PBR Australia Launches 2021 Origin Event in Newcastle, New South Wales July 3 as Team Queensland and Team New South Wales Battle for Bull Riding Supremacy

 

After holding the inaugural PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Origin event in 2019, the league will once again stage the highly anticipated state vs. state western sports showdown in 2021, launching the three-part series of events on July 3 in Newcastle, New South Wales, at Newcastle Entertainment Centre. Team Queensland and Team New South Wales will go head-to-head to determine which state is the supreme bull riding powerhouse.

PBR Australia held its first Origin event in 2019, when Team Queensland (682.5 points) defeated Team New South Wales (428.5 points) inside Sydney’s ICC Theatre. Now a three-part series of tour stops, the PBR Origin is modeled after the State of Origin rugby event that is considered Australian sport’s greatest rivalry.

The 2021 PBR Origin l - Newcastle will abide by a series of health standards and protocols as approved by New South Wales Health, including:

• Adhering to all local and national contact tracing requirements.
• Social distancing throughout the event, with all riders, stock contractors and staff maintaining 1.5 meter distance, except when crucial to the safe performance of bull riding.
• Signage at venue entry instructing attendees not to enter the venue if they are unwell, have COVID-19 symptoms, have been overseas in the last 14 days, or have been in close contact with a confirmed case.
• Social-distancing floor clings and barriers placed in high-traffic areas to prevent gatherings.
• Increased sanitization of high-contact areas throughout the event.
• Emphasis on digital tickets, and options for cashless concessions and merchandise sales.

For each iteration of the 2021 PBR Origin, each team will be comprised of 10 riders, including a Captain, who will be announced in April 2021.

While the Captain will ride at each of the three events, the remaining nine positions will be filled based on world and national standings at preselected dates throughout the season. With more than $45,000 on the line, and crucial national points awarded to the competing athletes, the PBR Origins Champion will be the team that wins two or more events in the series.

Following PBR Origin I in Newcastle, PBR Origin II will be held in Brisbane, Queensland on July 10 at Brisbane Entertainment Centre, and PBR Origin III will take place on July 17 in Cairns, Queensland at Cairns Convention Centre.

PBR Australia has a storied history in Newcastle, visiting the New South Wales city 13 times in league history.

The nation’s elite Monster Energy Tour last stopped in Newcastle in 2019 when Brady Fielder (Clermont, Queensland) and Fraser Babbington (Gisborne, New Zealand) tied for the event victory.

For Fielder, who was competing amidst his rookie season on home soil, the win was his fifth of the year. Going 2-for-3, the Queensland sensation logged qualified rides aboard Shots (Dittmann Bucking Bulls) for 82.5 points and Black Tuxedo (Peter Wallace) for 86 points. Fielder won two additional events and concluded the season ranked No. 3 in the national standings.

The 2019 season marked the third consecutive iteration of the tour stop when the Newcastle event ended in a tie. In 2018, now three-time PBR Australia Champion Aaron Kleier (Clermont, Queensland) split the win with veteran Cliff Richardson (Gresford, New South Wales), while in 2017, Kleier tied with Babbington.

Other past Newcastle event winners include: Matt Triplett (2017 – Columbia Falls, Montana); Chris Lowe (2016 – Uralla, New South Wales); Sam O’Connor (2014 – Tully, Queensland); Gustavo Pedrero (2013 – Jalisco, Mexico); Lachlan Richardson (2012 – Gresford, New South Wales); Brendon Clark (2011 – Morpeth, New South Wales); Rocky McDonald (2009 – Chihuahua, Mexico); Saras Ramsey (2009 – Aratula, Queensland); and Pete Farley (2008 – Kempsey, New South Wales).

The bull riding action for PBR Origin I – Newcastle begins at 7:30 p.m. AEDT on Saturday, July 3 at Newcastle Entertainment Center. The event will feature three rounds of competition. After each of the 10 competing bull riders for both teams attempt one bull each in Round 1 and Round 2, the Top 4 riders from each team will advance to the bonus round for one final out. The event winner will be the team with the highest combined score in the event aggregate.

In addition to vying for the title of PBR Australia Origin Champion and their share of the event purse, riders will also be competing for points towards the Australian national standings and broader PBR World Standings.

Tickets for the PBR Origin I – Newcastle are on sale now, starting at $46.75, standard fees may apply, and can be purchased at Ticketek.com.au or pbraustralia.com.au.  

All future PBR Australia events are subject to change, planned in accordance with directives issued by relevant government and health authorities given the evolving regulations during the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.