Three weeks ago, the Missouri Thunder were in 7th place and faced an uncertain future. Since then, however, they’ve gone undefeated and are in 2nd place heading into their Thunder Days homestand.

The Missouri Thunder left Freedom Days in early August with a 3-5 overall record and had covered just 14-of-40 bulls, which was the 2nd fewest in the league.

Florida would be the last time the Thunder lost a game.

The Thunder have won their last six games and have finished each of the last two events a perfect 3-0, something only the Nashville Stampede has done this season. They’ve nearly caught up to Nashville’s ride total too, scoring 32-of-70 for 2837.90 total points, 2nd best in the league. The Thunder jumped five spots in the standings while covering 18-of-30 bulls in just two consecutive events.

They’re now right behind the Stampede in the standings, in 2nd place with a 9-5 record, just one game away from stealing the Stampede’s hold on the No. 1 spot for the first time since the season’s inaugural event in Colorado.

This streak is no fluke; the Thunder finished as last year’s Reserve World Champions. These riders know what it takes to succeed, and no one has exemplified that for the Thunder this season better than Paulo Eduardo Rossetto.

Rossetto finished last season in 10th, riding 18-of-33 bulls for an average score of 86.03 points per ride. He was the Reserve Championship MVP, riding 4-of-5 and willing his 7th-seeded Thunder to the Team Championship Finals.

Already this season, Rossetto has ridden 11-of-14 for an average score of 88.28 points per ride, good for 2nd in the MVP race.

He’s ridden his last seven bulls in a row, tying a career record that he’s accomplished twice before. He’ll get the chance to ride a career-best eight consecutive bulls in front of the Missouri Fans come Thunder Days. The odds are in his favor too, as Rossetto has been a perfect 5-for-5 in Game 1s this season.

He needs every ride he can get, though, because despite his incredible seven-ride streak, he’s still a full bull, 92.1 points behind MVP leader Jose Vitor Leme.

Regardless, Paulo Edaurdo Rossetto is riding better than he ever has before.

Supporting him, however, have been eight other Thunder Riders who’ve progressively gotten better, six of whom have scored this season.

Most notably are Julio Cesar Marques and Felipe Furlan, who are ranked 14th and 17th in the MVP race, respectively. Both have ridden exactly 50% of their bulls so far, with Cesar Marques covering seven to Furlan’s six. Furlan has scored more than a point better per ride than Cesar Marques, though, averaging 89.01 to his 87.97.

Furlan has never finished better than 37th in the end-of-season standings, and last year, he covered just 3-of-6 for 66th.

He and Cesar Marques, who is a new addition to the roster this year, have already made up 13 of the 19 total rides from the five 2025 Thunder riders who left the team this offseason.

They’ve also supplemented the role Maverick Smith had last year, as the Thunder’s next best after Rossetto.

Smith finished 24th last year, riding 12-of-31 bulls. He’s had less opportunity this year, but in his first full start last weekend in Austin, Smith covered not just his first bull of the season, but all three bulls, and for 88+ each. He improved to 35th in the MVP race, riding 3-of-6 on the year.

A spot ahead of Smith in the standings is his teammate Macaulie Leather. Leather, like Furlan, had a limited 2025 campaign, finishing 81st, with just two rides in 16 outs. Already this season, though, Leather has covered three bulls in eight outs. All three of the Australian’s outs have been career-highs for him. He was 90 on Running Red, then 91 on Fringe Minority, and most recently 91.05 on Black Eyes last weekend. Leather hadn’t been 90 once before this season began.

Kade Madsen and Ramon Fiorini are the final two riders who’ve scored this season; however, they’ve ridden a combined 2-of-13, with 10 of those outs belonging to Madsen. Despite their struggles, both of Fiorini’s and Madsen’s scores have been crucial to securing victories for the team.

Best Games

Game 1 in Austin versus the Texas Rattlers was a three-ride-to-three-ride thriller, which the Thunder narrowly won by .70 points. Rossetto, Leather, and Smith each scored, totaling 268.35 points. Rossetto had the lowest score of any rider in the game at 88.25, and the Thunder immediately fell behind after Rattlers Brady Fielder and Daniel Keeping scored back-to-back.

Leather would give the Thunder a career-best 91.05 on Black Eyes, putting the Thunder back in front by just over a point.

Smith covered Dirty Bomb to complete his perfect weekend and added 89.05 points to their lead.

It was up to João Ricardo Vieira to save it for the Rattlers, needing 90.15 to win, but he was 89.4 instead, just barely missing the mark, and the Thunder survived.

 The next night, the Thunder faced the No. 1 Nashville Stampede, but remained focused. They rode four to Nashville’s three and racked up a season-high 353.45 points.

Rossetto, Cesar Marques, and Fiorini, in a re-ride opportunity, each scored in a row. It was Fiorini’s first, and only, ride of the season. He was 87.7 on Bowser to extend the Thunder’s lead to nearly 89 points. Leather was the only Thunder rider to buck off, but it affected little, as Nashville had only their closer, Riquelmi Silva, left to save the day. Silva’s 86.9 wasn’t enough to take the lead, and the Thunder secured the early victory.

Although Missouri already clinched the victory, Smith still had to ride. He was 88.1 on Hoka Hey, giving the Thunder their most points in a game this season yet.

The game that began their win streak, however, was Game 1 against the Carolina Cowboys at Stampede Days.

It was a strange game for many reasons; first and foremost, it was the first meeting of both teams since the 2025 World Championship, which saw the Cowboys come out on top.

The Thunder got their revenge, though, winning 167.3 – 89.1.

Rossetto was the first to score, but was 77.1 on Show Biz. The Cowboys challenged the ride for a potential touch, but that challenge failed. Furthermore, Rossetto was offered a re-ride, but co-coaches Ross Coleman and Luke Snyder kept his score.

Keeping a score like that is a contentious decision, especially when you deny a guy like Rossetto a second chance at a big score, but the Thunder had lost their last four games in a row and needed to see points on the board.

That decision immediately looked wrong, though, as Cowboy rider Guilherme Valleiras was 89.1 the ride after Rossetto. However, to the Thunder’s luck, Valleiras’ ride would be the Cowboys’ only ride that day.

Madsen saved the day for the Thunder, scoring his only ride of the season thus far. Madsen hadn’t ridden in the Team Series since 2023, and started 0-for-8 this season before covering Joker for a career-high 90.2 points.

Paulo Eduardo Rossetto’s worst ride of the season, and Kade Madsen’s only ride of the season, sparked a six-game win streak for the Missouri Thunder, and they haven’t slowed down yet.

The Thunder’s success in the first half of this season has truly been a group effort. Top riders like Rossetto, Furlan, and Cesar Marques have done their jobs this season, while Leather, Smith, and their roster depth have provided an extra boost that has kept the Thunder’s winning momentum alive.

Rossetto and the Missouri Thunder will have the same opportunity the Nashville Stampede did when they hosted Stampede Days: extend their winning streak at home and solidify themselves as the top dogs. Unlike the Stampede, though, the Thunder still have the chance to become the first team to remain undefeated at home.

Beginning September 4th and ending the 6th, Thunder Days will be the Missouri Thunder’s biggest test of the season yet. They’ll need another thorough group effort if Rossetto and the Thunder want to exit the weekend on top of their respective leaderboards.