Game Notes – Saskatoon

ALL ROADS TO FINALS GO THROUGH SASKATOON – This weekend, for the 17^th time in history, PBR Canada’s elite Cup Series will buck into Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and SaskTel Centre with the PBR Saskatoon Classic, presented by Redhead Equipment and CASE IH. The Saskatoon tour stop will be the ninth and final regular-season Cup Series event before the 2025 Command Tubular PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Edmonton’s Best Hotels, on Nov. 14-15 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta. The Saskatoon event will begin on Friday, October 24 and Saturday, October 25 at 7:00 p.m. CST.

RELATED: Click here for the complete Saskatoon Game Notes.

MAJOR, MAJOR, MAJOR – During the 2025 season, PBR Canada will host three Majors, offering riders both an increased event purse and Canadian national points. The event in London, Ontario marked the first Major, with the tour stop in Ottawa marking the second. This weekend’s final regular-season Cup Series event of the year in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, will welcome the third and last of the series.  Below is a breakdown of the Canadian national points available this weekend in Saskatoon:

 

	2025 PBR Canada Major		Ride Score Points
	Rounds	Aggregate	Score	Points
1	30	150	70-79.75	7
2	20	94	80-89.75	8
3	14	67	90-99.75	9
4	12	40
5	11	34
6	9	26
7	8	17
8	6	8
9	5	7
10	3	6

THIS WEEKEND’S FORMAT – The PBR Saskatoon Classic will feature three rounds of bull riding and is a Tier 1 Velocity Global event. Each rider will get on one bull in Round 1 on Friday and Round 2 on Saturday. The 10 bull riders with the best combined scores will then advance to the championship round on Saturday, where they will attempt one final bull in an effort to be crowned the event champion. This weekend, one rider will have the chance to earn 240 national points in the main event, in addition to ride score points. Following Friday night’s Round 1, the Top 5 riders from the opening round will attempt five of the event’s top bulls. Featuring both a separate purse, and national points, $10,000 will be available, with the winner set to collect 15 national points.

5/5 BUCKING BATTLE – The opening night of competition for the PBR Saskatoon Classic will feature a 5/5 Bucking Battle. The special round featured at select two-time PBR Canada Cup Series events pits the Top 5 riders from the event’s opening round against the five best bucking bulls at the event, the special round will feature both a separate purse, and national points. The national points will be awarded as: 1^st – 15; 2^nd – 8; and 3^rd – 7. The money will payout as: 1^st - $5,500; 2^nd - $3,000; and 3^rd – $1,500. The bulls slated to buck in the 5/5 Bucking Battle in Saskatoon are:

Pyper (Foley Bucking Bulls)
Lord Fear (Vold Rodeo)
Cracker Jack (W Sunrise)
Nacho (W Sunrise)
High Voltage (Wilson Rodeo)

PARSONAGE CONTINUES TO POUR IT ON – As the elite Cup Series continued last weekend in Medicine Hat, Alberta, veteran contender Jared Parsonage continued his red-hot charge, going a perfect 2-for-2 to finish second and gain crucial ground in the race for the 2025 PBR Canada Championship. Parsonage rode Jojo’s Mojo for 83 points in Round 1, and Write This Down for 86 points in the championship round to earn 79 national points. After travelling to Medicine Hat 186.67 points behind No. 1 Dakota Buttar, Parsonage, who remained No. 3, slashed his deficit to 107.67 points. The Saskatchewan man will look to continue his climb up the standings this weekend in Saskatoon when he climbs aboard Kryptonite in Round 1.  

GARDNER CONTINUES TO GO FOR GOLD – While Jake Gardner may have fallen short of the victory at the most recent Cup Series event in Medicine Hat, Alberta, his gritty performance inside Co-op Place still allowed him to gain crucial ground in the Canadian standings. The “Prince of the Peace Country” tied for seventh, earning 19 national points, compliments of his 83.5-point effort on Highway to Heaven in Round 1. Gardner, however, was denied the victory when he was upended by Whisky at Noon in 5.43 seconds in the final round. Maintaining his No. 2 rank in Canada, Gardner was propelled within a mere 23.5 points of the No. 1 rank after beginning the event 42.5 points back.

Prior to the PBR Saskatoon Classic, Gardner travelled to the United States and Las Vegas to compete for the Challenger Series Championship. On Thursday night in Sin City, Gardner went 0-for-2, bucked off by Hard Eight in 1.22 seconds, and Cat Man Do in 1.59 seconds. He concluded the season No. 2 in the Challenger Series standings, 126.83 points behind Champion Gustavo Luiz da Silva.

