By Kacie Albert
TULSA, Okla. – SPORTS – In front of an electric Friday night crowd in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Austin Richardson (Dallas, Texas) rode supreme, delivering the top score of the 18 riders who converted inside the BOK Center to win Round 1 of the Unleash The Beast’s Express Ranches PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Tulsa, presented by Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Tulsa.
As one of the final riders to leave the chutes in the Sooner State in Round 1, Richardson was tasked with Let’s Roll (Stoltzfus/Bob & Jerry Adams/BS Cattle Co.). In what proved to be a perfect pairing, Richardson remained centered aboard the bull, matching him jump-for-jump en route to the whistle.
Marked 89 points, the score was enough to cement the Round 1 win for the Texan, who also rides for the Austin Gamblers in the separate PBR Teams league.
Richardson has now won the opening round of the Unleash The Beast tour stop in Tulsa the past three years. In 2022, he led the field with a monstrous 94.5-point ride on Woopaa (Barker Bulls/Hookin’ W Ranch). Richardson went on to break his collarbone in Round 2 and was unable to compete in the championship round, ultimately finishing third. In 2023, his top mark was an 89.75-point ride on Huckleberry (Buckin Fun Group/Twisted Horn Ranch). The score was Richardson’s lone 8-second effort of the event, with his 1-for-3 showing yielding a seventh-place finish.
Historically, seven of the past 15 World Champions have won the Tulsa event en route to the gold buckle.
Richardson, who won back-to-back Unleash The Beast events in Albany and New York City earlier this season, left the BOK Center Friday night having earned 28 Unleash The Beast points. While he remained No. 2 in the standings, he closed within 97 points of No. 1 Cassio Dias (Sao F. de Sales, Brazil).
The Kansas City Outlaws’ Dias delivered his own podium finish, covering Lansky (Grin/Jacobson/McCoy Rodeo) for 87.75 points to finish third in Round 1 and earn 17 Unleash The Beast points. Dias is attempting to win his fourth premier series event this season.
Alan de Souza (Taubate, Brazil) was second, garnering 18 Unleash The Beast points.
Souza dominated Thunderstruck (LS Risen Bucking Bulls), scored 88.25 points.
The Nashville Stampede rider remained No. 5 in the 2024 PBR World Championship standings and is now within 398 points of No. 1 Dias.
Joao Ricardo Vieira (Itatinga, Brail) and Dawson Branton (Jefferson, Oregon) rounded out the Top 5, tying for fourth via matching 86.75-point rides.
The reigning PBR Teams World Champions Texas Rattlers’ Vieira conquered Whiplash (Blake Sharp/Floyd Lowry/CB & Traci Lee), while the Carolina Cowboys’ Branton was the first rider to convert in Tulsa as he topped Vigilante (Halpain Bucking Bulls).
Both Vieira and Branton earned 15.5 Unleash The Beast points.
Vieira rose two spots in the standings from No. 19 to No. 17, while Branton climbed from unranked to No. 48.
Round 1 of the Unleash The Beast event in Tulsa also included an ABBI (American Bucking Bull Inc.) Classic competition, featuring 40 of the top up-and-coming 4-year-old bovine athletes.
Quick Show (Young Cattle/Crooked Crown) and Goin’ Solo (McCoy Rodeo/Van Zanten/Lowell) tied for the victory, each marked 88.56 points to earn $8,765.25. Quick Show bucked off Boudreaux Campbell (Crockett, Texas) in a swift 1.75 seconds, while Goin Solo tossed Briggs Madsen (Tremonton, Utah) in 2.25 seconds. Of note, Goin’ Solo’s sire is two-time and reigning YETI PBR World Champion Bull Ridin’ Solo (Bill McCarty/McCoy Rodeo), and his dam is also the mother to six-time PBR World Finals bucker Big Black (K-C Bucking Bulls/Joe & Nina Webb).
Quick Show and Goin’ Solo edged out third-place Let’s Roll, who Richardson rode to win the round, by 0.96 points.
Action for the 2024 Express Ranches PBR Tulsa, presented by Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Tulsa, will conclude with Round 2 and the championship round on Saturday, Jan. 20. Action gets underway at 6:45 p.m. CST.
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
Express Ranches PBR Tulsa, presented by Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Tulsa
BOK Center – Tulsa, Oklahoma
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
- Austin Richardson, 89-0-0-89.00-28 Points.
- Alan de Souza, 88.25-0-0-88.25-18 Points.
- Cassio Dias, 87.75-0-0-87.75-17 Points.
- João Ricardo Vieira, 86.75-0-0-86.75-15.5 Points.
(tie). Dawson Branton, 86.75-0-0-86.75-15.5 Points.
- Cort McFadden, 86.5-0-0-86.50-13.5 Points.
(tie). Mason Taylor, 86.5-0-0-86.50-13.5 Points.
- Alex Cerqueira, 86.25-0-0-86.25-12 Points.
- Kaique Pacheco, 86-0-0-86.00-11 Points.
- Eli Vastbinder, 85.25-0-0-85.25-10 Points.
- Ednélio Almeida, 84.25-0-0-84.25-9 Points.
- Brady Fielder, 84-0-0-84.00-8 Points.
(tie). Dener Barbosa, 84-0-0-84.00-8 Points.
- Kaiden Loud, 83.75-0-0-83.75-8 Points.
- Bob Mitchell, 82.5-0-0-82.50-8 Points.
- Wingson Henrique da Silva, 78.25-0-0-78.25-7 Points.
- John Crimber, 76.75-0-0-76.75
- Guilherme Valleiras, 72.25-0-0-72.25
Eduardo Aparecido, 0-0-0-0.00
Dalton Kasel, 0-0-0-0.00
Koltin Hevalow, 0-0-0-0.00
Cody Jesus, 0-0-0-0.00
Julio Cesar Marques, 0-0-0-0.00
Conner Halverson, 0-0-0-0.00
Sage Steele Kimzey, 0-0-0-0.00
Vitor Losnake, 0-0-0-0.00
Caden Bunch, 0-0-0-0.00
Felipe Furlan, 0-0-0-0.00
Paulo Eduardo Rossetto, 0-0-0-0.00
Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 0-0-0-0.00
Boudreaux Campbell, 0-0-0-0.00
Daylon Swearingen, 0-0-0-0.00
Silvano Alves, 0-0-0-0.00
Wyatt Rogers, 0-0-0-0.00
Jesse Petri, 0-0-0-0.00
Luciano De Castro, 0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Divino, 0-0-0-0.00
Briggs Madsen, 0-0-0-0.00
Dawson Gleaves, 0-0-0-0.00
Clay Guiton, 0-0-0-0.00
