The 2022 World Champion, Daylon Swearingen, returns to the top with a dominant performance at the Tallahassee Major PBR, marking his first Unleash The Beast event win in four years.
In 2022, he was the unbeatable guy, the one they couldn't catch. Daylon Swearingen won the PBR World Title that year. Then injury and setback after injury and setback put him on a slower road for a few years. Daylon has been back in the chutes and feeling good recently. In fact, so good that he left Tallahassee as the event champ last weekend.
Swearingen found his groove again and delivered a complete performance at the PBR Unleash The Beast Major in Tallahassee, Flordia. He was a perfect 3-for-3 to claim his first UTB event win since his title season. This was a win waiting to happen.
Swearingen opened the event with an 88.2 point ride, followed it up with an 87.35 in Round 2 to take control of the leaderboard then and there. The ride that sealed the win in the Championship Round was a 90.85 point ride aboard UTZ BesTex Smokestack. This was redemption on Smokestack who bucked Daylon off at the PBR Finals a couple years ago.
When it was all said and done, he finished with 266.40 points on three head to secure the event win. Behind him, Maverick Smith finished second with 265.75 points, while John Crimber took third with 177.35. This was good enough to move back into the No. 1 spot in the world standings for Crimber.
For those who have followed Daylons career, this win wasn’t surprising at all. They did not just give him that World Title in 2022. He always been one of the greats.
He was born and raised in Piffard, New York, and grew up in a rodeo family. His father, Sam, operated the Rawhide Rodeo Company, and Daylon has carried that foundation with him throughout his career. He is known for his quiet demeanor. Although he has never been the loudest presence, when he’s riding well, it speaks for itself. This past weekend it sure did.
Thos win also came at a critical point in the season. Entering the event ranked outside the top contenders, Swearingen made one of the biggest moves of the weekend, jumping into the Top 15 in the world standings with just a handful of events left before the PBR World Finals in Fort Worth.
That kind of jump changes everything because it puts him back in the conversation.
It puts pressure back on the rest of the field and it reminds everyone that a former world champion is feeling good. We have all seen how hard momentum can be to find for these guys on the back of a bull, but once it shows up, it can change a season in a hurry.
While in Tallahassee, Daylon Swearingen sure found it again.