PBR Teams standouts set to lead the way into 2025 Unleash The Beast season debut
Breaking down PBR Tucson’s anticipated lineups through a PBR Teams lens.
By James Youness
FORT WORTH, Texas – Despite the 5-on-5 landscape providing another electric summer of action-packed bull riding to dedicated fans around the world during its third season of head-to-head showdowns, it’s time to turn the page from team-based fun back to the individual slate, as the 2025 Unleash The Beast campaign is set to begin Nov. 15-16 in Tucson, Arizona.
Fans who remain rather intrigued by the PBR Camping World Team Series and all of the camaraderie-driven action may be delighted to see those bright colored matching jerseys pop up a few more times before the fourth season of 5-on-5 action begins.
But that’s another story for another day!
In the meantime, we’re turning the page to the debut of yet another premier series campaign, as the best bull riders in the world are just two weeks away from reuniting inside Tucson Arena to kick off what should be another star-studded campaign.
While we’re leaving the PBR Teams scene in the dust as we round out the 2024 calendar year, it’s hard not to keep a bit of a squad-related lens on this year’s opening night pack of contenders.
Especially when only two guys currently in the starting lineups weren’t inked to a PBR Camping World Team Series unit in 2024. Of course, there’s plenty of time for things to change for Dustin Martinez and 2024 PBR Brazil Champion Rogerio Venancio, who stamped their ticket to the season-opener via favorable finishes in the Challenger Global standings.
That said, there’s also plenty of time for each of the circuit’s 10 teams to make trades, welcome newcomers via draft and ultimately mix up the personnel pool ahead of the 2025 slate.
When it comes to qualifying for event No. 1, there are various paths guys have travelled to get to this point, including being a World Champion or being ranked in the Top 15 of the 2024 PBR Teams MVP race/individual aggregate. The tour also is set to welcome the Top 5-ranked riders from 2024 Challenger Global standings and a few other top-performing cowboys from last season’s UTB standings.
With each of league’s 10 teams able to invite one rider per team, the starting lineup was filled up rather quickly after the conclusion of the 2024 PBR Teams Championship.
These competitors will get four events to prove they belong before the tour’s first set of cuts come after action ends in Wichita, Kansas, with guys roughly outside the No. 36 rank likely relegated back to Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour action (with the actual rank depending on a variety of factors, including injury or other exemptions).
Looking back at the 2024 UTB slate as a whole, it could easily be described as the year of the rookie, with guys like Cassio Dias, John Crimber, Clay Guiton, Cort McFadden and many others stamping their PBR passports with premier series action.
However, all of the youth in the world won’t make up for the fact that this year’s slate represents the first time in 15 years that PBR’s premier series won’t feature the likes of Nashville Stampede veteran and three-time World Champion Silvano Alves, who officially announced his retirement at the 2024 PBR Teams Championship.
While he shared that the 2024 campaign would be his last trip around bull riding’s top circuit, some believed a productive summer with Justin McBride and company might encourage him to give it another go. But with family on hand and tens of thousands of fans, riders and staff alike honoring him inside T-Mobile Arena, he’s officially hanging ‘em up.
But we wouldn’t be surprised if the veteran was still on top of the chutes, sharing wisdom and supporting the men he considers brothers from time to time throughout the season.
Surely, the Stampede aren’t the only group with a heavy-hitting veteran out of the picture during the PBR Camping World Team Series’ “offseason”.
2016 World Champion Cooper Davis, who just helped his Carolina Cowboys to a runner-up effort in Sin City, is set to sit out his second-straight UTB session, instead staying in the loop as a broadcast analyst during PBR’s weekly shows on Merit Street, CBS Television Network and PBR+.
Hell, several guys who are in regular rotations for one of the league’s 10 teams aren’t even beginning the season on UTB, instead forced to grind their way up to the big show via Velocity Global rankings.
With the PBR Tucson starting lineups currently featuring at least one rider from each of the 10 Camping World Team Series squads, fans, coaches and riders themselves repping one of the contingents suddenly have something more to ride for in 2024. Or will here, shortly.
Of course, this group represents the initial round of competitors, which could definitely change by the time mid-November rolls around. Guys are up in Canada getting some reps or down in Australia making some noise, with the PBR Australia Grand Finals (Nov. 1-2) and PBR Canada National Finals (Nov. 8-9) set to welcome cowboys from around the world in international fashion.
Some are staying loose at PBR Stockyards Showcase events in the legendary Cowtown Coliseum. Others are even out rodeoing or competing in their own smaller tier events. Anything to make sure they’re in shape for Nov. 15’s showcase in Tucson, Arizona.
Naturally, each of those outs come with a specific set of risks. So, while we’ll be sure to update this listicle as event week approaches, PBR.com is taking a look at which PBR Teams contingents will be best represented during the 2025 Unleash The Beast season debut!
