Stampede From the Coast: Five Velocity Riders Clinch World Finals Berths in Corpus Christi!

The journey to the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) World Finals ignited with an electric energy inside the American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas, this weekend at the Pendleton Whisky Velocity Tour Finals! The stakes were sky-high: a $100,000 purse and, more importantly, five golden berths to the next electrifying stage of competition inside Fort Worth’s legendary Cowtown Coliseum.
One of those berths went to Velocity Tour 2025 Year-end champion Marcus Mast, who narrowly edged out Afonso Quintino by a mere 12.5 points at the conclusion of the Finals. Mast, who rides for the Kansas City Outlaws in the separate PBR Teams league, will be making his third World Finals appearance and will be joined by four other riders.
Mast started his climb to success with a fourth-place finish in round one of the Velocity Finals after an 86.25-point ride aboard Vigilante and an 80.50-point ride on Shakira secured him a spot in the Championship round, where he made an interesting decision to keep a low 64.75-point ride aboard Watch Out. But that decision and those ahead of him in the standings stubbing their toes led him to be the year-end champion.
2022 PBR Rookie of the Year Bob Mitchell scanned his QR code to the Cowtown Coliseum along with Quintino. Based on their standings in Velocity Global, could these two berths lead to some fireworks from one of the riders to have a standout World Finals appearance?
Afonso’s three Velocity Tour event wins in Greenville, Memphis, and Worcester helped propel him to the top of the standings heading into the Velocity Tour Finals and ensured he would find a way to the World Finals based on his strong standings. Bob Mitchell had a solid year and only one event championship in Oakland to close the season. He still stayed closely behind Afonso and will look to capitalize on his berth in Fort Worth.
There is always one rider who has a standout performance under the pressure and bright lights of the PBR World Finals, and it could be one of these two riders who uses that pressure to stand out among those competing inside Cowtown Coliseum during Eliminations (May 8-10).
Ashton Sahli is making his debut on the sport’s biggest stage and carrying the hopes of a nation. He is the lone Canadian rider to earn a highly coveted international invite to the World Finals based on his strong Velocity standings. This qualification underscores PBR’s global reach and the opportunity for the Velocity Tour providers for international talent to compete at the highest level. Fans, especially those north of the border, will be eager to see how this talented newcomer handles the pressure and bright lights of the World Finals. Which following Eliminations continues at Cowtown Coliseum with Ride for Redemption (May 14-15) then concludes with PBR World Finals – Championship inside AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on May 17-18.
Jean Fernandes Perira is the last of the qualifiers out of the Velocity Tour Finals as the top finishing rider at the event who had not yet qualified for the World Finals.
Out of these five who clutched their World Finals berths, some may not be surprising. Afonso and Bob were neck and neck during the closing month of the Velocity Tour event, and it appears both are ready to compete for the 8 seconds of glory during the PBR World Finals.
Marcus Mast may have surprised a lot of people with his clutch performance during the finals. You never know what will happen, as bull riding, by its nature, comes down to the draw and is unpredictable until the gate opens. Marcus is a veteran of the pressure of the World Finals and may surprise just as many people with a standout performance during the World Finals.
Congrats to the five who have qualified for the World Finals and now look to have clutch performances in Cowtown to make their way to the PBR World Finals Championship.
If you can’t make it to Cowtown Coliseum or AT&T Stadium, don’t forget that PBR will have coverage of the World Finals events available on the PBR App, RidePass, PBR YouTube page, and X Live.
Which of the five qualifiers do you think will stand out the most inside Cowtown?