LAS VEGAS – Seeing the final day of 2024 PBR Teams Championship action start with five consecutive qualified rides meant the crowd inside T-Mobile Arena was engaged early and often.

However, it was how the afternoon slate ended which will forever be engrained in PBR Teams history, as the Austin Gamblers concluded the epic season-culminating showcase by being crowned the 2024 PBR Teams Champions.

Once the Third Place Game came to a conclusion, the final contest of the season featured its own spicy start, witnessing four qualified rides to begin the action-packed Championship Game.

Which makes ton of sense, as the Gamblers were coming off a stunning perfect game performance and the Carolina Cowboys were bringing some endgame momentum of their own into the duel.

The rider to truly get the party started for the eventual tournament-topping contingent?

2018 World Champion Kaique Pacheco – the very man Austin went “all in” for some six months ago.

Leading the way with an electric 88-pointer aboard Ah Hell, he improved to a stunning 4-for-5 on the weekend as he reminded fans of his championship-caliber skillset.

Setting his Gamblers up in favorable position early, the all-star donned his “Ice Man” personality once more, absolutely freezing out the competition to put an icy cap on his star-studded performance.

All while justifying his team’s itch to acquire another star ahead of what became the franchise’s first-ever championship-earning campaign.

Director of Brazil Operations Adriano Moraes shared hugs or celebrations of some sort with each of his men that made the 8 Sunday, often times either running out onto the dirt or congratulating them once they arrived back atop the chutes.

When PBR.com talked to Moraes at the 2024 PBR World Finals, he seemed confident Pacheco was the perfect puzzle piece they needed. And … well, the three-time World Champion sure was right.

Following up with him on the dirt after his team celebrated to the nines, he reinforced the team's decision to bring the heavy-hitting veteran on board.

“Kaique is a force to be reckoned with. The last two or three years was pretty hard on him because he was hurt and he was trying to get back and be fully healed. We were patient enough and knew it was the right time and of course it wasn’t a gamble,” Moraes shared.

“Getting him was not a gamble at all. We knew what we were getting and he helped us tremendously to win this title. It was a smart move by (General Manager) JJ (Gottsch) and (Head Coach) Michael (Gaffney) and I’m so glad it happened.”

Acquiring the talent is one thing, forced to sacrifice a pair of young budding stars in Austin Richardson and Cort McFadden to the Oklahoma Wildcatters.

And hell, McFadden and Richardson may turn out to produce more qualified rides than Pacheco over the next few seasons in total. But Austin cashing in the pair of youngsters for an established veteran they believed would get them over the hump seems to have paid off already in year one.

Getting the star in Pacheco matched with fellow top-tier talent and in striking position is a whole other equation, as so many things needed to line up in order for this to sequence to play itself out.

But the Gamblers pulled it off in Sin City style. Late and desperate.

Despite capturing both of the tour’s first two regular season titles, the Gamblers weren’t able to take advantage of their opening night byes, bounced early on night two back in 2022 before coming up just short of the Texas Rattlers during last year’s 2023 Championship Game.

Things in 2024, thankfully for the green and black squad, played out a bit differently.

And in a year where they turned in a 13-15 regular season slate, it seems the bumps in the road were simply just part of their path.

Exiting the league’s first-ever 12-event regular season occupying the No. 5 rank merely played a part in which teams they would send to the train station throughout their historic run.

The Gamblers technically played a part in sending four different teams home after finding themselves competing against both of the Nashville Stampede and New York Mavericks in Friday's Last Chance Game.

Eventually taking care of business in their first opportunity on Saturday night, defeating the Carolina Cowboys during a 349.75-166, they found themselves with a Sunday afternoon showdown against the Kansas City Outlaws.

Pitted against the league’s top dawgs, who turned in a 19-9 regular season record en route to becoming the only other team (other than Austin) to secure a regular season championship, the Gamblers understood the pressure the orange and black unit would be riding with as the No. 1 seed. They’ve traversed those waters before.

The Gamblers and Outlaws teamed up to produce the second-highest game score in the 5-on-5 circuit’s three seasons of electricity. But it was the Gamblers and Cowboys who advanced to Sunday’s Championship Game knowing they were each five outs from glory.

And that a rematch loomed from Saturday’s initial showcase.

But we know how that one played out, eventually seeing Jose Vitor Leme put the closing touches on Austin’s 357.5-252.5 win over Carolina via yet another flashy finish.

We’ve all come to know Leme as “Champ” – and rightfully so, as the two-time World Champion and two-time PBR Teams MVP added yet another piece of hardware to his collection Sunday afternoon.

But the man who was there every step and ride of the way, contributing just as much?

Once again, Pacheco, who trailed Leme by a mere 4.25 aggregate score over the course of the weekend en route to joining Leme as a Top 5 contender in the event’s Championship MVP battle.

And for as important as Leme was to the team’s run, the Gamblers wouldn’t have been able to make their legendary run without him, as he was the lone man to convert for Austin during Friday’s Last Chance Game.

With the big win, Pacheco became the first man to collect two PBR Teams Championship buckles, having won the inaugural playoff tournament in 2022 with the Nashville Stampede.

After going 2-for-10 Friday as they climbed out of the depths of the Last Chance Game, the Gamblers showed up and showed out on Championship Sunday, ending the final day of competition with a combined 9-for-10 slate.

The key to turning things around? Often the reason many of the team’s riders point to the sky above following their performances.

“We prayed, that’s what we did,” Moraes concluded.

“When we struggled the first night, we relied on prayer. So we asked the Lord and our Mother Mary to help us, bless us, and let the guys ride with their full potential. And they blessed us. We’re just blessed.”

Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media