No. 12 Koltin Hevalow piecing things together as 21-year-old nearly cracks Top 10 in Indy
Joining Andrew Alvidrez as the only other man to go 3-for-3, the Kansas City Outlaws’ stud is heating up.
By James Youness
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – When your patented celebration involves taking a bow, it’s understood you take pride in your craft as a performer.
When you ride all three of your bulls and turn in a runner-up effort in chilly Indianapolis, Indiana – the best of your season – you enjoy all three of those bows.
And your new spot in the Top 15!
Exactly what Koltin Hevalow was up to Saturday night inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse after earning a welcome 82 UTB points and a check for $21,862 courtesy of his No. 2 finish.
Trailing the showcase’s eventual winner, Andrew Alvidrez, by 6.5 points in the overall aggregate – It wasn’t quite a heartbreaking, close call for the 21-year-old. After all, we saw the veteran in Alvidrez rip off a career-high 92.5-pointer during another electric short round.
But when you consider Hevalow’s conversion aboard Doze You Down was the youngster’s first qualified ride in a championship round on the year, a little perspective, and a good attitude, can go a long way.
“Gosh dang, you know? I kind went on a downfall and struggled there for a few weeks. In Houston, Doze You Down, I ended up getting on him for a re-ride and that kind of built my spirit up, you know?,” Hevalow said, reflecting on his mid-season reset and dancing with the very bull he bested once more Saturday night.
“Riding something that isn’t so easy to ride and something that everybody likes because he bucks hard – that made me feel pretty good there and it kind of built my energy up.”
Of course, in order to punch a ticket to his fourth exclusive go this season, he had to rack up a pair of conversions, which could be credited to his strong finish just the same.
Now perfect in each of his past four long rounds, combining his eventual 2-for-3 slate in Salt Lake City, Utah, with his flawless performance this past weekend in Indianapolis, he also credited some work in the practice pen after he exited the tour’s stop in Sacramento, California, with some added frustrations.
“I was going through a bad spot. I went home and I was struggling, fighting my own brain. Finally I just went back to things that were working. Nothing was broke, just fix it and keep the right mindset and right energy. A couple people sent me some bible verses – my girlfriend, LeeAnne Hart, they kind of stood there and backed me up a little bit. Edward Martinez brought some bulls over and I got on three back-to-back-to-back. No break, just sweating. Got on them and just fought through the pain and the hard times, you could say, and got it built back up,” he detailed.
“After Sacramento, I went home and Edward was planning to bring bulls – and I wasn’t kidding around. I got on some and took a little bit of a hooking getting off my first one and didn’t really land the best getting off my last two but I rode them all and took some positive energy away from getting on something I didn’t know before. Just kind of going back to the basics and what bull riding is all about.”
Not necessarily a game-changing formula.
But as he said – He wasn’t broken, just needed some fixing!
And there’s something strange about how quick a Top 5 finish or two can change one’s perspective on the season.
Eventually exiting Delta Center with a No. 5 finish, his second-best of the year at that point, Hevalow understood that needed to be the first step back toward his ascension of the standings.
Not for it to be a reason to celebrate – it’s his job, after all.
But more so because he felt like he got a bit of his swagger back.
Which was very much on display in Week 13!
“It all changed there in Salt Lake City – then rolled into this weekend. People make fun of me for picking a bull that nobody likes and I had a little bit of a wreck last weekend but I came into this weekend with all of the confidence because I’m the best, I believe,” he said.
“It’s a contagious thing – Just like someone being sick. When it spreads, it spreads. And I love it because it makes me smile. It makes me where I’ll lay down at night and I can’t sleep because I’m just so excited.
Thinking about it and loving the sport of bull riding. I’ve always dreamed about being a world champion bull rider and I’ve won it all from the time I was little up to here. I haven’t won a world title yet and I’m not going to stop until I do.
When that keeps you awake at night, that dang sure makes for early mornings and late nights because when you want it bad enough, you’ll find a way to work it out.”
Skyrocketing from the No. 24 rank all the way up to the No. 12 rank, it’s safe to say things are working out for the Kansas City Outlaws’ standout.
Originally besting Whiskey Business for 85.25 points as one of just two men to convert for the orange and black-dressed unit, he later improved to 2-for-2 on the night thanks to another 8 seconds of work aboard Ridin’ Salty, scored 84 points for the dance.
So, it’s been good to see the kid looking and riding with the confidence and flash we’ve been used to seeing the past three seasons.
Having earned a career-best No. 10 spot during the 2024 campaign, we know he’s more than capable of stringing together some rank rides. The next step is stringing together several favorable finishes should he want to beat that mark when the tour returns to AT&T Stadium for the 2025 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast.
And if he truly believes he’s the best – he couldn’t have picked a better time to drum up some magic for what’s promising to be quite the dramatic second-half race as he looks to capture the coveted gold buckle in a mere three months!
