21-straight weekends of man vs. beast action begin in St. Louis, Missouri, Dec. 7-8.
By James Youness
FORT WORTH, Texas – We’ve had tons of reasons to be thankful for the Thanksgiving weekend break and some time to reflect on the other treasures in our lives.
But we’ve got a dozen more reasons why we’re thankful Unleash The Beast action returns this weekend in St. Louis, Missouri, Dec. 7-8 as the best bull riders on planet Earth prepare for 21-straight weekends of man vs. beast competition.
And when you sit atop the premier series pack two weeks into the grand chase, things start and end with you. Ahead of Week 3’s showcase inside Enterprise Center, that man is 19-year-old John Crimber, who stormed into the season-opener in Tucson, Arizona, and won just his second-ever Unleash The Beast event title.
Yet, it’s his uncharacteristic 0-for-2 slate back in Ontario, California, which continues to serve as his most recent piece of work. Knowing how dedicated and talented the kid is, and understanding he’s officially set his goal of becoming the 2025 PBR World Champion means he’s 100% bound to bounce back this weekend in St. Louis.
Paired up against Mighty Mike during what should be the final out of Saturday night’s opening round, Crimber prepares to dance his way onto the leaderboard as he looks to continue to extend his lead over the likes of Jose Vitor Leme, Dalton Kasel and company.
Several of the tour’s regulars have enjoyed racking up some early-season points as they get back into the swing of things. But with several guys returning from respective injury designations, international travel and beyond, fans will be greeted by a few familiar faces when Round 1 rolls around.
Specifically, Brady Fielder, who’s coming off an extremely productive 2024 calendar year.
Following up a career-best No. 8 UTB finish last spring as he continues to take the necessary steps towards earning a World Championship, Fielder recently captured the PBR Camping World Team Series’ first-ever Great 8 Award after finishing the 5-on-5 season as the most efficient ride around.
Primed for a rematch Saturday night against an old friend in Mahan, Fielder will look to make his 2025 debut in high-flying fashion. Originally besting the bovine athlete for a sound 86.75-point ride during the 2024 PBR Teams Championship, the Down Under representative has a very good chance of staring things off on the right boot.
Fielder won’t be the only cowboy getting back into the swing of things, as both Wingson Henrique da Silva and Vitor Losnake are also set to respectively participate in their first outs of the season after missing the first two events due to injury.
Losnake, who got banged up back in July during a Challenger Series showcase in Big Sky, Montana, has been healing up for the past four-plus months as he’s awaited the doctor’s green light. Having drawn a date with Bruised Ego, will the skilled Brazilian be able to make the 8 during his return to the premier series?
The same can be asked about Silva, who hasn’t competed professionally since being eliminated during the camaraderie-driven league’s most recent postseason gauntlet inside T-Mobile Arena.
We’ve seen the 25-year-old flash in and out of sincere standing over the past few years, which includes seeing the lanky rider earn his career-high No. 4 finish during the 2023 UTB slate.
However, after logging just two attempts during the 2024 PBR Camping World Team Series season, it’s fair to wonder how rusty Silva will be when he climbs aboard Top Dollar midway through the opening round.
Daniel Keeping will also be back atop the chutes this weekend. Having last competed via international spiciness alongside his Texas Rattlers’ teammate in Fielder, eventually taking home a No. 5 finish during the 2024 PBR Australia Grand Finals, we know what Keeping is capable of. We just have to see which version of the mustached man shows up to kick his season off.
Ending his summer stretch ranked No. 14 in the 2024 PBR Teams MVP race, he remains a potent competitor any time he approaches the dirt. But if he’s to make some season-long noise, he’ll need to drum up some momentum in Week 3 to start chasing down the likes of Crimber and company.
2025 PBR Unleash The Beast Global Standings: 1. John Crimber (182 points) 2. Dalton Kasel (149.5 points) 3. Jose Vitor Leme (147.5 points) 4. Andrew Alvidrez (110.75 points) 5. Koltin Hevalow (98.63 points) 6. Lucas Divino (84.5 points) 7. Dawson Branton (66.88 points) 8. Mason Taylor (63.5 points) 9. Eduardo Aparecido (61.5 points) 10. Nick Tetz (48.5 points)
Lineups and draw are in for the third of 23 regular season Unleash The Beast showdowns, so we’re taking a closer look at Saturday night’s matchups, rematches and everything you need to know ahead of the weekend’s opening slate of games!
