Woodlands native to join world’s top bull riders at Toyota Center
Boudreaux Campbell now spends eight seconds riding the world’s toughest bulls in highstakes competitions across the U.S., but he spent his first 12 years of life learning the ropes in The Woodlands.
Campbell, 25, is currently one of the top 25 bull riders in the world and will return home to compete in the Professional Bull Riders’ Unleash The Beast tour stop at Houston’s Toyota Stadium Friday and Saturday.
Campbell has competed at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in the past but has not been back to the city as a PBR athlete.
“I’m excited to be in Houston,” Campbell said. “I would always come back to ride in Houston when I was close to the house. I’ve got some friends (from Magnolia) that are going to get to watch.”
The league, which hosts individual bull riding competitions across the U.S. as well as a newer Team Series, is returning to Houston ahead of the RodeoHouston for the first time in five years. It’s a special experience when a bull rider competes at home, especially in a venue like Toyota Stadium,
PBR’s vice president of events Ryan Seddon said.
“I think when somebody like Boudreaux knows that they have all of their family and friends and they’re competing in a venue that they watched all of their traditional sports idols compete in, it gives them that extra ‘oomph’ to know that there are 10,000 people hanging on the edge of their seats rooting for them,” Seddon said.
An early love for bull riding
Campbell’s love for the sport began early. At three years old, he went to his first rodeo with his father, a former bull rider. He was immediately hooked, competing in mutton busting weeks later.
At 12, Campbell moved to the small east Texas town of Crockett and began earning a statewide reputation. He won Texas’ junior high and high school bull riding championships and soon went pro, becoming the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association’s Rookie of the Year in 2017.
A few years and dust-ups later, Campbell was the PRCA’s Xtreme Bulls Tour champion and broke into the PBR in 2020. He overcame a slow start to win the league’s World Finals, once again earning a Rookie of the Year title.
“Ever since I was a little kid, I’ve never really had a Plan B,” Campbell said. “(Winning the finals) was a dream come true for me. That’s kind of been my goal my whole life, getting up there in events like that.”
Broken bones, rush
He’s broken both ankles, both collarbones, both wrists, a femur and his jaw. Still, he considers himself fortunate as a competitor in what’s been called the most dangerous eight seconds in sports. Since joining PBR, he’s toured the country in the elite Unleash the Beast series and represents the Carolina Cowboys.
“The adrenaline rush you get when you get on that bull, it’s really cool. The people I’ve gotten to meet and places I’ve gotten to go,” Campbell said. “You get to get on the very best bulls ... and you’re going against the very best guys in the world, every single weekend.”
For two nights, the Rockets’ court will be covered with dust as theatrics, pyrotechnics and loud rock and roll music complement the dynamic sport taking place within the ring, Seddon said.
“We try to create an energy within the arena that matches the intensity of the dance that’s happening on the dirt,” Seddon said.
Battling the bulls
The competition won’t just bring top-notch human athletes. Some of the toughest bulls in the sport will be at the event, including UFC President Dana White’s Twisted Steel, which hails from the Sugar Land area. The bovine athlete has a new mural made in its likeness in the Sugar Land Town Square.
While fans familiar with the sport are welcome, the league is also accessible to those outside of rodeo culture.
“We’re expecting the crowd in Houston to be very knowledgeable based on the rich rodeo history the community has,” Seddon said. “But at the same time, we present a very approachable entry point to our sport to folks that may not be as well versed.”
The top 40 athletes in the league will compete in a two-day competition, with the finals taking place Saturday.
Campbell is currently ranked 22nd. He’ll compete to qualify for the finals alongside the topranked Cassio Dias and Austin Richardson at Toyota Stadium starting at 7:45 p.m. Friday. Tickets start at $20 per day.