The PBR Team Series returns this weekend to Missouri for Thunder Days after a week-long hiatus, with massive standings implications on the line.

The Nashville Stampede are still on top, but the home-team Missouri Thunder are hot on their trail, looking to extend their six-game winning streak.

Furthermore, the Austin Gamblers and Kansas City Outlaws are still stuck in obscurity, but a great event finish this weekend can change their entire season trajectory.

It’s anyone’s weekend, though, as the season nears its halfway point.

Missouri Thunder:

Just a few weeks ago, the Thunder sat in 7th place with a 3-5 record, unsure of their future. However, Missouri has won every single game since and enters their namesake Thunder Days on a six-game winning streak.

The Thunder will get the incredible opportunity to extend that win streak on their home turf and, potentially, become the new No. 1. Currently, they hold a 9-5 record and sit in 2nd place, just a single game behind the leading Nashville Stampede.

They’re led by Paulo Eduardo Rossetto, who’s ridden 11-of-14 for an average score of 88.28 points per ride and sits 2nd in the MVP race.

Rossetto has ridden his last seven bulls in a row, tying a career record that he’s accomplished twice before. He’ll get the chance Friday to ride a career-best eighth consecutive bull, and the odds are in his favor too, as Rossetto has been a perfect 5-for-5 in Game 1s this season.

Supporting Rossetto are Julio Cesar Marques and Felipe Furlan, who’ve combined for 13 of the Thunder’s 32 rides this season. The Thunder won’t be starting Furlan on Friday, however, opting to give Macualie Leather the go and see if he can continue his momentum after he was a career-high 91.05 on Black Eyes last weekend.

Furthermore, Maverick Smith will have the opportunity to build upon his perfect 3-for-3 weekend in Austin and inch back to the level he was at last season.

No team this season has exited their homestand undefeated, but the Thunder can change that this weekend. Their roster will be posturing for the No. 1 spot beginning Friday against a resilient but underhanded Florida Freedom team.

Nashville Stampede:

The Nashville Stampede will enter their fourth straight event ranked No. 1 in the league. They lead the league in rides (33), points (2925.05), riders in the top 15 (4), and wins (10). With a 10-4 overall record, the Stampede are just one game ahead of the Thunder and Cowboys, who are tied at 9-5 each.

They’ll have to respond to adversity this weekend, as they’re also coming off their first 1-2 weekend of the season back in Austin.

Their top four riders: Riquelmi Silva, Rogério Venâncio, Alan de Souza, and Daniel Feitosa have yet to miss a beat, combining for 31 of the Stampede’s 33 rides on the season, despite the slip-up two weeks ago in Austin.

Silva has led the team, riding 9-of-14 for 796.1 points and is 3rd in the MVP race.

Nashville will face an irritated Gamblers team eager to dig themselves out of the bottom of the standings on Friday. Nashville got the better of the Gamblers the last time they faced each other in a narrow 263.30 – 226.65 bout back in Florida.

Carolina Cowboys:

The Carolina Cowboys have hung onto their 3rd-place spot, despite having the 2nd-fewest rides (23) and 3rd-fewest points (2028.40). Their record is tied with the Missouri Thunder at 9-5, and they’re a game ahead of the Arizona Ridge Riders.

Carolina is coming off a 2-1 weekend where they scored just 5-of-15 rides; four of those rides, however, came in Game 3, in a 346.85-point win over the home team Gamblers in Austin.

It was the most rides and points they’ve scored all season, and a stark jump in firepower compared to the rest of their season. Furthermore, 2025 Championship MVP Clay Guiton finally covered his first bull of the season after bucking off his previous nine.

That boost may be the turning point the Cowboys needed to keep their momentum alive, as maintaining their top-three status while scoring like the bottom-three is unsustainable throughout the rest of the season.

The Salgado brothers, Thiago and Adriano, have held down the fort this season, but will need to do so again on Friday against a hungry Arizona Ridge Riders squad that’s just a game behind the Cowboys and looking to bounce back into 2nd place.

Arizona Ridge Riders:

The Arizona Ridge Riders had a down weekend in Austin, losing two games and falling to 4th from 2nd in the league standings, despite a 2-for-3 showing from both Elizmar Jeremias and Everton Natan da Silva.

The Ridge Riders were without Luciano De Castro in Austin, though, but he will return this Friday against the Cowboys. The team’s second-best rider, Eduardo Aparecido, also posted an uncharacteristic single-score event.

The Ridge Riders need their top-20 core of Aparecido, Jeremias, da Silva, and De Castro together, as they’re the team’s engine. Those four have combined to ride 27 of the team’s 32 rides.

The consistency of those four alleviates the pressure on their less experienced riders, allowing guys like Nick Tetz, the 2x PBR Canada Champion, to find their footing. Tetz debuted in Austin, although he finished 0-for-2. He gets the start again Friday, although this time in the closer position.

The Ridge Riders are back at full strength and get an important game on Friday against the Cowboys. They’re just a game behind Carolina, at 8-5, and can potentially reach 2nd place again with a win.

Texas Rattlers:

The Texas Rattlers have won three of their last nine games, spanning the last three events. They started their season with a 4-1 record but have since fallen to 5th place, with a 7-7 record.

Brady Fielder and Daniel Keeping have been the only riders keeping the team from falling apart, combining for 15 of the team’s 25 rides.

