NAMPA, Idaho – In front of a rowdy Friday-night crowd at Nampa’s Ford Idaho Center, Tate Pollmeier (Ft. Scott, Kansas) captured his second round win of the 2023 Unleash The Beast (UTB) season, dominating Round 1 of the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Gem State Bucking Battle, presented by Cooper Tires, with his standout 88.75-point ride.
Following two weekends in which the bulls absolutely dominated, the world’s best bull riders recorded 15 qualified rides in Round 1 in Nampa. The weekend in Idaho is the 19th event of the season with only four regular-season events remaining until the 2023 PBR World Finals in Fort Worth, Texas (May 12-21).
Pollmeier, a rookie from Kansas who made his league debut during the inaugural PBR Team Series season in late 2022 as part of the Oklahoma Freedom, was matched with Hard Not To Get (Vold Bucking Bulls) on night one of the two-day event.
As he launched from the chutes, he matched the athletic bovine’s intensity until the buzzer sounded, recording the highest score of the night.
For his winning efforts in Round 1, Pollmeier collected 28 UTB points to move up two spots from No. 22 in the standings to No. 20 as he heads into Championship Saturday atop the event leaderboard.
For video highlights of Round 1, including Pollmeier’s winning ride, courtesy PBR, click here.
In a surprising turn of events, world leader Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil) came down hard at 6.79 seconds after Out of the Blue (Vold Rodeo/ Wyatt Bridge) tossed the 2018 PBR World Champion to the ground. Despite the upset, Pacheco still holds a razor-thin lead over Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil), who remains out due to injury.
Nampa’s opening night – the 12th time the world’s premier bull riding organization has visited the city – saw a tie for second place in Round 1 between Rafael Jose de Brito (Potirendaba, Brazil) and Austin Richardson (Dallas, Texas) for their matching 88-point scores.
Up first in the dynamic duo was 2022 Texas Rattler Brito, paired with Sneaky Situation (Lacey Scott/ Dakota Rodeo/ Chad Berger). The muscular animal athlete was no match for the Brazilian cowboy as he held tight to No. 5 in the standings.
Richardson was up next, rocketing from the chutes aboard Fiji (Less Than 8 Cattle Co.). As the crowd inside of Ford Idaho Center roared, the determined 2022 Austin Gambler conquered his opponent.
Both cowboys netted 17.5 UTB points for their Round 1 efforts.
2016 PBR World Champion Cooper Davis (Jasper, Texas) confidently collected fourth place in the round alongside 16 UTB points.
Clinging tight to the No. 7 spot in the world standings, the Carolina Cowboys inaugural-season athlete was paired with Toasted (Jenkins Cattle Co.). Launching from the chutes as one of the last riders of the night, the 28-year-old 2016 PBR World Champion received an 87.5-point score.
Cody Jesus (Window Rock, Arizona) rounded out the Top 5 in Round 1.
As the first rider of the night, Jesus set the tone for the next several hours, confidently besting Montana Moon (Wentz Buking Bulls/ King Rodeo) for 87.25 points.
Starting the weekend at No. 55 in the standings, the softspoken sensation from the Navajo Nation collected 15 UTB points to move to No. 53.
Jesus and his fellow athletes will have the opportunity to gain ground in Round 2 followed by the championship round as the PBR Gem State Bucking Battle, presented by Cooper Tires, continues on Saturday, April 8, at 6:45 p.m. MT.
PBR RidePass on Pluto TV will offer re-airs and on-demand replays of every PBR UTB event. PBR RidePass is available on desktops, laptops and mobile devices via www.pluto.tv.
PBR Unleash The Beast – PBR Gem State Bucking Battle, presented by Cooper Tires
Ford Idaho Center -Nampa, Idaho
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Tate Pollmeier, 88.75-0-0-88.75-28 Points.
2. Rafael Jose de Brito, 88-0-0-88.00-17.5 Points.
(tie). Austin Richardson, 88-0-0-88.00-17.5 Points.
4. Cooper Davis, 87.5-0-0-87.50-16 Points.
5. Cody Jesus, 87.25-0-0-87.25-15 Points.
6. Manoelito de Souza Junior, 87-0-0-87.00-14 Points.
7. Ramon de Lima, 86.5-0-0-86.50-12.5 Points.
(tie). Brady Turgeon, 86.5-0-0-86.50-12.5 Points.
9. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 86.25-0-0-86.25-11 Points.
10. Eduardo Aparecido, 85.75-0-0-85.75-10 Points.
11. Dawson Branton, 85.5-0-0-85.50-9 Points.
12. Koltin Hevalow, 84.25-0-0-84.25-8 Points.
13. Wingson Henrique da Silva, 83-0-0-83.00-8 Points.
14. Ezekiel Mitchell, 82.75-0-0-82.75-8 Points.
15. Aaron Williams, 81-0-0-81.00-8 Points.
Kaique Pacheco, 0-0-0-0.00
Andrew Alvidrez, 0-0-0-0.00
Jesse Petri, 0-0-0-0.00
Dener Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
João Ricardo Vieira, 0-0-0-0.00
Colten Fritzlan, 0-0-0-0.00
Eli Vastbinder, 0-0-0-0.00
Marcus Mast, 0-0-0-0.00
Chase Outlaw, 0-0-0-0.00
Wyatt Rogers, 0-0-0-0.00
Guilherme Valleiras, 0-0-0-0.00
Tyler Manor, 0-0-0-0.00
Dakota Louis, 0-0-0-0.00
Alex Cerqueira, 0-0-0-0.00
Chase Dougherty, 0-0-0-0.00
Adriano Salgado, 0-0-0-0.00
Conner Halverson, 0-0-0-0.00
Griffin Smeltzer, 0-0-0-0.00
Josh Frost, 0-0-0-0.00
Zane Cook, 0-0-0-0.00
Elizmar Jeremias, 0-0-0-0.00
Alisson De Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
Jaxton Mortensen, 0-0-0-0.00
Lane Lasley, 0-0-0-0.00