PAST SASKATOON EVENT WINNERS – When the Cup Series last travelled to Saskatoon in October 2024, teenage phenom John Crimber rode supreme, clinching his repeat victory of the event inside SaskTel Centre with a monster 90-point ride. Crimber got off to a hot start in the opening round, tying for the Round 1 win compliments of an 86.5-point ride atop Smooth Sailor. The 19-year-old sensation, who rides for the Florida Freedom in the separate PBR Teams league, then overtook sole ownership of the top spot on the leaderboard when he won Round 2 with an 87.5-point ride aboard Sin Wagon. With the first pick in the championship round bull draft, Crimber selected a familiar opponent in Langham Kid. In 2023 in Saskatoon, Crimber clinched the event win in his Canadian debut after going the distance atop the powerful animal athlete for a mammoth 91.5 points. Repeating his past success, Crimber remained in perfect time with Langham Kid, matching him jump-for-jump en route to a 91-point score, clinching the 2024 victory.

Prior to the 2021 Cup Series event, Saskatoon had been home to the PBR Canada National Finals. Of the 16 prior PBR Canada events held in Saskatoon, 10 have marked the year-end PBR Canada National Finals. 

2024 John Crimber
2023 John Crimber
2022 Lonnie West
2021 Jordan Hansen
2019 Daylon Swearingen*
2018 Cody Coverchuk*
2017 Zane Lambert / Edgar Durazo*
2016 Zane Lambert*
2015 Brady Oleson*
2014 Aaron Roy*
2014 Rosendo Ramirez
2013 Scott Schiffner*
2012 Ty Pozzobon*
2011 Dusty Ephrom/Harve Stewart*
2010 Mike Lee*
2009 Aaron Roy

FAMILIAR WATERS – Round 1 of the PBR Saskatoon Classic will feature six rematches. Those riders facing familiar opponents are:

• Aaron Roy will climb aboard King Pin for the second time in his career. While Roy came down in 5.07 seconds in their first meeting at this July’s Cup Series event in Kelowna, British Columbia, the three-time PBR Canada Champion was awarded a re-ride.
• Cauy Schmidt’s rivalry with Bow Before Me will also be renewed. At the September 2024 Cup Series event in Grande Prairie, Alberta, the powerful bovine athlete upended Schmidt in 5.32 seconds.
• Eric O’Flynn has drawn Finger Roll for the second time. The two first met in July 2024 at the Touring Pro Division stop in Calgary, with O’Flynn sent airborne in 3 seconds.
• Gilmar Santana will look to crack the code atop Toxic Masculinity. Roughly two months ago at the Touring Pro Division event in Kindersley, Saskatchewan, Toxic Masculinity bucked off the Brazilian contender in 5.78 seconds.
• Griffin Koester and Posty are also paired up for the second time. At this September’s Touring Pro Division event in Kindersley, Saskatchewan, Kindersley was bested by the bull in a swift 2.84 seconds.
• Jake Gardner has drawn the final rematch in Super Fly. The Prince of the Peace Country will look to even the score against the bull after being bucked off in 2.74 seconds at this past February’s Cup Series stop in Red Deer, Alberta.

NEXT UP – Following a three-week break, the 2025 PBR Canada season will conclude in Edmonton, Alberta for the Command Tubular PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Edmonton’s Best Hotels, when the 2025 PBR Canada Champion will be crowned, earning the accompanying $100,000 bonus. Action for the year-end event inside Rogers Place will get underway at 7:00 p.m. MT on Friday, November 14 and Saturday, November 15.

PROVIDING PROTECTION – The bullfighters on hand for this weekend’s event in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, are Jesse Byrne, Tanner Byrne and Logan Kadlec.

 

SASKATOON COMPETITORS BY COUNTRY

Brazil (2) – Jerson Arantes, Gilmar Santana

Canada (25) – Logan Biever, Dakota Buttar, Cody Coverchuk, Weston Davidson, Tanner Eno, Jake Gardner, Wyatt Gleeson, Garrett Green, Jordan Hansen, Griffin Koester, Eric O’Flynn, Jeremy Maisonneauve, Tristen Manning, Shay Marks, Austin Paley, Jared Parsonage, Aaron Roy, Ashton Sahli, Cauy Schmidt, Brayden Shore, Tanner Skene, Chanse Switzer, Nick Tetz, Stefan Tonita, Lonnie West

New Zealand (1) – Wade Marshall

BREAKDOWN BY PROVINCE –

Alberta – Logan Biever, Tanner Eno, Wyatt Gleeson, Garrett Green, Jordan Hansen, Griffin Koester, Tristen Manning, Shay Marks, Austin Paley, Ashton Sahli, Cauy Schmidt, Nick Tetz, Lonnie West; British Columbia – Jake Gardner, Eric O’Flynn; Quebec – Jeremy Maisonneauve; Saskatchewan – Dakota Buttar, Cody Coverchuk, Weston Davidson, Jared Parsonage, Aaron Roy, Brayden Shore, Tanner Skene, Chanse Switzer, Stefan Tonita.