NASHVILLE, Tenn. – For the 23rd time in league history, PBR’s (Professional Bull Riders) elite Unleash The Beast will buck into Nashville, Tennessee, holding the fan-attended Ariat Music City Knockout, presented by Cooper Tires, August 21-22 at Bridgestone Arena.
For two nights only, the world’s top bull riders will battle the sport’s rankest bovine athletes in the ultimate showdown of man vs. beast – the only sport that pits a lightweight against a heavyweight in epic 8-second confrontations.
The PBR Ariat Music City Knockout, presented by Cooper Tires, will follow all local and state health directives, and alongside Bridgestone Arena, take into consideration guidance from the Metro Board of Health, Mayor John Cooper’s Office, and Vanderbilt Health, while activating the league’s “Be Cowboy Safe,” plan. Those fan safety protocols, which are also outlined in the Tennessee Venue Pledge, launched by Bridgestone Arena and the Nashville Predators, include:
- All fans, as well as staff and competitors, will be required to wear face masks inside Bridgestone Arena. Gaiters, bandanas and coverings with exhalation valves or vents are prohibited.
- All PBR personnel will undergo CDC-informed screening and medical testing for COVID-19.
- Fans will be required to complete a pre-event symptom screening.
- PBR will sell a limited arena capacity to separate fans and promote a safe seating environment. In the week’s prior to the event, the league may modify seating capacity based on changes to local mandates.
- Clear, 12”x12” bags, medical bags and parenting bags will be the only bags permitted inside Bridgestone Arena following x-ray screening. Backpacks of any kind are not permitted.
- Mobile-only ticketing and contactless ticket scanning to ensure contactless entry.
- Bridgestone Arena has gone cashless at concession and merchandise stands.
- Signage will be placed strategically throughout Bridgestone Arena to encourage physical distancing and health safety protocols, as well as remind guests of new and updated policies.
- Increased sanitization of high-contact areas including doors, railings, concession counters, merchandise stands, bathrooms and elevators.
- Hand sanitizer stations will be placed throughout the venue at high volume areas to promote hand hygiene.
Following the onset of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, Bridgestone Arena first welcomed back fans in January 2021. In the months since, the venue has hosted patrons for both Nashville Predators hockey games, and two shows for the Mike Epps Comedy Tour.
Positioned in the second-half of the elite tour’s schedule as the tentatively planned 19th event of the 2021 Unleash The Beast series, the PBR Ariat Music City Knockout plays a key role in shaping the race for the World Championship. Historically, the Nashville event has been won eight times by a PBR World Champion.
In recent history, Cooper Davis (Jasper, Texas) used a win at the Music City Knockout in 2016 as a key stepping stone to capturing the year’s world title.
Davis is the lone rider to win in the Music City in the same year he captured the coveted gold buckle; 1997 World Champion Michael Gaffney (1996) and three-time World Champion Adriano Moraes (2000), both won the title the year following their victory in Nashville. Two-time World Champion Justin McBride (2002 and 2008) won the event after earning his second championship in 2007. The other World Champions to stand atop the shark cage in Nashville are: 1996 World Champion Owen Washburn (2004), 2008 World Champion Guilherme Marchi (2013) and 2018 World Champion Kaique Pacheco (2015).
In 2021, five World Champions are expected to contend for the event title. Past winners Davis and Pacheco are set to be joined by three-time World Champion Silvano Alves (Pilar do Sul, Brazil), two-time World Champion Jess Lockwood (Volborg, Montana) and reigning World Champion Jose Vitor Leme (Ribas do Rio Pardo, Brazil).
Additionally, in the 22 trips that PBR’s premier series has made to the city, only three riders have won the tour stop multiple times: Terry Don West (1998 and 1999), McBride (2002 and 2008) and Robson Palermo (2007 and 2012).
This season, 2019 Music City Knockout Champion Marco Eguchi (Poa, Brazil), alongside past winners Cody Teel (2018) and Pacheco, all of whom are anticipated to compete, will look to join the elite ranks of multi-time victors.
The remaining event winners include: J.W. Hart (1995) Jerome Davis (1997), Dusty LaBeth (2001), Billy Robinson (2003), Cody Ford (2009), Ben Jones (2010), Chase Outlaw (2014) and Fabiano Vieira (2017).
The bull riding action for the PBR Ariat Music City Knockout, presented by Cooper Tires, in Nashville at Bridgestone Arena begins at 6:45 p.m. CDT on Saturday, August 21, and at 1:45 p.m. CDT on Sunday, August 22.
Tickets for the two-day event go on sale Friday, May 21 at 10:00 a.m. CDT, and start at $20, 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 $400. Tickets can be purchased online at TicketMaster.com or PBR.com, or by calling PBR customer service at 1-800-732-1727.
For an enhanced PBR experience, fans can now purchase add-on PBR Premium Experiences, which will include the Elite Experience, in-person meet-and-greets, and Bubbly and Bulls Ladies Clinic.
The Elite Experience and in-person meet-and-greets will be available on August 21-22.
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, exclusive merchandise item, concession voucher and commemorative lanyard, while the meet-and-greets, available for $50, will feature two of the event’s competing riders, with the purchasers also receiving an exclusive autograph card.
Offered on Saturday, August 21 at 4:30 p.m. CDT, the Bubbly and Bulls Ladies Clinic is an afternoon of champagne wishes and cowboy dreams, with purchasers getting behind the ride insights from the league’s top stock contractor, bull riders, and more.
Complete travel packages will also be available 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 other add-ons, including the complete travel packages, for the PBR Ariat Music City Knockout, presented by Cooper Tires, in Nashville visit https://pbr.com/tickets/premium-experiences/.
About PBR (Professional Bull Riders):
PBR is the world’s premier bull riding organization. More than 500 bull riders compete in more than 200 events annually across the televised PBR Unleash the Beast Tour (UTB), which features the Top 35 bull riders in the world; the PBR Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour (PWVT); the PBR Touring Pro Division (TPD); and the PBR’s international circuits in Australia, Brazil, Canada and Mexico. PBR’s digital assets include RidePass, which is home to Western sports. PBR is a subsidiary of IMG, a global leader in sports, fashion, events and media.