TUCSON, Ariz. – Marking the start of the 2025 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Unleash The Beast (UTB) individual competition season, 21 qualified rides were recorded, but it was 19-year-old Kaiden Loud (Kaufman, Texas) who walked away with the PBR Tucson Round 1 win.
After finishing the 2024 Unleash The Beast season ranked No. 6 in the world and then going 7-for-21 with the Nashville Stampede during the 2024 PBR Camping World Team Series season, Loud started the 2025 season off with a bang, riding Oyster Creek Brawler for a huge 90.5 points.
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For his impressive night, Loud collected 29 UTB points for the inaugural round victory of the 2025 season and now sits atop the leaderboard heading into Championship Saturday.
After riding more than 50% of their bulls on night one, all 40 bull riders will move onto Round 2 on Saturday. The 12 bull riders with the top combined ride scores following Rounds 1-2 will then advance to the championship round following Round 2 on Saturday night.
Tucson’s opening night – the sixth time in history that the world’s premier bull riding organization has visited the city – saw another 19-year-old phenom on the hunt for a 2025 world title.
Just a few weeks after being crowned the 2024 PBR Camping World Team Series MVP for his inaugural season with the Florida Freedom, John Crimber (Decatur, Texas) took Tucson by storm. After a near miss at the 2024 PBR World Finals where he finished at No. 2 in the world, Crimber fired out of the chutes aboard Sucker Pop making it known that a gold buckle was his focus. His 89.5-point score wasn’t enough to overtake Loud, but the second-place finish earned Crimber 18 points as the 2025 title race commenced.
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Hours after a landmark free agent signing in which the Austin Gamblers inked Sage Steele Kimzey (Strong City, Oklahoma) for the 2025 PBR Teams season, Kimzey was calm and focused on an individual title as he finished third in the Friday’s opening round. Paired with Whiskey Trip, Kimzey showcased the flawless form that earned the 30-year-old seven PRCA word titles. His picture-perfect 89-point ride netted 17 points.
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Fresh off a major win in Las Vegas with the Austin Gamblers to clinch the 2024 PBR Teams Championship title, Dalton Kasel (Muleshoe, Texas) was stone-faced and focused on the back of the chutes. The moment he bounced to the ground after his matchup with Dangerous Medicine, Kasel’s signature smile spread across his face. His ride score of 88.75 points earned him fourth place in Round 1 and 16 points towards the UTB standings.
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Reigning World Champion Cassio Dias (Sao F. de Sales, Brazil) and Thiago Salgado (Navirai, Brazil) rounded out the Top 5 with matching 88.25-point scores.
First up in the dynamic duo was Crimber’s Florida Freedom teammate Salgado. Matched with Flatliner, the 22-year-old matched the talented animal athlete as it jumped and twisted through the air.
With his Kansas City Outlaws coach J.W. Hart cheering him on from the back of the chute, Dias took on Washita Red. Despite flipping head over horns right as the buzzer hit 8 seconds, the world champ bounced away as he gears up for a potential second title at the end of the season.
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Both cowboys earned 14.5 points as Friday rolled to a close.
Arizona’s own JaCauy Hale (Ganado, Arizona) had his home-state crowd at full volume as he readied for his dance with Sonny B. Despite his best efforts and the crowd’s support, he was unable to convert and was thrashed to the ground after 5.07 seconds.
All three rounds of action in Tucson, Arizona, will be available LIVE and FREE on RidePass on Pluto TV, PBR’s YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@pbr), PBR’s mobile app (https://qrco.de/bdtdKp), and PBR’s app on connected TVs, including Apple TV, Fire TV, Roku and Google TV. The stream for PBR Tucson continues on Saturday, November 16, at 8:45 p.m. ET.
PBR RidePass on Pluto TV will offer re-airs and on-demand replays of PBR UTB events and is available on desktops, laptops and mobile devices via www.pluto.tv.
