AUSTIN, T.X. — The Austin Gamblers signed seven-time PRCA World Champion Sage Steele Kimzey, the team announced today. 

The first overall pick in the 2023 PBR Teams New Rider Draft, Kimzey went 13-for-23 (56.52%) for the Carolina Cowboys during the 2024 regular season. Riding in the closer role and frequently taking on the team’s most challenging animal athlete opponents, Kimzey led the Cowboys with four 90-point rides, helping propel them to an 18-9-1 record. 

“Sage Kimzey is one of the most decorated athletes in all of Western Sports,” said Gamblers General Manager J.J. Gottsch. “We understand that the only thing harder than winning a title is defending one, and adding Sage to our roster will give us the best chance to do that.”

The veteran has long emphasized the mental aspects of bull riding and sports, earning the nickname “the Professor” for his approach and mentality. He joins the defending 2024 PBR Teams Champion Austin Gamblers’ already stacked roster, featuring Two-Time PBR World Champion and Two-Time PBR Teams MVP Jose Vitor Leme, 2019 Rookie of the Year Dalton Kasel, and the 2018 PBR World Champion and only Two-Time PBR Teams World Champion, Kaique Pacheco.

Kimzey, born in Oklahoma to a family of ranchers and rodeo cowboys, currently resides in Salado, less than an hour north of Austin, with his son Steele Randall Kimzey, and his wife, Alexis. The couple announced they are expecting a second child during the PBR Teams season. 

Photo courtesy of Todd Brewer/Bull Stock Media