GREENSBORO, N.C. — SPORTS — Ladies and gentlemen, tighten that flank strap and hold onto your hats — Paulo Eduardo Rossetto has ridden his way straight into the PBR Teams record book.
The Missouri Thunder cowboy delivered his 14th consecutive qualified ride Friday night at PBR Teams: Cowboy Days, setting a new league record while helping Missouri defeat the Austin Gamblers 262.30-176.25 at First Horizon Coliseum.
And when the dust settled in Greensboro, the standings remained tighter than a bull rope: Missouri and the Nashville Stampede both improved to a league-best 15-6.
Rossetto Sets the Record at 14 Straight
Rossetto came out of the chute first for Missouri and wasted no time making history.
Matched with UB Smooth, the Brazilian cowboy stayed aboard for the full eight seconds and posted 87.85 points.
That qualified ride extended his streak to 14 consecutive PBR Teams games, breaking the previous record of 13 set by three-time PBR world champion Jose Vitor Leme.
For a moment, Rossetto also moved into first place in the PBR Teams MVP race.
But you had better believe Leme was not about to let that happen without answering.
The Austin star climbed aboard White Out in the bottom half of the opening frame and put up 87.05 points, moving himself back atop the individual aggregate standings.
That was about as close as Austin would get.
Missouri Thunder Keep Bringing the Lightning
Missouri followed Rossetto’s record-setting ride with another qualified trip from Julio Cesar Marques, who covered Hoobastank for 86.35 points.
Then, in the fifth frame, Maverick Smith put the finishing touches on the night with an 88.1-point ride aboard Enter Sandman.
Austin’s Dalton Kasel responded with the highest score of the matchup — 89.2 points on Bullistic during a re-ride — but Missouri had too much horsepower.
The Thunder finished 3-for-5 for 262.30 points, compared with Austin’s two qualified rides and 176.25.
That gave Missouri its fourth straight victory.
Nashville Wins a One-Ride Nail-Biter
Over in Game 4, the Nashville Stampede and Texas Rattlers turned the arena over to the bulls.
Texas lead-off rider Brady Fielder opened with an 86-point ride on Night Fury.
Nashville answered immediately.
Alan de Souza handled Big Iron for 87.6 points, giving the Stampede a 1.6-point lead.
And then?
Eight straight cowboys hit the dirt.
Nobody else made the whistle.
When it was finished, Nashville walked away with an 87.6-86 victory and its fourth consecutive win.
That kept the Stampede tied with Missouri at 15-6, although Missouri continues to hold first place on aggregate points.
Carolina Cowboys Defend Home Dirt
The hometown Carolina Cowboys gave the Greensboro crowd plenty to cheer about.
Oklahoma’s Eduardo Matos opened the matchup with an 87.6-point ride on Glitch.
Carolina’s Thiago Salgado answered immediately with an 87.65 on Hoka Hey — just 0.05 points better.
That’s rodeo margins for you.
Rookie Ethan Skogquist, making his PBR Teams debut, then came through with an 86.4-point ride on Night Shift in the fourth.
Adriano Salgado closed the show with 87.25 points aboard Burning Inferno.
Carolina finished with three qualified rides and a commanding 261.30-87.60 victory.
The Cowboys improved to 13-8, holding third place in the standings.
Kansas City Breaks Loose With Four Straight Rides
Well now, somebody opened the gate on the Kansas City Outlaws.
After entering Greensboro on a seven-game losing streak, Kansas City exploded for four consecutive qualified rides in a 351.15-89.35 victory over the Arizona Ridge Riders.
Sandro Batista got things rolling with 88.05 points on Political Cowboy.
Then came Eric Henrique Domingos, who turned in a career-best 89.5 points aboard Without Warning.
Boston Leather added 86.15 on Snake Eyes before Koltin Hevalow rode Velvet Revolver for 87.45.
The Outlaws had a shot at a perfect 5-for-5 night, but 2024 PBR world champion Cassio Dias was bucked off American Made at 6.38 seconds.
Still, four rides and 351.15 points will send just about any team back to the locker room smiling.
Arizona managed one qualified ride when Eduardo Aparecido scored 89.35 on Freedom Fighter during a re-ride.
Marco Rizzo Saves the Mavericks in Final Frame
For four frames, the matchup between the New York Mavericks and Florida Freedom belonged entirely to the bulls.
Nine attempts.
Nine buckoffs.
Then came Marco Rizzo.
With New York needing one cowboy to finally beat the clock, Rizzo climbed aboard High Caliber in the fifth and delivered an 88.75-point ride.
That single score gave the Mavericks an 88.75-0 victory.
New York has now won two consecutive matchups against Florida and carries a two-game winning streak into Saturday.
Missouri and Nashville Deadlocked at the Top
After Friday’s opening round in Greensboro, the PBR Teams standings have Missouri and Nashville running neck-and-neck:
- Missouri Thunder — 15-6, 4,509.35 points
- Nashville Stampede — 15-6, 4,241.65
- Carolina Cowboys — 13-8, 3,269.30
- Austin Gamblers — 11-10, 4,272
- Texas Rattlers — 11-10, 3,453.05
- Arizona Ridge Riders — 10-11, 3,689.25
- Florida Freedom — 9-12, 2,923.85
- Oklahoma Wildcatters — 8-13, 2,471.95
- Kansas City Outlaws — 7-14, 3,341.85
- New York Mavericks — 6-15, 3,062.60
Saturday Night: Rossetto’s Streak Goes Back on the Line
PBR Teams: Cowboy Days continues Saturday, Sept. 19 at 7:15 p.m. ET at First Horizon Coliseum.
All five games are scheduled to air live beginning at 7:30 p.m. ET on The CW.
And folks, there’s no shortage of storylines.
Missouri and Nashville are tied atop the league.
Carolina is chasing on home dirt.
Kansas City just snapped a seven-game skid in spectacular fashion.
And Paulo Eduardo Rossetto now owns the PBR Teams record with 14 straight qualified rides.
Saturday night, he’ll climb into another chute.
The clock will reset to zero.
The bull won’t care about the record.
And Rossetto will have eight seconds to make it 15.
Now that’s something worth pulling your hat down tight for.
