(Editor's note: PBR Media Release)
ANAHEIM - For the sixth time in the 2021 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Unleash The Beast (UTB) season, reigning PBR World Champion Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil) stood atop the Can-Am Cage victorious.
Following his 3-for-3 weekend at Anaheim’s Honda Center, Leme delivered a walk-off 90-point ride to win the PBR Monster Energy Invitational, presented by Cooper Tires.
To begin Saturday evening of the two-day event, the 25-year-old Brazilian phenom was paired against Lights Out (Diamond Bar Cattle/ Premier Ag) in Round 2. Launching from the chutes, Leme was in complete control. The 89.75-point ride score propelled him to the top of the leaderboard when the day’s opening round ended.
Leme then selected The Good Stuff (Paradigm Bull Company) as his opponent in the championship round.
The rowdy Southern California crowd braced for the possibility of a walk-off win on the last ride of the day. As the clock raced closer to the 8, the cheers rose to a deafening roar from fans and Leme’s fellow competitors on the back of the chutes. The crowd was on its feet as his 90.75-point score was announced.
Leme’s championship-round score was his 19th 90-point ride of the 2021 UTB season, continuing to be a league record.
The reigning World Champion collected a check for $28,791.68 in addition to 153.5 world points.
Leme holds tight to the No. 1 spot in the world standings, leading No. 2 Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil) by 729.5 points. Pacheco’s 1-for-2 weekend in Anaheim did not aide in the 2018 PBR World Champion’s quest to lessen the gap between himself and Leme in the world standings.
For video highlights of Round 2 and the championship round, including Leme’s winning ride, courtesy PBR, click here. [ftp.pbr.com]
Texas young gun Andrew Alvidrez (Seminole, Texas) also made his mark in Anaheim, going 3-for-3 for a second-place finish on the weekend. Despite holding the top spot on the leaderboard for most of the championship round, he was bested by Leme as the night ended.
Early on Saturday night, Alvidrez was paired with Wild Eyes (Leffew Bucking Bulls/ Meza) for Round 2. His 87.5-point score paved his way to the championship round.
Alvidrez then chose Mr. Clean (Julio Moreno/Equistride) in the championship round, riding him for 90.25 points, his first 90-point ride of the 2021 season. For his efforts, Alvidrez earned $14,891.65 and 93 world points.
The 24-year-old rider, who began the weekend as the No. 35-ranked rider in the world standings, has now moved to No. 28.
Brazil’s Marcelo Procopio Pereira (Rinopolis, Brazil) also went 3-for-3 over the weekend to clinch a third-place finish.
In Round 2, Pereira was matched up with Fred (Evan Matthews), making the 8 to collect an 87.5-point ride score.
The 26-year-old then chose @PBR on TikTok (Paradigm Bull Co/ Lansman Land & Cattle) in the championship round.
While he made the 8-second whistle, Pereira’s ride, however, was less than he had hoped for to push to the top of the leaderboard, earning an 89.25-point ride score.
Collecting $11,456.75 and 80 world points, Pereira moved from No. 30 in the world standings to No. 24.
2020 PBR Rookie of the Year Boudreaux Campbell (Crockett, Texas) collected a fourth-place finish courtesy of his 3-for-3 weekend in Anaheim.
Paired with Hot Spots (Shuler Bucking Bulls) in Round 2, Campbell launched from the chutes to receive an 85.5-point ride score.
The talented young Texan then selected Hell Storm (Julio Moreno/ Bar CB) for the championship round in hopes of catapulting himself to his third event win of the 2021 season.
Despite a high score of 89.25 points, he fell just short of that goal but earned $8,159.71 and 53.5 world points for his weekend.
Campbell holds tight to the No. 6 spot in the world standings.
Arizona’s Cody Jesus (Window Rock, Arizona) rounded out the Top 5 of the weekend.
Jesus was paired with BB King (Shuler Bucking Bulls) in Round 2 for an electric 88.5-point score. As the championship round began, he sat in the No. 2 spot on the leaderboard.
His selection of Crossover (Shuler Bucking Bulls) did not go as planned in the final round as he hit the ground after 1.97 seconds.
Despite Jesus’ trouble as the weekend came to a close, he earned $8,516.48 and 51 world points to move from No. 24 in the world standings up to No. 21.
In the bull pen, High Brow Cat (Paradigm Bull Company) was the high-marked bull of the event. Posting a 46.25-point score in the championship round, he dispatched Fernando Henrique Novias (Pereria Barreto, Brazil) after just 3.22 seconds.
