Alan de Souza of the Nashville Stampede is the 2023 PBR Challenger Series Champion

Action from Thursday night's PBR Challenger Series ChampionshipPhoto byDouglas Pilarski

Alan de Souza (Taubate, Brazil) won the 2023 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Challenger Series Championship during the tour’s season-ending championship event at the sold-out South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa on Thursday night.

Alan de Souza - 2023 PBR Challenger Series ChampionPhoto byCourtesy of PBR

Souza held a 76.33-point lead over No. 2 John Crimber (Decatur, Texas). Crimber and Souza were the contenders remaining in the 2023 PBR Challenger Series Champion.

Crimber’s 89-point ride atop Huckleberry (Buckin Fun Group/Twisted Horn Ranch). was enough to give him a victory in Round 1.

Action from Thursday night's PBR Challenger Series ChampionshipPhoto byDouglas Pilarski

Crimber’s ride, paired with Souza’s hard-fought 6.29-second buckoff atop Blown Away (Nothin’ But Try Ranch/Diggers/Kinser/McCall), led him to inch within 48.33 points of the top spot.

Action from Thursday night's PBR Challenger Series ChampionshipPhoto byDouglas Pilarski

Souza did not advance to the championship round, giving the 18-year-old phenom Crimber a chance to clinch the year-end title should he make the requisite 8 atop Baby Huey (M Rafter E/High View Cattle).

Crimber, no match for Baby Huey, was sent flying in 4.3 seconds.

The buckoff cemented the 2023 PBR Challenger Series Championship for Souza. Crimber finished fourth at the 2023 PBR Challenger Series Championship with 49 points. He finished second to Souza by 27.33 points.

Souza and Crimber both earned automatic berths to the 2024 PBR Unleash The Beast season, alongside 2002 PBR World Champion Ednei Caminhas (Indaiatuba, Brazil), Dakota Buttar (Eatonia, Saskatchewan, Canada) and Conner Halverson (Gordon, Nebraska) via their overall finish in the 2023 PBR Challenger Series Global standings.

The Texas Rattlers’ Eli Vastbinder (Statesville, North Carolina) went a perfect 2-for-2 in Las Vegas to win the 2023 PBR Challenger Series Championship event title.

Vastbinder got off to a hot start in Round 1 when he rode It’s Cherry (Halpain Bucking Bulls) for 83 points.

Entering the championship round fifth on the event leaderboard, he next took on Trump Train (Dakota Rodeo/Chad Berger). In what proved to be a perfect pairing, Vastbinder remained centered, matching the bovine athlete jump-for-jump en route to the whistle. Scored a monstrous 90 points, Vastbinder surged to the top of the event leaderboard, cementing his event win.

Vastbinder left South Point Arena Thursday evening, having earned 124 Challenger Series points. He finished the season at No. 37 in the standings.

SHOWDOWN

Action from Thursday night's PBR Challenger Series ChampionshipPhoto byDouglas Pilarski

PBR action from Las Vegas continued Oct. 20-22 with the 2023 PBR Camping World Teams Championship at T-Mobile Arena.

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Douglas Pilarski is an award-winning writer & journalist based on the West Coast. He writes about luxury goods, exotic cars, horology, tech, food, lifestyle, equestrian and rodeo, magazine features, and millionaire travel. 

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