Less than 24 hours after the Saskatoon Blades earned their ninth victory of the WHL season, the ice at SaskTel Centre gave way to truckfuls of dirt. It’s all in preparation for some of the world’s best bull riders, who are set to compete in the 2024 PBR Saskatoon Classic. “Saskatoon is our favourite stop of the year,” said PBR Canada live event and production manager Peter Gebraad. “We’ve been coming here for almost 23 years. The fans in Saskatoon are lit, they’re educated bull riding fans, they love our product and we love performing in front of them.” It’s a monumental task for Gebraad and his crew this week, racing against the clock with less than 48 hours between themselves and the start of the PBR Canada tour stop. They’re hard at work to transform SaskTel Centre into an infield worthy of the top bull riders and animals on tour.

The PBR Saskatoon Classic: A Preview of the Action

The 2024 regular season for the PBR Canada Cup Series concludes Oct. 25-26 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. With the PBR Canada National Finals just around the corner, the Saskatoon Classic is a must-watch event for fans of bull riding. Here are five things you need to know about the event:

1. Final Event of the Regular Season

The Saskatoon Classic is the final event of the PBR Canada Cup Series regular season. Riders will be vying for crucial points in the race for the 2024 PBR Canada championship and the accompanying $100,000 bonus. At present, the Top 10 riders in Canada are separated by less than 730 points. Riders will do their best to hang onto 2,000-pound bulls for eight seconds in the SaskTel Centre arena, which will be filled with 750 tons of dirt to be trucked in and set up with steel totaling a length of six football fields.

2. Coverchuk Headlines the Field

Saskatchewan’s own Cody Coverchuk will be seeking history this November. The Meadow Lake product is currently ranked No. 1 in the PBR Canada national standings and leads No. 2 Nick Tetz by 105 points. Coverchuk, who has been dominant since the start of the season, is one of just two riders to have won multiple Cup Series events this season. He leads the PBR Canada Cup with six series-round wins and has the second most of all riders on the Touring Pro Division with seven. Coverchuk also boasts the top riding percentage in PBR Canada among riders with more than 10 outings. He’s gone 28-for-49, covering 57.14 per cent of the bulls that he’s drawn. Should Coverchuk conclude the season with the 2024 PBR Canada championship, he would further etch his name in the record books. The title would mark his third, tying fellow Saskatchewan rider Aaron Roy for most national titles won by one rider.

3. Other Saskatchewan Riders to Watch

Strongfield’s Weston Davidson and Eatonia’s Dakota Buttar will ride during their home province event stop, sitting atop the PBR Canada Cup standings; they’re ranked No. 3 and No. 4 respectively. Davidson is having a career year, chasing his first PBR Canada championship. Buttar is attempting to tie Aaron Roy for most national titles won by one rider with three. He is also hoping to make history by becoming the first to win the elusive PBR Canada championship in consecutive seasons. Yellow Grass’s Roy also remains in the hunt for 2024, presently ranked No. 10.

4. Defending Champion John Crimber

The defending PBR Saskatoon champion is young bull-riding phenom John Crimber. The 2024 PBR Teams MVP, Crimber will be joined by 2022 PBR world champion Daylon Swearingen and two-time PBR World Finals qualifier Koltin Hevalow in Saskatoon after standout seasons in the United States on both the premier Unleash The Beast and within the PBR Teams League. Swearingen holds the distinction of winning the final PBR Canada championship awarded in Saskatoon back in 2019, when he won both the year-end title and National Finals. Hevalow will be making his Canadian debut at the Saskatoon event. He made waves by winning his first PBR event in 2022.

5. Davidson, Switzer Selected for PBR Oz

Davidson and Chanse Switzer (Hazenmore, Sask.) have been selected to ride at the PBR Australia Grand Finals Nov. 1-2 in Townsville, Queensland. Davidson and Switzer will travel to Australia for the first time ranked firmly inside the Top 10 in the race for the 2024 PBR Canada Championship and accompanying $100,000 bonus. Davidson leads the duo, presently ranked No. 3, followed closely by No. 7 Switzer.

The Road to the National Finals Runs Through Saskatoon

ALL ROADS TO FINALS GO THROUGH SASKATOON – This weekend, for the 16th time in history, PBR Canada’s elite Cup Series will buck into Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and SaskTel Centre with the PBR Saskatoon Classic, presented by Redhead Equipment and CASE IH. The Saskatoon tour stop will be the tenth and final regular-season Cup Series event before the 2024 Command Tubular PBR Canada National Finals, presented by Edmonton’s Best Hotels, on Nov. 8-9 at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta. The Saskatoon event will begin on Friday, October 25 and Saturday, October 26 at 7:00 p.m. CST.

The PBR Saskatoon Classic is a major event for the PBR Canada Cup Series, and it will be a great way to get a taste of the excitement of the sport before the National Finals. Tickets are still available and can be purchased online at Ticketmaster.ca. Don’t miss out on the chance to see some of the best bull riders in the world compete right here in Saskatoon.

Bull Riders and Bulls to Watch

The bull riding is going to be the best we have seen this season. A lot of great matchups and riders and bulls, it was hard to pick just a few that really standout. Here are some of the matchups to keep an eye on:

Chanse Switzer vs. Wild Time

This is a rematch for Chanse Switzer, he rode this bull earlier in the season, and he should do the exact same thing here. A grey muley that as a left-hander one that you crave, one that you want, one that should ride really well. Popping and blowing to the left. Chanse has been riding really well this year, had a break out year, and look for him to come with it on Wild Time, be 86-87 points to set himself up for the weekend.

