Cold Weather, Hot Streak – Francisco Costa Adjusting to Canada’s Bull Riding Scene

AIRDRIE, Atla. – Fresh off a fourth-place finish at the South Country Co-op Showdown, Brazilian bull rider Francisco Costa is setting his sights on a full season in PBR Canada, chasing a national championship.

Going a perfect 4-for-4 in Lethbridge, the 23-year-old from Humaitá, Amazonas, Brazil, capped off his standout performance riding Vold Rodeo’s Blue Magic, immediately celebrating with an animated bow to the crowd from the shark cage in the centre of the arena.

With Portuguese as his first language, communication can be a challenge, but Costa has found support in fellow South American turned Canadians, André Portes and Fabian Dueck, who are helping him adjust to life in Canada, as well as helping communicate with the English-speaking nation.

“I am the second generation of my family to ride bulls,” Costa said. “My father and my brother have both lived this sport. I grew up surrounded by stories about rodeo and bull riding—this has always been my childhood dream.”

While Brazil has produced dozens of world-class riders competing on PBR’s Unleash The Beast, including the first World Champion Adriano Moraes and the 2024 World Champion Cassio Dias, Costa says his greatest inspiration will always be his father and brother.

“They always wanted to be the best,” Costa said. “They told me that if you enter the rodeo, you have to enter to be the best—you can never be just another rider.”

Canada has welcomed dozens of Brazilian riders over the years, and in 2023, Gilmar Santana and Alison Trindade made an impact early in the season. Their success, along with Costa’s own ambitions, inspired him and two friends to make the move north.

“Gilmar and I travelled together in Brazil, and in 2024, he came to Canada for the first time,” Costa said. “He was the key to bringing me here.

“He told me that in Canada, a cowboy is valued and seen as a true athlete—that made me curious.”

Arriving in the heart of winter was an initial shock, but once Costa adjusted, he quickly fell in love with the land and the people.

“The cold scared me at first,” he admitted. “But over time, I got used to it. Everything is so different from where I come from, but I’ve already made good friends. That motivates me to stay.”

“This has been an incredible and unique experience. The best bulls in Canada, the best events—it feels like I’m living in a movie. It’s a feeling I can’t explain, but I already feel fulfilled just to be here.”

From a competitive standpoint, Costa is committed to spending the full season in Canada, pursuing both a PBR Canada Championship and Rookie of the Year title.

“I will stay the whole season and fight for the title,” he said. “With the champions in PBR Canada, I feel ready to ride against them as their equal. I am just living my dream here.”

PBR Canada continues to push the sport to new heights, with sold-out events, a renewed TSN partnership delivering more than 30 weeks of PBR programming, and a full 2025 schedule. 

For Costa, the bright lights and big production of the PBR Canada Cup Series have been an eye-opening experience.

“It’s magnificent,” he said. “It looks like a movie scene. The energy in PBR Canada is incredible.”

While bull riding is a way of life in Brazil, Costa says the competition in Canada is different—the bulls are bigger, stronger, and more consistent. Fortunately, he has been learning under PBR Canada veteran Dueck, who has taken him in like family.

“I live on Fabian’s ranch,” Costa said. “He welcomed us like sons. We ride horses every day. Everything here is different and requires even greater physical and mental preparation.”

Training has been key to his adjustment to Canadian bulls, which he says are quicker and more explosive out of the chute than those in Brazil.

“I always focus on practice to keep my body in shape,” he said. “Our sport requires practice if you want to be perfect on the back of a bull—especially here, where the bulls are so different from Brazil.

“The speed and power they have out of the chute is a real challenge for me, so I work hard to adapt. Practice brings perfection—and perfection makes champions.”