With the premier series circuit set to invade St. Louis, Missouri, Dec. 7-8, we’re breaking down starting lineups for competition inside Enterprise Center (With coverage set to begin at 8 p.m. CT via PBR’s YouTube channel and Ride Pass on Pluto TV).
PBR ST. LOUIS STARTING LINEUPS Daniel Keeping vs. Big X *Mauricio Gulla Moreira vs. Chupacabra Paulo Henrique da Silva vs. Short Fire Alex Cerqueira vs. Rombauer *Sandro Batista vs. Rockville Cort McFadden vs. Say Your Prayers Bob Mitchell vs. Money Maker Heiter Santos Ferreira vs. Bangarang Clay Guiton vs. Southern Style Adriano Salgado vs. Count Down Marco Rizzo vs. Duffy Vitor Losnake vs. Bruised Ego Alan de Souza vs. Air Marshall Dener Barbosa vs. Casper *Brady Fielder vs. Mahan JaCauy Hale vs. God Bless America Austin Richardson vs. Drago Derek Kolbaba vs. Sam’s Shot Julio Cesar Marques vs. Smoke City Joao Ricardo Vieira vs. What’s Poppin Thiago Salgado vs. Damaged Goods Kaiden Loud vs. Old Testament Rogerio Venancio vs. Homeboy Anderson de Oliveira vs. Bad Intentions *Paulo Eduardo Rossetto vs. Simon Keyshawn Whitehorse vs. Knucklehead *Leonardo Castro vs. Slingin’ It Elizmar Jeremias vs. My Bad Wingson Henrique da Silva vs. Top Dollar Kaique Pacheco vs. Skippy Dustin Martinez vs. Creedmore Precision Sage Steele Kimzey vs. High Ball Boudreaux Campbell vs. Ruthless Claudio Montanha Jr. vs. Body Roc Luciano De Castro vs. Show Off Nick Tetz vs. Bobby Bones *Eduardo Aparecido vs. Wild Card Mason Taylor vs. I’ll Make Ya Famous Dawson Branton vs. Bad Bob Koltin Hevalow vs. Cowboy Train Andrew Alvidrez vs. Buffalo Heifer Lucas Divino vs. Gravedigger Jose Vitor Leme vs. Windmill Dalton Kasel vs. Fringe Minority John Crimber vs. Mighty Mike *Denotes Rematch
REMATCHES Brady Fielder vs. Mahan (86.75 points in Las Vegas, Nevada) Eduardo Aparecido vs. Wild Card (87.75 points in Albuquerque, New Mexico; 88.5 points in Billings, Montana) Leonardo Castro vs. Slingin’ It (3.33 seconds in Las Vegas, Nevada; 84 points in Louisville, Kentucky) Mauricio Gulla Moreira vs. Chupacabra (89 points in Fort Worth, Texas) Paulo Eduardo Rossetto vs. Simon (2.78 seconds in Milwaukee, Wisconsin; 3.51 seconds in Indianapolis) Sandro Batista vs. Rockville (89 points in Las Vegas, Nevada)
OUT DUE TO INJURY/OTHER Casio Dias (injury) Kyler Oliver (injury) Eduardo Matos (excused) Cody Jesus (excused) Ramon de Lima (declined) Felipe Furlan (declined)
FOLLOW ALONG This weekend’s PBR St. Louis Presented by Michelob ULTRA showcase in St. Louis, Missouri, is set to begin Saturday, Dec. 7 at 7:45 p.m. CT as the best bull riders in the world prepare to compete inside of Enterprise Center.
With competition set to conclude Sunday, Dec. 8 at 1:45 p.m. CT with Round 2, followed by the Championship go, the quest to earn the 2025 PBR World Championship continues in the Midwest!
Complete tune-in information for this weekend’s PBR St. Louis showcase can be found here.
Fans can keep an eye on PBR.com and @PBR social media channels for the latest news, scores, wrecks and more!