Nick Tetz vs. Red Rust

Tetz has been showing up and showing out all season, a bunch of event wins all across the country, following that up with a Medicine Hat title last weekend. Look for him to keep the balling rolling here on Red Rust. This is a red bull from Nansen Vold. Should be in the gate to the left, a little bit of suck back to him, fading and moving. Don’t look for it to affect Nick at all. He should open up with that outside foot and we’ll see another 85-86-point ride here.

Koltin Hevalow vs. Kracken

Great to see Koltin Hevalow make his debut in Canada. I’ve got to watch this kid the last few years and he’s nothing short of phenomenal. He stepped out this season on the Teams league and showed everybody what he’s all about. This kid is for sure the real deal and look for him in that World Championship contention as years go on. Kracken is a bull from the Skori firm that I got to see in Prince Albert firsthand and he bucked. He’s a big black bull, out of the right and should be around to the right. He had a phenomenal day here in Prince Albert, and if he is anything like that in Saskatoon look for a round win here for Hevalow, 88 points.

John Crimber vs. Smooth Sailor

What can you say about John Crimber? He’s the dog, he’s the next phenom, he is as good as you get, and as good as a bull rider that I have ever seen in my life. Pretty cool to have him in Saskatoon where he won the event last year. Shows back up, and wants to do the exact same thing. This is going to be a pretty cool matchup. Smooth Sailor of Shay Marks, this bull is full rodeo, full Canadian. Big grey bull, with up horns, means business. He will spin either way, but likes to go to the left which is into John’s hand. But John will ride him either way. But if this bull has his day, we see this bull in the championship round often, this could be a 90-point ride in the long round, and look for some action after the whistle blows. This bull likes to play rodeo. This is going to be one for the highlight reel in my opinion.

Colten Fritzlan vs. Boogey

Once again, another young American stud coming up to Saskatoon. Great to see these guys coming up to our Canada Cup Series events. It shows the quality of our events up here. Fritzlan coming off a second broken femur. He’s been riding as good as he ever has in his career these last few months. We’ve seen him step out in the Teams events and do really, really well, and look for the same here. This bull from James Foley, black bull, kind of nub horns. Should be right in the gate to the right, popping and spinning. Once again, has some action. I’ve seen some videos of him online, he’s been down South at some of the Unleash The Beast events. This could be another 87-88-point ride for Fritzlan. Really good match up.

Dakota Buttar vs. Hammer Time

Dakota Buttar, the now veteran of the game in Canada, is not showing any slowing down or show any whoa in his game. We saw him last weekend in Medicine Hat go 2-for-2, having another phenomenal year. Getting in that race for another Canadian Championship. This bull, I’ve seen a couple times and looks like one all the guys want to get on. Coy Robbins was 87 on him in Prince Albert. Young bull from the Skori firm, should be around to the left, maybe back to the right, probably go both ways, but really kicking and bucking and one that should fit Dakota really well. Look for another 85-86-point ride here for Buttar to set himself up solid for the weekend and run himself up into that Canadian Championship race.

The PBR Canada National Finals: What’s at Stake

It’s a big weekend for Meadow Lake Professional Bull Rider, Cody Coverchuk as he is in Saskatoon at the SaskTel Centre for the PBR Saskatoon Classic on Oct. 25th and Oct. 26th. Coverchuk is a two-time PBR Canada Champion and has been quite successful in his career, earning close to $300,000 dollars in prizes since his professional start in 2013. Currently, Coverchuk is second overall in the Canadian standings behind number one ranked and 2022 Canadian Champion, Nick Tetz. Coverchuk was at the top of the standings earlier on in the season but after getting a groin injury, he was sidelined for two months and unable to compete. “The season started off good until the start of July and then I tore my groin. I had to take 8 weeks off, but coming back, I feel strong… I started rehabbing instantly, I did rehab at least twice a week, and it worked, so my groin came back. I think it’s at like 123% of what it was so it feels good to come back better than it was before the injury.” Coverchuk said. In his return in late September, he went a perfect three-for-three to win the Cup Series in Grand Prairie to reclaim the number one spot, but it was short lived as Tetz took it back just last weekend when he won his third PBR Canada-best third Cup Series event of the season in Medicine Hat. “The first time I got back on, I ended up winning and then last week I kind of just stubbed my toe and fell off and now I’m sitting at number two, so for this this weekend, I feel good hoping for good things to happen.” Coverchuk said. Going into this weekend, Coverchuk is only 32 points behind Tetz and with the PBR Canada National Finals just around the corner, he said he must make every ride count. “Each and every ride really counts. I try to make it like that every time I get on it but this weekend, more so than ever, especially in the last couple weeks leading up to the finals.” Coverchuk has already qualified for the Finals, but despite him already winning it twice and appearing in it more than a handful of times. He said that the experience only gets better each time. “It actually feels probably better than it did the first time, just getting a little bit older now, there is little bit more experience behind me. So, I feel good coming into the finals and basically just really excited and motivated.” The PBR Canada National Finals take place Nov. 17th to Nov. 18th in Edmonton at Rogers Place.

Get Ready for a Wild Ride

The PBR Saskatoon Classic is sure to be a thrilling event, and the PBR Canada National Finals are just around the corner. If you’re a fan of bull riding, be sure to tune in or head to SaskTel Centre for a weekend of exciting competition and top-notch entertainment. The PBR Saskatoon Classic is a great opportunity to see some of the best bull riders in the world compete for a chance to advance to the National Finals, and the National Finals is the culmination of the entire PBR Canada season. With the stakes high, these events are sure to be unforgettable.