# Unleash the Beast Series

* This article is part of a series about Professional Bull Riders
Champions
PBR World Champions
World Finals Event Champions
Rookie of the Year
World Champion Bull
Touring Pro Division Champions
Velocity Tour Champions
PBR Global Cup
American Bucking Bull
Awards
Glen Keeley Award recipients
Lane Frost/Brent Thurman Award recipients
Stock Contractor of the Year
Bull of the Finals
Professional Bull Riders: Heroes and Legends
Ring of Honor
Ty Murray Top Hand Award
Brand of Honor
Jim Shoulders Lifetime Achievement Award
Sharon Shoulders Award
Tours
Unleash the Beast Series
Velocity Tour
Touring Pro Division
Built Ford Tough Series
Bud Light Cup Series
Statistics
90 Point Club
High Marked Bull
All Time Money Earners :
vte :
The Unleash the Beast Series (UTB) is the Premier Series of the Professional Bull Riders (PBR). Monster Beverage Corporation is the current series sponsor for the premiership since 2018. From its founding in 1994 through 2002, it was sponsored by Anheuser-Busch (Bud Light Cup Series), and Ford Motor Company (Built Ford Tough Series) from 2003 through 2017.
The UTB series was televised on CBS Sports Network from January 2018 through May 2024. It was also televised on TUDN and streamed on Vix Premium, both in Spanish, in 2024. Since November 2024, it is available for free on the PBR's YouTube channel, RidePass on Pluto TV and the PBR's mobile app.
The top 40 riders and top bulls compete at each event. It culminates at the PBR Unleash the Beast World Finals at the end of the regular season. The UTB series includes 24 events across the United States each year. Pyrotechnics, pulsating music, and special effects open each event. UTB events range from one to three days, with all 40 riders competing in the long rounds, then the top 12 returning to the Championship Round to determine the event winner.
Major events offered competition in different formats, bonus bulls, and more prize money. The PBR did not visit New York City or Los Angeles in 2021 because of COVID-19 restrictions in said locations, and the Iron Cowboy event took place at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, that year in the summer instead of its usual run in the winter. The Iron Cowboy was discontinued in the United States after 2021. The UTB series returned to Madison Square Garden in New York City and Crypto.com Arena (formerly Staples Center) in Los Angeles in 2022. Since said year, neither Cheyenne or Nashville are events on the UTB schedule. Nashville is now a stop on the PBR Team Series schedule. In 2022 and 2023, Cheyenne was also a Team Series event, but in 2024, the Last Cowboy Standing returned to Cheyenne; only now as a stop on the PBR's lower-level Challenger Series. In 2025, the Last Cowboy Standing became a part of the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo.
After a two-year hiatus, Majors returned to the Premier Series in 2024. These events included the Monster Energy Buck Off at the Garden in New York, New York; the Wrangler Long Live Cowboys Classic in Sacramento, California; and the Ty Murray Invitational in Albuquerque, New Mexico. As of 2025, these events remain on the UTB schedule. However, the Majors concept has since been discontinued again.
The 15/15 Bucking Battle was offered at some UTB events. This bonus round matched the top 15 bull riders against the top 15 bulls in attendance. The matching was random. There was a separate purse for this round. Points were earned at the rate of 1 and 1/2 times the round points. Points did not factor into the event winner, but did count toward the UTB standings. The winner was the bull rider with the highest ride score. 15/15 Bucking Battles were broadcast on CBS. They debuted in 2012 and lasted through 2024.
Qualifying for the PBR World Finals used to be based on points earned at all of the PBR's tours, which included the UTB elite tour, mid-level (Velocity Tour), and entry level (Touring Touring Division) tour, and the International tours. International tours include Australia, Brazil, and Canada. However, since 2023, only points won on the UTB series count towards the PBR World Finals and world championship race. Mexico also had a PBR tour, but the COVID-19 pandemic and financial struggles were major factors that led to its eventual shutdown in 2023. The top 40 riders in the UTB standings according to points earned, the Velocity Tour champion, the top three point earners in the Velocity Tour after the conclusion of its finals event, and the highest ranked finishing international rider not already ranked inside the top 35 of the UTB standings all compete at the World Finals.
Since 2024, the PBR World Finals are held at two different venues in two different cities in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex; the first six days at Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, then the final two days at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. The event's prize money also increased from $2.7 million to 3.13 million. This includes the $1 million bonus to the World Champion, who also receives a trophy cup and championship gold belt buckle. The latter of which the value increased from $10,000 to $20,000 in 2018.

## Inaugural season (2018)

Monster Beverage Corporation took over sponsorship of the PBR's Premier Series, replacing Ford Motor Company, including the new title of the Unleash the Beast Series.

## 2020 season changes

In March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, numerous stops on the PBR schedule were either cancelled or rescheduled to later dates. In the spring in the United States, the PBR held events that were closed to the public, but in the summer, events were allowed to have limited and socially distanced crowds. The PBR's international tours in Canada and Australia were cleared to return later that year with similar rules for attendance, but there were no PBR events in Mexico and Brazil that year due to said countries' restrictions on large events.
The PBR World Finals was moved from its usual location at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas because of Nevada state restrictions on large events to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The World Finals consisted of a limited and socially distanced audience throughout the event. The event's format changed to where all the top 35 point-earners, the Velocity Tour Champion, the top-three finishers from the Velocity Tour Finals, and the top finishing international invitee competed in the first three rounds. Only the top 30 riders based on total points returned for the fourth round. The top 15 riders after four rounds advanced to the Championship Round.

