Arizona Ridge Riders Announce 2023 PBR Teams Game Schedule
By: Mandi McCary
GLENDALE, Ariz. – Ahead of the second season for the ground-breaking PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Teams league, the Arizona Ridge Riders, Arizona’s first-ever professional bull riding team, today announced their 2023 game schedule.
The 2023 PBR Teams season will include a three-day homestand hosted by each of the eight founding teams, accompanied by two, two-day neutral site events. During event days, each of the league’s eight founding teams will compete in one five-on-five bull riding game against another team, with each team competing in 28 games throughout the regular season. The PBR Teams Championship returns to T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on October 20-22.
The Ridge Riders will hold their second-annual homestand, the ninth event of the 10-event regular season, on Friday, September 29 through Sunday, October 1 at Glendale, Arizona’s Desert Diamond Arena. During their event, they will play the Nashville Stampede (Sept. 29), Missouri Thunder (Sept. 30) and Oklahoma Freedom (Oct. 1).
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Having narrowly lost the inaugural season championship in the final game last November, the Ridge Riders concluded the regular-season fifth in the standings, 14-13 in game play. Throughout the 2024 campaign, the Ridge Riders will play the reigning PBR Teams Champion Nashville Stampede four times as they look to bring the title to Arizona this October.
Every game during the season will be carried by CBS, including seven “Game of the Week” broadcasts, CBS Sports Network or Pluto TV. The Ridge Riders will be featured in two Game of the Week broadcasts. Their telecasts will include their game against the Carolina Cowboys in Cheyenne, Wyoming, airing on July 30, and a showdown with the Missouri Thunder during their Arizona homestand airing on Oct. 1. The full broadcast scheduled is also available on PBR.com.
The Ridge Riders’ compete 2023 PBR Teams game schedule is:
| Week | Date | Venue | Away | Home |
| 1 | 7/24/2023 | Cheyenne, WY | Oklahoma Freedom | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 1 | 7/25/2023 | Cheyenne, WY | Carolina Cowboys | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 2 | 8/3/2023 | Kansas City, MO | Arizona Ridge Riders | Kansas City Outlaws |
| 2 | 8/4/2023 | Kansas City, MO | Arizona Ridge Riders | Missouri Thunder |
| 2 | 8/5/2023 | Kansas City, MO | Arizona Ridge Riders | Texas Rattlers |
| 3 | 8/12/2023 | Anaheim, CA | Arizona Ridge Riders | Texas Rattlers |
| 3 | 8/13/2023 | Anaheim, CA | Arizona Ridge Riders | Missouri Thunder |
| 4 | 8/18/2023 | Nashville, TN | Arizona Ridge Riders | Austin Gamblers |
| 4 | 8/19/2023 | Nashville, TN | Texas Rattlers | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 4 | 8/20/2023 | Nashville, TN | Arizona Ridge Riders | Nashville Stampede |
| 5 | 8/25/2023 | Austin, TX | Missouri Thunder | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 5 | 8/26/2023 | Austin, TX | Carolina Cowboys | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 5 | 8/27/2023 | Austin, TX | Nashville Stampede | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 6 | 9/8/2023 | Oklahoma City, OK | Austin Gamblers | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 6 | 9/9/2023 | Oklahoma City, OK | Arizona Ridge Riders | Kansas City Outlaws |
| 6 | 9/10/2023 | Oklahoma City, OK | Arizona Ridge Riders | Oklahoma Freedom |
| 7 | 9/15/2023 | Ridgedale, MO | Austin Gamblers | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 7 | 9/16/2023 | Ridgedale, MO | Arizona Ridge Riders | Nashville Stampede |
| 7 | 9/17/2023 | Ridgedale, MO | Texas Rattlers | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 8 | 9/22/2023 | Greensboro, NC | Arizona Ridge Riders | Carolina Cowboys |
| 8 | 9/23/2023 | Greensboro, NC | Arizona Ridge Riders | Austin Gamblers |
| 8 | 9/24/2023 | Greensboro, NC | Kansas City Outlaws | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 9 | 9/29/2023 | Glendale, AZ | Nashville Stampede | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 9 | 9/30/2023 | Glendale, AZ | Missouri Thunder | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 9 | 10/1/2023 | Glendale, AZ | Oklahoma Freedom | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 10 | 10/6/2023 | Ft Worth, TX | Kansas City Outlaws | Arizona Ridge Riders |
| 10 | 10/7/2023 | Ft Worth, TX | Arizona Ridge Riders | Oklahoma Freedom |
| 10 | 10/8/2023 | Ft Worth, TX | Arizona Ridge Riders | Carolina Cowboys |
In the hours before the 2023 PBR Teams draft, the Ridge Riders traded their first-round draft pick to the Missouri Thunder in order to acquire Colten Fritzlan. The 22-year-old Coloradan, who was the Missouri Thunder’s first-round draft pick in 2022, currently sits at No. 18 in the PBR standings and is a fourth-generation roughstock competitor. Having won the 2020 PRCA Resistol Rookie of the Year honors at the age of 19, he went on to clinch the NFR average title that same year. In addition, the rising star won the bull riding title at The American Rodeo in 2021.
With the 11th overall pick in the draft, the Ridge Riders then selected Pro Rodeo veteran Jeff Askey (Athens, Texas). Askey’s resume includes five NFR qualifications and more than a million dollars in earnings.
The remainder of the roster includes inaugural season top competitors, including Luciano De Castro (Guzolandia, Brazil), Eduardo Aparecido (Gouvelandia, Brazil), Chase Dougherty (Decatur, Texas), Keyshawn Whitehorse (McCracken Spring, Utah) and Vitor Losnake (Bauru, Brazil).
The Teton Ridge-owned Ridge Riders will again call Glendale, Arizona’s Desert Diamond Arena home and will host their second-annual homestand event and surrounding festivities Friday, September 29 through Sunday, October 1. Tickets for the action-packed, three-day event can be purchased at Ticketmaster.
The Ridge Riders represent one of several elevated Western sports properties that Teton Ridge has assembled under its portfolio. The sports division was created with the singular focus of elevating the Western lifestyle and culture to the world stage, while broadening and diversifying audiences through enhanced production, technology, and innovation.
To follow the Ridge Riders journey please visit them online, follow along @arizonaridgeriders on Facebook or Instagram, or @AZRidgeRiders on Twitter.
Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media
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