ANDREW ALVIDREZ WINS ROUND 1 OF PBR UNLEASH THE BEAST COMPETITION IN LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, CRACKING THE TOP 40 IN THE SERIES STANDINGS AND INCHING CLOSER TO A WORLD FINALS BERTH
Eduardo Aparecido finishes fourth in Round 1, overtaking the No. 2 ranking, before injury leaves him doubtful for the second round inside KFC Yum! Center
PHOTO CREDIT: JOSH HOMER OF BULL STOCK MEDIA
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – As the final regular-season PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Unleash The Beast event of 2024 got underway Friday evening in Louisville, Kentucky, Andrew Alvidrez (Seminole, Texas) made his presence known. Winning Round 1 of the Cooper Tires PBR Louisville, presented by Pneu-Dart, Alvidrez cracked the Top 40 in the World Championship standings and inched closer to a coveted World Finals berth.
Alvidrez struck early in his showdown with Constitutional Carry (Jim & Shannon Barr/Hookin W Ranch). Remaining in perfect time with the powerful animal athlete, Alvidrez, who rides for the Missouri Thunder in the separate PBR Teams league, reached the requisite 8 with ease, awarded an unrivaled 88.25 points.
VIDEO COURTESY OF PBR FOR TENN TEXAS MEDIA
The golden finish on the penultimate day of the regular season garnered Alvidrez a crucial 28 Unleash The Beast points. On the outside looking in prior to the event, Alvidrez cracked the crucial Top 40, rising from No. 41 to No. 39.
When the dust settles in Kentucky Saturday night, the Top 40 bull riders in the Unleash The Beast standings will earn a berth at the 2024 PBR World Finals: Unleash The Beast, which will begin with Eliminations on May 9-12 at the historic Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas.
Atop the standings, the Arizona Ridge Riders’ Eduardo Aparecido (Gouvelandia, Brazil) finished fourth in Round 1, earning 16 Unleash The Beast points. The Top 5 effort allowed the grizzled veteran to rise from No. 3 to No. 2 in the standings. He overtook teenage phenom John Crimber (Decatur, Texas), who was called for a slap atop Johnny Walker Red (Flying C/Jeff Baeza) at the 1.83-second mark.
However, after Aparecido rode Always Been Crazy (Harrison Cattle Co.) for 85.75 points, he was knocked unconscious, sustaining a concussion. Upon evaluation, he is doubtful for Round 2.
Cassio Dias (Sao F. de Sales, Brazil) furthered his grasp on the No. 1 rank in the 2024 World Championship race with a third-place result in the opening round in the Bluegrass State.
The Kansas City Outlaws star demonstrated his stalwart determination to stay on a bull who appeared set to buck him off midway through the out in besting Let’s Roll (Stoltzfus/Bob & Jerry Adams/BS Cattle Co.) for 86.75 points to net 17 Unleash The Beast points. He now leads new No. 2 Aparecido by 499.33 points.
VIDEO COURTESY OF PBR FOR TENN TEXAS MEDIA
Jesse Petri (Dublin, Texas) parlayed an 87.25-point effort aboard Rank Hank (TR Cattle/Barthold & Eldred) into a second-place finish, netting 18 Unleash The Beast points.
VIDEO COURTESY OF PBR FOR TENN TEXAS MEDIA
Eager to solidify his place inside the Top 40 and advance to bull riding’s most prestigious event, Petri climbed from No. 34 to No. 31 in the standings.
Rounding out the Top 5 in fifth was Dalton Kasel (Muleshoe, Texas).
Chasing his first World Championship this May, Kasel found success on Tick (Whitehead Cattle), awarded 85 points. The 8-second effort earned the Austin Gamblers rider and 2019 PBR Rookie of the Year 15 Unleash The Beast points.
VIDEO COURTESY OF PBR FOR TENN TEXAS MEDIA
Kasel remained No. 4 in the standings, now 544.33 points back of No. 1 Dias.
Action for the Cooper Tires PBR Louisville, presented by Pneu-Dart, will conclude with Round 2 and the championship round on Saturday, April 27. Action gets underway at 6:45 p.m. EDT.
PBR RidePass on Pluto TV will offer re-airs and on-demand replays of every PBR Unleash The Beast event. PBR RidePass is available on desktops, laptops and mobile devices via www.pluto.tv. Click here for on-demand PBR programming.
PBR Unleash The Beast Cooper Tires PBR, presented by Penu-Dart
PBR is the world’s premier bull riding organization. More than 800 bull riders compete in more than 200 events annually across the televised PBR Unleash The Beast tour (UTB), which features the top bull riders in the world; the PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour (PWVT); the PBR Touring Pro Division (TPD); and the PBR’s international circuits in Australia, Brazil, Canada and Mexico. In 2022, the organization launched PBR Teams—eight teams of the world’s best bull riders competing for a new championship—as well as the PBR Challenger Series with more than 60 annual events nationwide. The organization’s digital assets include PBR RidePass on Pluto TV, which is home to Western sports. PBR is a subsidiary of Endeavor, a global sports and entertainment company.
