Voice of the PBR Matt West: 'Everybody on our team loves coming to Billings' (2024)

BILLINGS— The Professional Bull Riders try and make every performance in every town feel special.

That is a standard the elite bull riding organization has set for itself as the PBR tries to bring its A-game to every stop on the schedule.

From the PBR bull riders, arena entertainers, personnel and stock contractors, they all try to bring magic to every arena they perform in. They want all fans, from the novice to the hardcore to settle in, enjoy their treats and have a memorable experience.

“You don’t have to be a hardcore bull riding fan. You don’t have to know anything about the sport to come to one of our shows and enjoy it,” said Matt West, the voice of the PBR, who will be the announcer those in attendance at the Metra hear as the PBR visits Billings on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. “If you are on the fence of whether or not you want to come, I promise you to come take the leap and you won’t regret it.”

The PBR Unleash The Beast event coming to the Metra features the world’s 40 best bull riders dancing with the top bovine athletes. Introductions usually include fireworks, while in between the action the arena entertainers clown around as there are plenty of new and old hits that play over the PA system.

So, how would the 41-year-old West— who has worked for the PBR since 2007 and came on tour full-time around 2015— describe a PBR Unleash the Beast event to someone who has never attended the bull riding spectacular?

“It is one of those things where people sometimes imagine or envision a rodeo that is a little slower paced than what we do with the extreme nature of the bull riding,” he said. “When you add in the production element and what we do and incorporate for the fans. They are a big part of the show. We want the people to have just as much fun as the guys in the arena competing. That’s something that we take very serious is putting on an entertaining show for the people that choose to join us.”

"We have fun and care about the audience and make sure they have the most possible fun they can have for the few hours they are with us."

The three-day Wrangler PBR Billings Presented By Cooper Tires will be at the Metra on Friday beginning at 7:45 p.m., Saturday at 6:45 p.m. and Sunday at 1:45 p.m.

This season the elite series is visiting 25 cities across 20 states. The three-day Billings stop will mark the 29th straight year— the longest consecutive-year event on the circuit’s schedule— that the PBR has stopped in the Magic City.

West, who lives near Delaware, Oklahoma, has been traveling with the PBR to the Billings event for approximately a decade. He said the whole PBR lineup looks forward to performing at the Metra.

“We always, everybody on our team, loves coming to Billings for a multitude of reasons,” said West. “It has such a great feel. The city is so welcoming and is a great city. But bigger than that, the people are educated and know what they are looking at. They are our kind of people and know the sport and are there to have a good time and ultimately care about the athletes and know what is happening on our tour.

“Billings is one of the spots we look forward to coming to for everyone on our tour. It feels like home as cliché as that sounds. For a lot of us, Billings is similar to being at home.”

After the Billings stop, only three regular-season events remain on the UTB calendar before the World Finals eliminations begin May 9 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Bull riders will be aiming for a successful weekend to position themselves for the World Finals.

“Billings, being a three-day weekend, will be a highlight of the tour,” said West. “They will ride a lot of bulls and show up with a lot of hunger. It is make-or-break time and they have to do it right now, as they are running out of time.”

Entering Billings, world No. 1 Cassio Dias will be one for fans to watch. Last weekend in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the rookie from Brazil notched his eighth 90-point ride of the season en route to his sixth victory of the year.

The retired Justin McBride and injured Jose Vitor Leme, a two-time Billings winner, hold the PBR record for premier series wins in a year with eight.

“Cassio Dias is chasing history. He’s won six regular-season events already,” said West. “I believe the record is eight, and so he too is running out of time to chase that little historical milestone. With just a few events left in the regular season, Cassio Dias is chasing history.”

Dias has 1,365.33 points and world No. 2 John Crimber of Decatur, Texas, has 784.83 points. Crimber is also a rookie.

The third-ranked bull rider, Dalton Kasel, is out this weekend due to injury.

“Cassio Dias has the lead. There are guys that continue to chip away at it, but we are at the ninth inning,” said West. “A lot of guys are going to show up with a little chip on their shoulder and extra intensity and will be gunning for that No. 1 spot. Time is running out. It is like the last few laps of a NASCAR race. They know there is one more shot and it’s go time and you have to put the petal to the metal, metaphorically, and start making moves.”

“There is a couple of guys that have kind of taken over that role (for Flint Rasmussen),” said West. “In Billings, it will be a young man by the name of Brinson James. His dad was a famous rodeo clown by the name of Hollywood Harris. Hollywood Harris was a legendary rodeo clown in his day and he started taking Brinson with him when he was a newborn baby. Brinson has been on the road since birth basically. He was born into the business.”

“Then we have another guy, we call our stadium or arena host, and his name is Brad Narducci. He’s a Montana (Columbia Falls) native. So basically, he is kind of the guy up amongst the people. He does all of our games, the giveaways, the fun stuff, and plays with the crowd a little bit and kind of helps add to the show and brings a different look and feel and helps make the party bigger. He brings a lot of fun to a very serious sport.”

NOTES: Jess Lockwood of Volborg, a two-time PBR world champion, hasn’t competed this season and is still out with injury. Dakota Louis of Browning, the 2022 Billings winner, is attempting to work his way up the standings and won’t be competing in Billings. Matt Triplett, originally from Columbia Falls, announced last year that he was shifting away from bull riding and pursuing other options. Former Montana State bull rider Chase Dougherty has been competing in the PRCA.