Austin Gamblers: Jose Vitor Leme, Kaique Pacheco, Dalton Kasel, Paulo Henrique da Silva The 2024 PBR Teams Champs are slated to start the approaching UTB season with four guys in the draw. Three of which are annual world title contenders, including Jose Vitor Leme, Kaique Pacheco and Dalton Kasel. Three of the most important men who contributed to Austin’s trophy-raising campaign will very much be featured during the individual season once again after giving their all to finally get the green and black contingent into the winner’s circle.
And while we know what type of rank rides the trio will bring to the table, it’s the squad’s wild card in 19-year-old Paulo Henrique da Silva which may serve as a treat to the eyes of UTB supporters and Gamblers’ Head Coach Michael Gaffney alike. He wasn’t able to make the 8 in his lone appearance at the 2024 PBR Team Championship – But knowing what he’s accomplished down in Brazil since turning 18 leads us to believe he’s worth keeping an eye on throughout 2025.
Arizona Ridge Riders: Eduardo Aparecido, Keyshawn Whitehorse, Nick Tetz, Luciano De Castro, Dener Barbosa, Dener Barbosa If it seems weird that one of the two teams who didn’t even quality for the 2024 PBR Teams Championship is one of two teams most represented to start the 2025 UTB slate, that would be exactly the case, as the Arizona Ridge Riders are set to open to season with their entire starting lineup in the PBR Tucson draw despite exiting the league’s first-ever Ride-In Round without a spot in the postseason gauntlet. After serving as the only team to compete during the first two Championship Sunday showcases, the black and white squad saw their awkward season come to an end inside South Point Arena, which was quite the unexpected turn of events for Colby Yates and company. But that’s all in the past now, as the team’s established group of veterans are ready to begin their 2025 adventure with a fresh slate. And if Canadian sensation Nick Tetz can capture what would be his second PBR Canada title Nov. 8-9 in Edmonton, Alberta, he’d be bringing some well-welcomed momentum into Tucson Arena. Eduardo Aparecido, who just turned in a career-best No. 3 rank last season, look sot build on his team-leading figures from the summer as well.
Carolina Cowboys: Daylon Swearingen, Sage Steele Kimzey, Derek Kolbaba, Adriano Salgado As we mentioned, Cooper Davis would be 100% be in the lineup as well if he was interested. Instead opting to rest up and prepare to make another run with his Carolina Cowboys in 2025, the talent will watch on as his other four starting lineup mates kick off the season in Tucson. Daylon Swearingen will have an invite to the season-opener as long as he’s interested in the same right, as World Champions receive the automatic berth, should they accept. And while we’ve all witnessed the greatness Sage Steele Kimzey has provided in his first year on the PBR circuit, it’s a healthy Derek Kolbaba sighting that sticks out from the pack.
Seeing the Walla Walla, Washington, native return to action over the summer with a vengeance, it’s clear that he’s back feeling himself. Which could be a scary sight for any cowboy with world title aspirations. Adriano Salgado represents Carolina’s invite, who provided two of the rankest scores of the summer, let alone for the Cowboys. It's easy to see why this group was favored to complete their fall run and even easier to consider several of the checkered-flag riders contenders for the 2025 PBR World Championship.
Florida Freedom: John Crimber, Alex Cerqueira, Thiago Salgado (Tons of threes for the Florida Freedom lately, as they bring three guys into this year’s UTB slate after ending the third season of PBR Teams action ranked No. 3 in the regular season before eventually seeing their postseason come to an end during the Third Place Game at the 2024 PBR Teams Championship. And while the approaching UTB slate represents young star John Crimber’s third session of PBR electricity, it’s still just his second premier series campaign.
Coming up just short of eventual 2024 World Champion Cassio Dias during his first shot at the title, he’s very much expected to challenge Dias and company for the honors in 2025. With veteran Alex Cerqueira (one of many cowboys who took turns complementing Crimber’s elite presence during the summer slate) and Thiago Salgado joining him, he’ll have plenty of support from his red, white and blue teammates.
Kansas City Outlaws: Cassio Dias, Sandro Batista, Koltin Hevalow, Julio Cesar Marques, Heitor Santos Ferreira It shouldn’t be much of a surprise that the 2024 regular season champs have five guys set to start the season on the big boy tour. Trailing only the Arizona Ridge Riders and Oklahoma Wildcatters in total personnel set to open the tour in Tucson, five to Arizona and Oklahoma’s six, fans of the orange and black unit will have plenty to concentrate on in 2025. Obviously the defending World Champion in Cassio Dias comes to mind. But it’s the duo of Sandro Batista and Koltin Hevalow who have just as much a chance to make some noise early into this year’s season-long competition. Hell, Batista outperformed Dias during the third year of 5-on-5 action and Hevalow just turned in a career-best No. 10 rank during last season’s go. Knowing a pair of youngsters in Heitor Santos Ferreira and Julio Cesar Marques are getting the nod as well, with Ferreira being selected as Kansas City’s team invitee and Marques grinding his way in via Challenger Global standings, it’s clear this group enters the season with high expectations.
