TAMPA – The wait is over for bull riding fans in the Tampa Bay area.
For the first time since 2012, PBR (Professional Bull Riders) will bring its elite Unleash The Beast to Tampa. The best riders and baddest bulls in the world will meet on Jan. 23 and 24, 2026 at Benchmark International Arena.
Organizers describe the event as “the most unpredictable and explosive 8 seconds in sports wrapped in a rock-show, family-friendly production.”
The trip to Tampa will be the sixth event of the 18-event 2026 Unleash The Beast season.
Over two days, the riders and bulls will go head-to-head with the action starting at 7:45 p.m. Friday night and continuing 6:45 p.m. Saturday to announce an event champion.
When the tour last came to Tampa in 2012, Guilherme Marchi walked away the event champion, edging out second-place Chase Outlaw by three-fourths of a point, riding three bulls on the weekend. Marchi, the 2008 PBR World Champion, would go on to become the most prolific rider in PBR history, registering 635 qualified rides.
Tickets are available at PBR.com and ticketmaster.com. PBR Rewards members can call 800-732-1727.
By the Numbers
- 750 tons of dirt (1.5 million pounds) are brought in to transform Benchmark International Arena into a bull-riding mecca.
- The dirt is a special clay-sand blend establishing a firm enough surface for the bulls to buck hard but soft enough so that every rider is not injured when thrown like a rag doll.
- It takes seven semi-trucks to haul in the equipment for the event.
- A crew of about 30 works around the clock to prepare the venue.
- Over 50 of the rankest bucking bulls on the planet will be on site.
- The average PBR bull weighs 1,800 pounds. The average bull rider? Just 140 pounds.
