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THE BRAVEST BLOKE IN THE BULL RIDING ARENA RETURNS FOR ONE FINAL RIDE

PBR AUSTRALIA

THE BRAVEST BLOKE IN THE BULL RIDING ARENA RETURNS FOR ONE FINAL RIDE

 

Legendary Protection Athlete Jared Borghero who grew up in Beaudesert QLD and now calls Singleton home will close an extraordinary career

where it belongs, in the dirt at the 2026 PBR Australia Monster Energy Tour

Grand Finals in Townsville – vision and stills here

 

The bull rider has eight seconds to stay on, Protection Athlete Jared Borghero has a split second to save him when he doesn’t.

 

Jared is the man running towards a 700-kilogram bucking bull when every sensible instinct says run the other way; placing his own body between the bull and a fallen rider and reading the unfolding danger one or two jumps before it happens.

 

One of the greatest Protection Athletes Australian bull riding has produced, Borghero will close an extraordinary chapter of his career at the 2026 PBR Australia Monster Energy Tour Grand Finals in Townsville on November 13 and 14. It will mark his 10^th PBR Australia Grand Finals.

 

After a lifetime spent riding bulls, protecting cowboys, coaching champions, carrying forward four generations of Borghero family rodeo history and with 13 Protection Athlete of the Year trophies, Jared has decided the time is right to close the gate on this part of his career. He will stay on as Coach for the PBR Australia Origin Series, as it’s one of his great passions.

 

“I feel the time is right,” Borghero said. “The sport has been so good to me, and I want to go out on my own terms. I have a beautiful partner, Sal, and between us we have six wonderful kids. It is time to give something back to them and to the industry I love.”

 

PBR Australia Managing Director Glen Young said Jared Borghero’s retirement marks the end of an incredible chapter in bull riding, but his impact on the sport would continue well beyond his time in the arena. “Throughout his career, Jared has demonstrated an unwavering dedication, commitment and genuine passion for this sport. He has consistently given his time, energy and heart to the sport, embracing both its challenges and rewards with determination and respect.”

 

“His contribution has been about more than simply protecting fallen athletes. Through his professionalism, sportsmanship and passion, he has helped promote and strengthen the sport while inspiring those around him. His commitment to bull riding and the people within it has made a positive and lasting difference. We thank him for his dedication, celebrate his contribution to the sport, and wish him every success and happiness in the next chapter.:

 

THE MEN WHO RUN TOWARDS DANGER

Once, Australia knew them as rodeo clowns, today they are recognised as Protection Athletes,  elite bullfighters whose speed, fitness, stock sense, teamwork and ability to remain calm in extreme danger make them some of the most important people in professional bull riding. When a rider is bucked off, thrown beneath a bull, knocked unconscious or left hanging by his riding hand, the Protection Athletes move in, there is no rehearsal and no second take.

They must instantly read the bull, the rider and each other, then do whatever is required to create an escape route and get the cowboy out of danger.

 

“It all depends, because we see a lot of different things,” Borghero said. “Usually, we can see what’s about to happen one or two jumps before it does,  not always, but most of the time. You can’t rehearse it. You have to react completely to the situation in front of you: whether the rider is safe, underneath the bull, in the bull’s path, possibly hung up, conscious or unconscious. Then we react as a team and do whatever it takes to get that rider home safely.”

 

Across his career, Borghero estimates he may have protected between 6,000 and 10,000 rides,  possibly more. He describes the task of drawing a bull away from a fallen cowboy as being a little like a traffic controller, although few traffic controllers are required to direct a powerful bucking athlete with horns. “You get the bull’s attention and, together, try to lead him away as safely as you can,” he said.

 

While bravery is essential, Borghero said courage alone does not make a great Protection Athlete. The job requires an intimate understanding of cattle, exceptional fitness, controlled decision-making and complete trust in the other men sharing the arena.

