Ending the session 1-1 on the weekend, Missouri secured a tight win over the Stampede 174.75-173.5, but it doesn’t matter how you get it done these days. And it’s always good to beat the teams sitting above you in the standings. However, after suffering a no-score effort Sunday, we can’t put them higher than the No. 7 spot despite the team’s recent success. Now 3-2 over their last five, they have a Show Me State showdown looming this weekend against the No. 2 Kansas City Outlaws. And if Paulo Eduardo Rossetto can keep knocking them down left and right, now a team-best 8-for-14 and ranked No. 7 in the MVP standings, they’ll have a sincere shot at beating the Outlaws Friday.

No. 8: New York Mavericks (Week 6 Rank: No. 10) Any time one of your riders is recognized alongside 2024 PBR World Champion Casio Dias means they sure were doing something right. That was exactly the case for Mauricio Moreira, who matched Dias in being the only men to post perfect 3-for-3 efforts inside Moody Center. Up to No. 16 in the MVP race and officially 5-for-13 on the season, each of his conversions came during the month of August following his slow start back in July. Now succeeding in four of his last seven efforts, he’s a big reason the Mavericks continue to grit out some tough wins here in the middle of the season.

Going 2-1 in the showcase overall, there’s not much you can do when you run into the Carolina Cowboys. Especially when the league’s top dawgs produce a 5-for-5 showing. But quality wins over the hometown Austin Gamblers and the Oklahoma Wildcatters are a good sign that the year one squad is figuring this thing out.

No. 9: Oklahoma Wildcatters (Week 6 Rank: No. 6) Sitting one spot ahead of the Thunder’s Rossetto is another skilled Brazilian who fans may not have assumed would be this high in the MVP standings at this point of the season, in Eduardo Matos. Leading the way for his Oklahoma Wildcatters during their inaugural season via his 8-for-14 record, the 22-year-old couldn’t have landed with a team better suited to grow as he does. Knowing Cort McFadden, Clay Guiton, Austin Richardson have yet to reach their prime as youthful, up and coming stars means Oklahoma could be set up for years to come. However, just 5-8 on the season after going 1-2 in Austin, they need J.B. Mauney and company to switch some things up as they continue to endure quite the slide down the standings. Riding a nasty 1-6-1 stretch here dating back to PBR Teams: Freedom Days, the brown and blue newcomers need to get back in the win column.

No. 10: Arizona Ridge Riders (Week 6 Rank: No. 5) We’re not exactly sure what to make of the Arizona Ridge Riders right now, the league’s only team who’s qualified for Championship Sunday showdowns in each of the first two PBR Teams Championship gauntlets. But that appears to be far from the case as things sit right now. Several teams have taken their turn rotating to the bottom of this year’s standings and power rankings but none have had the amount of talent on their roster that Arizona has. Then again each of the league’s 10 teams seem to be figuring things out at the midway point here, so somebody has to occupy the No. 10 spot. Turning in an unfortunate 0-2 record in Austin, they officially tied the Texas Rattlers for the longest slide of the season courtesy of their current six-game losing streak. Eduardo Aparecido, quickly chasing down his 400th premier series conversion, stood out in a big way via his flashy 91-point dance. And while Bruno Carvalho delivered at the end of the game, Arizona still came up 1.25 points short, dropping the bout to Oklahoma.

Keyshawn Whitehorse added an 89.25-point during their Sunday showdown, but it wasn’t enough to take down the three-ride Freedom. They have plenty of time to bounce back and make a quick leap up the standings, considering how the pack is laid out this week. But they need to start that climb sooner than later if they want to secure a spot in Las Vegas.

Fans are encouraged to share their feedback and power rankings of their own by tagging @PBR social media channels!

Summer supporters can also stay tuned to PBR.com and Merit Street platforms as we dive into the league’s power rankings, one week at a time!

Photo courtesy of Todd Brewer/Bull Stock Media