TUCSON, Ariz. – A few days ago, Sage Kimzey received a text from Jose Vitor Leme.

The two-time PBR World Champion had attached a picture of the two from the Monster Energy Team Challenge during the summer of 2020, when they, along with Stetson Lawrence and Keyshawn Whitehorse, formed Team Cooper Tires and ran the table to take home the title.

“Let’s do it again,” Leme said.

The text came after Kimzey made waves as perhaps the biggest free agent signing in PBR Camping World Team Series history, inking a deal with Leme’s Austin Gamblers.

After two seasons, the 2023 No. 1 draft pick departs the Carolina Cowboys for the league’s reigning champion.

“I’m super excited about being with the Gamblers for next season,” Kimzey said. “I loved my time at Carolina, all the guys, and the organization was great to me, but I’m definitely excited about the future.”

Joining forces with a rider of Leme’s caliber, as well as 2018 World Champion Kaique Pacheco and 2019 Rookie of the Year Dalton Kasel, is a big part of what Kimzey is excited about.

He hopes his time in black and green goes better for him than his time on Team Cooper Tires.

“It was pretty rough for me because I was just coming off ankle surgery during that deal, so my performance and my experience wasn’t the greatest at that,” he said with a laugh. “But any time you get to be around a real, top, elite guy like Jose – he’s one of the greatest ever for a reason, and I think at the end of the day, it’s going to make all of us rise to the occasion and ride our bulls better.”

The seven-time PRCA bull riding world champion is coming off a strong season for the Cowboys, going 13-for-26 (50%) as the squad dominated most of the regular season and made it all the way to the championship game against the Gamblers.

“All the guys on Carolina are super close, and our locker room was probably some of the tightest-knit group of guys that I’ve ever been a part of, which was incredible,” Kimzey said. “And obviously, the coaches were great, management was great. But yeah, moving forward into this season, you have multiple World Champions on your team, just like we did at Carolina. I’m really looking forward to getting to work with Jose and Kaique and Dalton, of course, and having G-Man (Michael Gaffney) and Adriano (Moraes) as the coaches, JJ (Gottsch) as our general manager. I’m super excited.”

As he leaves that tight-knit locker room, Kimzey appreciates the ride the Cowboys went on in 2024, even though they ultimately fell short of the world’s biggest gold buckle.

“It was a blast,” he said. “We started out with a 12-game unbeaten streak, I think the longest in league history. It was really fun. We got to learn and grow as a team and as individuals along the way. It was a really fun time, and it’s memories I’ll cherish forever. It’s just what a great group of guys and what a great organization it is.”

Despite loving his time in Carolina blue, when his contract expired at the end of the 2024 PBR Teams season, Kimzey was eager to experience free agency and get to shop around.

“I think that’s the great thing about the Teams league and free agency in general,” Kimzey said. “It kind of gives you a time to go and talk to all the teams and see what the best fit is for you. I definitely was excited about it, and I exercised that.”

But the 2025 PBR Teams season doesn’t start until July. Right now, the focus is on the 2025 Unleash The Beast season, which began this weekend at the PBR Tucson in Tucson, Arizona.

Kimzey went 1-for-2 for a 13^th-place finish at the season-opener, riding Whiskey Trip for 89 points to place third in Round 1. In Round 2, he was bucked off by Foul Motion in 5.01 seconds.

“Really nice bull,” Kimzey said of Whiskey Trip. “He usually kind of backs up around to the left, jumps forward and goes back to the right. He’s kind of got a tricky move right out of the chute, so I knew it was going to be really important for me to leave there with him good. Didn’t leave there with him perfect, but got him picked up and it was pretty smooth after that. He kind of threw a little changeup halfway through, and I just kind of had to bear down and get the job done.”

After missing all but 12 regular-season events last season due to injury, Kimzey has been on a roll. He won the 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast – Championship last May before riding at a 50% clip for the juggernaut Cowboys in the summer and fall.

It finally seems like he has momentum on his side.

But rather than momentum, Kimzey is happy to have something else going for him.

“The main thing I have on my side right now is health,” he said. “The toughest thing in this sport is staying healthy. Right now, I’m feeling great, body feels great, and I’m ready to go after another one.”

That pursuit continues next weekend at the PBR Ontario in Ontario, California, on Nov. 23-24. Action begins Saturday, Nov. 23, at 10 p.m. ET on RidePass on Pluto TV and the PBR's YouTube channel.

A World Finals event title is nice to have, but Kimzey won’t be satisfied until he has a PBR gold buckle to go with his seven PRCA titles.

“A World Championship is what all of us in this locker room are gunning after, and I’m no different,” Kimzey said. “If it doesn’t end in gold, it’ll be a disappointment, that’s for sure.”

Photo courtesy of Bull Stock Media