Sport
7 December, 2025
Bucking great times ahead
Professional bull riding series unveils packed, thrilling calendar for year ahead
PROFESSIONAL Bull Riders (PBR) Australia has unveiled its complete 2026 program, promising more events, new towns, a Challenger Series and over $1 million in prize money.
The season will run from 31 December 2025 through to the second weekend in November, with more than 29 events scheduled across the country.
Mareeba rider Kurt Shephard, the 2025 PBR Australian Championship Golden Buckle winner, will return next year to defend his title.
Shephard finished the 2025 season with 2263.33 points and over $180,000 in earnings.
Brazilian newcomer Luan Crystian Camara was both national runner-up and rookie of the year, finishing with 1,910.50 points.
Clermont’s Brady Fielder, ranked No. 3 in the world, became the only rider in PBR history to reach 100 qualified rides in a single season.
On the bull front, Alpha Blokes Warden remained unridden all year and was named bucking bull of the year.
The PBR Australia Can-Am Junior Academy Series also concluded in 2025, highlighting emerging talent. Winners included Chase Berry (pee wee division), Nash Goddard (junior division), Chase Wieland (senior series buckle) and Liam Birks (rising star title).
PBR Australia managing director Glen Young said: “With the finale of 2025 season finishing on a such a great note and Kurt Shephard breaking, not only a PBR Australia, but also an Australian Rodeo record in single career earnings in the discipline of bull riding, 2026 is shaping up to be a hotly contested season”.
“2026 will see over a million dollars in posted prizemoney and bonuses awarded to cowboys across a season that will run from 31 December 2025, through to the second weekend in November 2026, with over 29 events scheduled from as far north as Cairns, right down the east coast to Adelaide.”
The 2026 tour will visit towns across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, including Cairns, Brisbane, Townsville, Sydney, Newcastle, Melbourne, Adelaide and new stops at Coffs Harbour, Traralgon, and Campbelltown.
The Monster Energy Tour opens in Scone on 7 February, followed by Beaudesert on 27–28 February, with Melbourne and Adelaide events returning for the first time since 2019. The season finale will take place in Townsville on 13–14 November 2026.
PBR Australia will also introduce the Challenger Series next year, offering a pathway for junior riders to progress to the Monster Energy Tour based on earnings, bridging the gap between the Junior Academy and elite competition.
Tickets are at www.bit.ly/4pche from 6 March with the Cairns event on 4 July.