The Rattlers made a trade this past week, however, exchanging Andrew Alvidrez and their 2028 1st Round Draft Pick to the Austin Gamblers for Lucas Divino. Divino has ridden just 1-of-5 this season and has never ridden more than nine bulls in a season, doing so last year and in 2022. Alvidrez is 0-for-3 this season, and hasn’t covered more than eight bulls in a Teams season since 2022.

Divino will debut for the Rattlers on Friday alongside the team’s 2026 draft pick, Jesus Villa.

While the Rattlers aren’t in a position to rely on their depth, they get an excellent opportunity to develop depth against the last-place New York Mavericks. However, the Mavericks did earn their first win of the season against the Rattlers back in Florida, dominating them 348.70 – 91.35.

Florida Freedom:

The Florida Freedom had a much-needed bounce-back 2-1 weekend in Austin after a disastrous 0-3 showing the week prior. The Freedom have been without 2x League MVP John Crimber for that stretch, and will remain without him again beginning Friday.

Without Crimber, Florida’s ceiling is capped.

Austin Richardson has put together a strong season, riding 7-of-14 for 9th in the MVP race, but he’s the only Freedom rider in the top-20.

In 21st and 26th are João Lucas Campos and Alex Cerqueira, who’ve each scored five rides.

No other Freedom rider has more than two rides this season.

It will be another difficult event for the Freedom, especially as they begin their weekend against the home team, Missouri Thunder, who are on a six-game win streak.

Austin Gamblers:

The Austin Gamblers had a disappointing showing at their namesake Gambler Days, finishing 1-2. That dropped their overall record to 6-8, good for 7th in the League. They’ve scored the fourth most rides (31) and points (2694) in the league, despite their negative record.

12 of those rides and 1063.20 points belong to 2x League MVP Jose Vitor Leme, who’s ridden his last nine in a row. Leme once again leads the MVP race, but the next highest-ranked Gambler is Sage Kimzey, in 24th. Kimzey, along with Dalton Kasel, who’s currently 27th, finished 8th and 9th in last year’s MVP race, leading the Gamblers.

Kaique Pacheco and Dener Barbosa round out the group of Gamblers with more than a single score this year, and have combined to ride seven.

The Gamblers reinforced their confidence in their top five riders and traded away Lucas Divino, who was 1-for-5 this season, to the Texas Rattlers for Andrew Alvidrez and their 2028 1st Round Draft Pick. Alvidrez is just 0-for-3 this season, but has ridden as many as 11 before in a season, back in 2022.

While Leme will be looking to score his 10th in a row come Friday, the Gamblers will need Kimzey, Kasel, Barbosa, and Vinicius Pinheiro Correa to be on point as they face the No.1 Nashville Stampede.

Kansas City Outlaws:

The Kansas City Outlaws have been stuck in mediocrity, but have a roster full of proven riders.

Sandro Batista has been incredible for the Outlaws. He’s ridden 9-of-14 and sits 5th in the MVP race.

Their next best has been Rookie Hayden Welsh in 25th. Welsh has covered 5-of-8 for 87.9 points, on average.

Behind him are Outlaw staples Cassio Dias and Koltin Hevalow, with four rides each. Despite Dias’ 36.36% ride percentage, he can never be counted out, as he finished in the top five in both 2023 and 2024. Hevalow and Welsh have yet to hit double-digit outs this season, and as they get more opportunities under their belts, the team can grow.

The Outlaws don’t have to hit the panic button yet, but they need to earn some positive weekends soon.

They’ll get their chance for a win on Friday against the 9th-place Oklahoma Wildcatters.

Oklahoma Wildcatters:

The Oklahoma Wildcatters have finished the last four events with a 1-2 record. Overall, they are 5-9 in 9th place, but can get to eighth on Friday with a win over the 8th-place Outlaws.

As a team, the Wildcatters have the fewest rides (20) and points (1769.45) in the League by a large margin; the last-place Mavericks have three more rides than Oklahoma.

Just one rider, Kaiden Loud, has covered at least 50% of his bulls, and he’s just 4-for-8. Edaurdo Matos, the team’s leading rider, has covered 6-of-14 and is 18th in the MVP race.

Kase Hitt and Trace Redd have shown flashes of greatness, but have combined for just seven rides in 22 outs.

So far, no Wildcatter is close to being in the running for any of the team’s $1,300,000 in MVP bonus money.

Change doesn’t happen overnight, but it could start Friday against an Outlaw team that’s just a game ahead in the standings.

New York Mavericks:

The New York Mavericks had their very first positive event in Austin, where they finished 2-1. That showing tripled their season win total, and they’ll enter Thunder Days with a 3-11 record.

Marco Rizzo took a massive step up for the Mavericks in Austin, covering 3-of-3 for 265.9 points, including scoring 90.2 on Freedom Fighter to win Game 2 against the Wildcatters.

Rizzo had to earn that closing position, and now, it feels like he owns it.

Rizzo has covered 7-of-12 this season, the same as teammate Mauricio Gulla Moreira. Gulla Moreira is ranked 12th, one spot higher than Rizzo at 13th.

Five other Maverick riders have scored at least once this season; however, none of them are ranked in the top 35.

The Mavericks signed Afonso Junior Quintino to their reserve roster ahead of Thunder Days. Junior Quintino has never ridden in the Team Series, but he covered 11-of-32 in the 2026 UTB season.

Junior Quintino should add some much-needed help to this roster, but he won’t start Friday.

The Mavericks will face the Texas Rattlers on Friday, whom they crushed 348.70 – 91.35 for their first win of the season back in Florida.