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Unleash the Beast Bucks Into Kansas City for 18th Consecutive Season on March 20-21 with Fan-Attended Event at T-Mobile Center

By: Kacie Albert

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the 18th consecutive season, PBR’s (Professional Bull Riders) elite Unleash The Beast will travel to Kansas City, Missouri, holding the fan-attended PBR Caterpillar Classic March 20-21 at T-Mobile Center.

For two nights only, the Top 30 bull riders in the world will battle the sport’s rankest bovine athletes in the ultimate showdown of man vs. beast in one of the most exciting live sporting events to witness. The fearless riders of the PBR are eager to bring back to Kansas City the only sport that pits a lightweight against a heavyweight in epic 8-second confrontations.

PBR will follow all local and state health directives, as outlined in the organization’s “Be Cowboy Safe” plan for both bull riders and PBR staff. Additionally T-Mobile Center, part of ASM Global, will be using its ”VenueShield” best practices guide that enhances fan safety protocols. Those protocols for the event include:

• All fans, as well as staff and competitors, will be required to wear face masks inside T-Mobile Center.
• In addition to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-informed screening, all PBR personnel will also undergo medical testing for COVID-19 (coronavirus).
• PBR will only sell up to 20% of arena capacity to separate fans.
• All fans will be in POD seating, which increases distancing and minimizes fan crossover when entering and exiting their seats.
• Focus on mobile-only ticketing through the AXS mobile app.
• Hand sanitizer stations will be placed throughout the venue to promote hand hygiene.
• Increased sanitization of high-contact areas including bathrooms, concourses, concession stands, elevators, and handrails.
• Pre-wrapped or packaged concessions items, individual packet condiments and packaged utensils along with sealed-container beverages will be available.

T-Mobile Center began Phase 1 of reactivation in November 2020 by safely hosting the Hall of Fame Basketball Classic featuring Liberty, South Carolina, TCU and Tulsa without fans present. In Jan. 2021, Phase 2 of reactivation began by hosting Disney on Ice: Dream Big. The Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship will be held with limited fans March 10-13.

Last season in Kansas City, Brazilian sensation Lucas Divino (Nova Crixas, Brazil) captured his career-first Unleash The Beast victory, compliments of a flawless 3-for-3 showing. Divino’s perfect effort was headlined by his first-ever 90-point ride on the elite tour, going the distance aboard Medicine Man (TNT Bucking Bulls/Hart Cattle Co.) for 91 points in the championship round to clinch the event win.

As the year progressed, Divino continued to have a breakout season. Earning an additional Unleash The Beast victory, the now 27-year-old concluded the season ranked a career-best No. 11 in the world.

Other past Kansas City winners include Owen Washburn (1996), Tuff Hedeman (1996), Troy Dunn (1997), Dave Samsel (2004), Guilherme Marchi (2005, 2008, 2009, 2018), Mike Lee (2006), Justin McBride (2007), Austin Meier (2010), Caleb Sanderson (2011), L.J. Jenkins (2012), Marco Eguchi (2013), Emilio Resende (2014), J.W. Harris (2015), Eduardo Aparecido (2016, 2017), and Chase Outlaw (2019).

The PBR Caterpillar Classic in the City of Fountains will mark the seventh event of the 2021 season. Prior to traveling to Kansas City the top tour in bull riding will have traveled to the like of Ocala, Florida, Fort Worth, Texas, and Glendale, Arizona.

With the new season already underway, the race for the 2021 PBR World Championship has gotten off to a feverish start.

Compliments of matching runner-up finishes at the tour stop and associated 15/15 Bucking Battle in Okeechobee, Florida, 2016 PBR World Champion Cooper Davis (Jasper, Texas) surged to the world No. 1 rank for the first time in 2021, now leading No. 2 Junior Patrik Souza by 130 points.

Recording a Top-10 finish at each of the three tour stops held to date, Davis has also notched two 90-point rides, led by a 91.25-point score aboard YETI World Champion Bull contender Ridin Solo. Chasing history, should Davis win the gold buckle again in 2021, he would become just the seventh multi-time PBR World Champion in league history.

Making history of his own, current world No. 5 Colten Fritzlan (Rifle, Colorado) has also had an electric year to date. Going a perfect 3-for-3 during his first-ever appearance on the elite Unleash The Beast in Okeechobee, Fritzlan became just the 10th rider in league history to win his rookie debut on the premier series. He follows in the footsteps of three-time PBR World Champion Silvano Alves (Pilar do Sul, Brazil), reigning PBR World Champion Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil), Australian sensation Lachlan Richardson (Gresford, New South Wales, Australia) and surging sophomore rider Cole Melancon (Paris, Texas).

The bull riding action for the PBR Caterpillar Classic in Kansas City at T-Mobile Center begins at 6:45 p.m. CST on Saturday, March 20, and at 1:45 p.m. CST on Sunday, March 21.

Tickets for the two-day event go on-sale Wednesday, March 3 at 10:00 a.m. CST and start at $15, taxes and fees not included. Positioned closest to the action, and including a Q&A session with top talent from the PBR, Elite Seats will also be available for $350. Tickets can be purchased online at axs.com or PBR.com, at the T-Mobile Center Box Office or by calling PBR customer service at 1-800-732-1727.

For an enhanced PBR experience in a socially-distanced environment, fans can now purchase add-on PBR Premium Experiences which will include the Elite Experience on both Saturday, March 20 and Sunday, March 21 in Kansas City.

The Elite Experience, available for $75, will include a Q&A session with a select group of the league’s top riders, bullfighters and stock contractors, merchandise voucher, limited edition poster and commemorative lanyard.

Fans will also have the opportunity to purchase a complete travel package for $1,200, including a two-day hotel stay, two event tickets, daily food and beverage voucher, behind-the-scenes tour, and more.

For more information on PBR Premium Experiences and to purchase the Elite Experience and travel package for the PBR Caterpillar Classic in Kansas City visit https://pbr.com/tickets/premium-experiences/.

© 2021 PBR Inc. All rights reserved.

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