In a battle of world No. 1s, Kasel rides Man Hater to remain in control of tight world title race
Dalton Kasel finished second overall in Sioux Falls to extend his lead over No. 2 Brady Fielder, who finished right behind him in third.
By Darci Miller
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Saturday night at the PREMIER Bankcard PBR Sioux Falls, presented by Cooper Tires, did not go Dalton Kasel’s way.
The world No. 1 bull rider was bucked off by Big Red Train in 3.19 seconds and limped off the dirt, in noticeable pain and assisted by the PBR sports medicine team. The pain in his elbow and hip was bad enough that he declined to take the re-ride given to him and was unsure if he’d be able to finish out the weekend.
“There was a little bit (of doubt),” Kasel said. “I was going to see how I felt in the morning. I went in to (Dr. Tandy Freeman) and stuff, and he helped me a lot. It was just kind of seeing how it was going to feel come the morning time.”
Luckily, Kasel felt good enough to get on again on Sunday.
“It’s pretty sore,” he admitted. “But it’s one of those things – bull riding, you’re going to get roughed up. So it’s okay.”
He cruised into the championship round at No. 5 on the Sioux Falls leaderboard thanks to his 88.5-point ride on Let Him Fly in Round 3.
In the championship round bull draft, Kasel put together his dream matchup, taking on Man Hater, the 2024 YETI World Champion Bull and current world No. 1.
Not only was it the No. 1 rider taking on the No. 1 bull, but Man Hater has been putting up insane numbers all season long and is tied for the highest World Champion Bull score at an eye-popping 48.
Kasel rode like a World Championship is on the line, conquering Man Hater for 93.5 points and the championship round win. His 3-for-4 weekend earned him a second-place finish behind Clay Guiton, the only rider to go 4-for-4.
“I’ve watched that bull the last few weekends, and I really thought he was starting to buck a lot like Woopaa,” Kasel said. “I got along with Woopaa, and I thought that was probably the best-feeling bull I’ve ever gotten on. I had (Man Hater) No. 1 on my list coming into it, and he still was there for the fifth pick. It was just surreal that I was able to get him rode.”
It was Kasel’s first time conquering Man Hater and the pair’s second matchup. It was even more gratifying to ride him now, when they’re atop their respective standings.
“It’s set that way: you have your best bull in the world against your best riders. That’s what the PBR is based on,” Kasel said. “Anytime I get a chance, I pick something that I think is going to fit me, and right now, I’m feeling so confident on any bull that it doesn’t ever scare me, picking the No. 1 bull in the world.”
Kasel is locked in a ferocious world title race, just 48.5 points ahead of No. 2 Brady Fielder – which, incredibly enough, is the largest lead he’s had atop the world standings this season. Fielder finished right behind Kasel at No. 3 in Sioux Falls, winning Round 3 and placing second (behind Kasel) in the championship round with 91.5 points on Nobody.
But while they’re the most competitive of rivals on the dirt, Kasel and Fielder are actually great friends off of it.
“Brady has turned into one of my best friends,” Kasel said. “He comes to my house every week and we buck bulls at my house, whether we’re bucking bulls helping kids get on or we buck a bunch of calves for kids to get on. It’s a cool bond, and it’s really neat because Brady’s always helping me out when I’m riding, and I try to be there for Brady, and it’s really neat that we get to go back and forth. So anytime he rides, it makes me super happy, and vice versa.”
Indeed, Kasel and Fielder are often spotted happily congratulating each other for big rides, even when it's to their own detriment. After Kasel rode Man Hater, Fielder greeted him with a hug and a wide grin.
The two began bucking bulls together at Kasel’s house at the beginning of the year, and clearly, there’s something in the water given the results they’ve had.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Kasel said. “Last weekend, we had Brady and Callum (Miller), and Cort (McFadden) comes out, Cassio (Dias) came out, Julio Cesar Marques. It’s really neat, the atmosphere I’ve formed around my house and stuff and the people that come out.”
The Kasel residence may just contain the secret sauce to success.
“Come get on,” Kasel said with a laugh.
With just three events remaining in the regular season before the PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast – Eliminations kick off on May 8 in Fort Worth, Texas, Kasel is in a great spot. After finishing 2024 ranked No. 4, 2023 ranked No. 5 and 20222 ranked No. 6, he’s had his eyes trained on No. 1 for a long time.
“It’s such a huge blessing,” Kasel said of being No. 1 in the world. “It’s somewhere I always wanted to be, and I’m just very grateful that I get to be in it.”
The pressure is on to keep his momentum going heading into the Cooper Tires PBR Billings in Billings, Montana, on April 11-12. But he’s not stressing too much about the jockeying in the standings because the real test is still ahead.
“Every year, it comes down to Finals,” Kasel said. “So it doesn’t matter what you get done this weekend. It really comes down to Finals, and it makes it a lot more fun when it’s tight like this. I really feel like this year, everybody’s stepping up a little bit more because it is so tight.”