 

“First, you have to be cattle-smart and able to read a beast,” he said. “Fitness is incredibly important too. The fitter you are, the easier the job becomes. In high-pressure situations, the lower you can keep your heart rate, the better the decisions you will make. Most importantly, you have to understand that it is a team effort. No individual is more important than another.”

 

FEARLESS RUNS IN THE FAMILY – HIS UNCLE FACED OFF WITH CHAINSAW!

Four generations of the Borghero family have been connected to Australian rodeo, passing down the stock knowledge, instincts and values that cannot be learned from a rule book. Among the men who helped shape Jared was his uncle Graham Borghero, a renowned figure in Australian bullfighting and the Protection Athlete captured in an extraordinary historical image coming nose-to-nose with legendary Australian bucking bull Chainsaw #327.

 

Jared was 16 and still concentrating on bull riding when he attended one of his uncle’s schools.

“At that stage, I was a bull rider and really only went because it was the school holidays,” Borghero said. “I didn’t realise until a few years later just how much I had remembered. Once I was older and doing the job myself, everything he taught me began to sink in.”

 

“Because Uncle Graham had built such a legacy in the sport, I always felt I had some very big shoes to fill. I was nervous about letting him down. Honestly, the past five or six years have been when I’ve needed him most,” Borghero said. “The phone calls we have and the things we talk about mean more to me than he will ever know. After every event, I get a call from him. He holds me accountable, whether I’ve been good or bad. When that man speaks, I listen. He is one of the best of all time.”

 

MAKING ROOM FOR THE NEXT GENERATION

Australia now has a talented group of young Protection Athletes emerging, and Jared wants them to have the same opportunities he once fought to earn.  “The future of the sport is incredibly bright,” he said. “We have a handful of really talented young fellas coming through, and I don’t want to be the person holding one of them out of a spot.

 

Borghero’s advice to young bull riders is characteristically direct: do the work nobody sees. “Don’t get to 40, look back and have regrets,” he said. “Watch the winners. Ask them questions. Copy as much as you can, because winning isn’t an accident,  it’s a habit.”

 

Townsville will close one chapter of Jared Borghero’s career, but it will not be his final contribution to Australian bull riding. He plans to help develop a pathway for aspiring Protection Athletes, support juniors and share the lessons earned across thousands of rides, countless split-second decisions and the good and bad roads of a life lived in rodeo.

 

“Don’t worry, it won’t be the last you see of me,” he said.

 

On November 13 and 14, Australia’s finest bull riders will arrive in Townsville chasing a national title. Jared Borghero will arrive chasing nothing, because he has already earned the titles, the respect and his place in Australian bull-riding history.

 

Friday 13 – Saturday 14 November: PBR Australia Grand Finals

• Venue: Townsville Entertainment & Convention Centre, Townsville, Queensland
• Booking: PBR Australia Grand Finals Tickets

 

ABOUT PBR AUSTRALIA

Professional Bull Riders (PBR) is one of the fastest-growing sports properties in the world, with tours across the U.S., Australia, Brazil, Canada, and Mexico. A subsidiary of TKO Group Holdings —which also owns UFC and WWE— has transformed bull riding into a premier international sport since its founding in 1992. The organisation features over 1,000 riders globally and hosts more than 200 events annually worldwide. In Australia, Professional Bull Riders Australia (PBRA) stages more than 20 events each year, attracting over 75,000 fans. PBRA showcases key events and tours such as the Monster Energy Tour, PBR Origin Series, and PBR Grand Finals, while also partnering with regional event organisers through the PBR Touring Pro Division. The organisation supports emerging talent through its Can-Am Junior Academy and serves as an international pathway to the United States circuit for both Junior and Open competition athletes. For more information, visit www.pbraustralia.com.au.

 

 

For media information, contact Kath Rose on 0416 291 493 or email [email protected]

 

Contact details:

Kath Rose on 0416 291 493 or email [email protected]