## 2021 season changes

The number of riders who qualified for the Championship Round at Unleash the Beast Series events was cut from 15 to 12.
The PBR World Finals returned to T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in 2021 and had an event format similar to the one from 2020. All contestants rode in Rounds 1 through 3, then the top 30 point earners in the event advanced to Round 4. The top 12 riders then competed in the Championship Round.

## 2022 season changes

In the past, the Premier Series schedule consisted of events taking place throughout the regular calendar year with the concluding PBR World Finals taking place in the autumn. But in 2022, the season was shortened, taking place from winter to spring. All subsequent Premier Series seasons now run like this.
The PBR World Finals moved from its longtime home in Las Vegas, Nevada, to Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. Also, the event's format changed to a previous one that was used from 2004 through 2009. The World Finals was again an eight-round event split into two weekends where the first three rounds took place the first weekend, then the next five rounds took place the following weekend.
The cut rules were changed for the 2022 World Finals. Previously, all riders participated in the first seven rounds before the cut based on the 15 highest scoring riders based on the combined score of the first seven rounds participated in the Championship Round. Starting in 2022, a two-tiered cut was imposed. The first cut, at the end of the sixth round, eliminated riders who failed to make a qualified ride. The second cut, at the end of the seventh round, was the top twelve riders in cumulative score who advance to the Championship Round.

## 2023 season changes

The number of riders on the Premier Series was increased from 35 to 40; the last time being there were 40 riders in the Premier Series regular season was during the first five events of the 2012 season.
Previously, points won by riders on the Premier Series, as well as the PBR's U.S. lower-level tours and international circuits counted for the world standings towards the world championship race. However, by 2023, only points won on the U.S. Premier Series counted towards the world championship race.
From 2015 through 2022, the year-end champion from the U.S. PBR circuit's lower-level Velocity Tour, the top three finishers from the Velocity Tour Finals event, and the invitee rider representing one of PBR's four international circuits from Canada, Mexico, Brazil or Australia that placed the highest at the Velocity Tour Finals received wild-card berths; joining the top 35 riders who earned the most world points during the regular season at the PBR World Finals. In 2023, the rules were changed; The top 35 riders who earned the most points in the U.S. Premier Series (excluding the U.S. lower-level tours, as well as the international tours) qualified for the World Finals. As did the Velocity Tour champion and the highest-finishing international invitee at the Velocity Tour Finals. However, instead of the top three finishers from the Velocity Tour Finals, they would now be joined by the top three finishers from the Velocity Global point standings that were not already qualified for the World Finals.

## 2024 season changes

The PBR World Finals are now an eight-day event taking place at two different venues in two different cities in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex; the first six days being held at Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, then the final two days taking place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.
The World Finals' format was changed again. There are now ten rounds in eight days in a playoff-style competition:
* The first four Elimination rounds are held at Cowtown Coliseum. The top 40 riders from the UTB standings, as well as the five wild-card riders from the Velocity Tour Finals, each ride one bull per round. After the conclusion of these rounds, the top 15 riders in the UTB standings, as well as the top five finishing riders from the Elimination rounds not already in the top 15 UTB standings, automatically qualify for the Championship rounds. The World Finals then take one day off before resuming.
* The next two Ride for Redemption rounds are also held at Cowtown Coliseum. They feature the 25 riders that did not qualify for the Championship rounds via the Elimination rounds, as well as 15 invited riders. After the conclusion of these rounds, the top five finishing riders from the Redemption rounds move on to the Championship rounds. The World Finals then take another day off before resuming.
* The final four Championship rounds are held at AT&T Stadium. They take place during the final two days of the World Finals. The final 25 riders compete in two rounds per day; their combined scores from the previous rounds having been wiped clean. The five riders that advanced from the Redemption rounds must successfully ride at least one bull in the first two Championship rounds in order to advance to the final two rounds. The rider who earns the most points throughout the Championship rounds is the World Finals event champion. The rider with the most UTB points at the conclusion of the fourth Championship round is the PBR World Champion.

## 2025 season changes

Beginning in 2025, the majority of UTB regular-season events include Team Series exhibition games known as the Monster Energy Team Challenge presented by Camping World. They consist of two teams competing against each other after the completion of the first round of the regular UTB event. The Monster Energy Team Challenge events are broadcast on CBS.
This iteration of the Monster Energy Team Challenge is not to be confused with the identically named Monster Energy Team Challenge from 2020, as the latter was a temporary series of events taking place during the COVID-19 shutdown and the riders were competing against each other as teams represented by some of the PBR's corporate sponsors. The former is a permanent series of events where teams of riders compete against each other while representing different regions of the United States as they do during the Camping World Team Series in the summer and autumn since 2022.
Another difference is that the Monster Energy Team Challenge from 2020 did not have a presenting sponsor, while this new one has Camping World as its presenting sponsor.