The PBR Unleash The Beast next travels to Newark, New Jersey and Prudential Center for the PBR ZipRecruiter Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 18 at 6:45 p.m. EDT and Sunday, Sept. 19 at 1:45 p.m. EDT.
Elsewhere in the PBR, riding in front of a home-state crowd, no rider was more dominant than Washington’s own Cody Casper (Newport, Washington) at the first-ever PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour event in Kennewick, Washington. Delivering a perfect 3-for-3 performance inside the Toyota Center, Casper won the PBR Tri-Cities Classic.
As action got underway Friday evening, Casper was one of nine contenders to record a score in Round 1, covering Teddy Bear (Big Bend/Flying Five) for 80 points.
Casper continued his momentum in Round 2 Saturday, again making the 8 aboard Supreme (H5 Bucking Bulls) for 58.5 points. While the 28-year-old earned a re-ride, he declined the opportunity, subsequently punching his ticket to the championship round as the lone cowboy with two qualified rides.
As the last man to leave the chutes in the Evergreen State, the raucous crowd was brought to the edge of its seat as Casper climbed aboard Sitting Bull (Diamond Willow/Clay Struve/Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger).
In near-picture-perfect form, Casper matched the powerful bovine athlete jump-for-jump en route to an 87.5-point score.
Following a thoroughly earned celebration dirtside, Casper collected the glittering buckle for his sixth career PBR victory. The golden finish earned Casper a critical 37 world points as he attempts to qualify for his second consecutive PBR World Finals.
After slipping to No. 94 in the race for the PBR World Championship as he recovered from a pelvis injury, Casper catapulted 36 positions in the world rankings, surging to No. 58. He is now within 157 points of the Top 30 and a seeded position on the elite Unleash The Beast.
PBR Unleash The Beast - Monster Energy Invitational, presented by Cooper TiresHonda Center -Anaheim, California
Event Leaders (Round 1-Round 1-Round 2-Round 3-Event Aggregate-Event Points)
1. Jose Vitor Leme, 87.75-89.75-90.75-268.25-153.5 Points.
2. Andrew Alvidrez, 86.25-87.5-90.25-264.00-93 Points.
3. Marcelo Procopio Pereira, 86.75-87.5-89.25-263.50-80 Points.
4. Boudreaux Campbell, 83.75-85.5-89.25-258.50-53.5 Points.
5. Cody Jesus, 87.75-88.5-0-176.25-51 Points.
6. João Ricardo Vieira, 86.5-88.5-0-175.00-42 Points.
7. Mauricio Gulla Moreira, 87.25-87-0-174.25-33 Points.
8. Paulo Ferreira Lima, 84.75-86.5-0-171.25-22 Points.
9. Fernando Henrique Novais, 81.25-73.75-0-155.00-12 Points.
10. Derek Kolbaba, 88-0-0-88.00-24 Points.
(tie). Conner Halverson, 0-88-0-88.00-17 Points.
(tie). Clayton Sellars, 88-0-0-88.00-24 Points.
13. Austin Richardson, 0-87.75-0-87.75-15 Points.
14. Kaique Pacheco, 0-86.75-0-86.75-10.5 Points.
(tie). Thiago Salgado, 0-86.75-0-86.75-10.5 Points.
16. Eduardo Aparecido, 86.5-0-0-86.50-12.5 Points.
17. Jesse Petri, 86.25-0-0-86.25-10.5 Points.
18. Manoelito de Souza Junior, 85.75-0-0-85.75-9 Points.
19. Keyshawn Whitehorse, 0-85-0-85.00-8 Points.
(tie). Marco Eguchi, 85-0-0-85.00-8 Points.
(tie). João Henrique Lucas, 0-85-0-85.00-8 Points.
22. Cooper Davis, 0-84.75-0-84.75-8 Points.
23. Dalton Kasel, 0-83.5-0-83.50-8 Points.
Dener Barbosa, 0-0-0-0.00
Chase Dougherty, 0-0-0-0.00
Junior Patrik Souza, 0-0-0-0.00
Silvano Alves, 0-0-0-0.00
Eli Vastbinder, 0-0-0-0.00
Cole Melancon, 0-0-0-0.00
Mason Taylor, 0-0-0-0.00
Claudio Montanha Jr., 0-0-0-0.00
Ezekiel Mitchell, 0-0-0-0.00
Taylor Toves, 0-0-0-0.00
Lucas Divino, 0-0-0-0.00
Dakota Louis, 0-0-0-0.00
Leonardo Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Ramon de Lima, 0-0-0-0.00
Cole Skender, 0-0-0-0.00