Missouri Thunder: Paulo Eduardo Rossetto, Boudreaux Campbell With just two members from its 2024 unit set to open the season on Unleash The Beast, the Missouri Thunder are set to have the least representation as things currently sit, with standout Paulo Eduardo Rossetto grinding his way into an invite via his exceptional performance over the summer and Boudreaux Campbell receiving the team’s invite to compete. Which isn’t too shocking, as the team spent a majority of its days wondering which of the team’s riders would be able to team up with Rossetto, the squad’s most consistent rider, on any given night. Sometimes it was Campbell. Other nights it was Andrew Alvidrez, Felipe Furlan and others, who are set to begin the slate within Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour competition. Historically speaking, Campbell has performed better in the individual season compared to PBR Teams events despite his oozing camaraderie and want to bring his team together, so fans can expect big things from the Crockett, Texas, native this season.
Nashville Stampede: Alan de Souza, Anderson de Oliveira, Kaiden Loud, Cody Jesus, Austin Richardson Featuring a pair of experienced veterans and a duo of up and coming youngsters, the Nashville Stampede have plenty of reasons to stay tuned into this year’s UTB season of thrills. The list here starts and ends with Kaiden Loud, as he’s been one of the flashiest cowboys around over the course of the past year-plus. When he’s healthy, that is. His slender frame helps him show off his bulls in a Dalton Kasel-esque way but at the same time keeps him susceptible to injuries. He wowed the crowds down in Fort Worth and Arlington, Texas, last spring during his PBR World Finals debut. So, if he’s rested up and ready to ride come the middle of the month, he’s 100% worth keeping an eye on. The same could be said for Alan de Souza, who was one of the top-performing cowboys from the 2024 premier series adventure as he returned to the scene in epic fashion. Regularly chipping in for the Stampede again this summer alongside youngster Anderson de Oliveira and the team’s invitee Cody Jesus, it’s easy to understand why the 2022 PBR Teams Champions believe they’ve still got plenty of pieces to build around for their run in 2025.
New York Mavericks: Leonardo Castro, Vitor Losnake, Marco Rizzo With Marco Rizzo and Vitor Losnake set to open the season with some injury exemption elbow room, fans of the New York Mavericks will be able to follow along with Leonardo Castro’s season after the team nominated the Brazilian to represent New York to start the 2025 slate. Which means just one man will look to lead the way for his Mavericks while looking to return to the elite status he flashed last season before eventually settling for a No. 17 finish. Losnake has found his way up and the down the standings over the past few years, even regulated to PWVT action at certain points, while Rizzo will look to stay healthy for the season after getting an idea of what UTB action feels like in 2024 before being forced into sitting out the remainder of the season with a lower-body injury.
Oklahoma Wildcatters: Eduardo Matos, Cort McFadden, Clay Guiton, Wingson Henrique da Silva, Kyler Oliver If it was weird that the Arizona Ridge Riders failed to qualify for the 2024 PBR Teams Championship despite having so many guys anticipated to compete on UTB this season, we’re not sure what to call the Wildcatters finding themselves on the same path, other than straight up weird. Now set to have five guys featured in premier series competition to begin the year after seeing Austin Richardson traded to the Nashville Stampede, it’s clear J.B. Mauney has assembled quite the pool of talent. However, be it UTB or PBR Teams, this sport requires stardom, exactly what guys like Clay Guiton, Eduardo Matos and Cort McFadden flashed during the 2024 5-on-5 season. A big key to getting the Wildcatters over the postseason hump next time around? Seeing these three take a step forward during their individual seasons while hoping Richardson, Oliver and Silva can heal up.
Texas Rattlers: Brady Fielder, Daniel Keeping, Joao Ricardo Vieira, Claudio Montanha Jr. For the most part, the list of cowboys set to give it a go are established talents or youngsters who have already proven they will soon be stars. So, figuring out where veteran Claudio Montanha Jr. fits into that equation continues to be a puzzle. But after seeing the 35-year-old crank things up a notch for the 2023 Champions from Texas, the Rattlers selected the tried and true rider as their invite for 2025 where he’ll look to keep things rolling alongside teammates in Brady Fielder, Daniel Keeping and Joao Ricardo Vieira. JRV and Fielder most recently turned in Top 13 finishes in 2024, with Fielder recording a career-best No. 8 ranking while his veteran counterpart managed a No. 13 effort.
Fans can stay tuned to PBR.com and @PBR social media channels throughout the next two weeks as we continue to put a cap on the 2024 PBR Camping World Team Series campaign while switching gears to the quickly approaching 2025 Unleash The Beast season!
