Was Dylan Grant bull rider Texas rodeo death preventable? Rising cowboy is killed after being trampled to death in extreme sport amid questions of safety, animal cruelty and inherent risks.
A rising cowboy star has died after he was stomped to death during a bull riding event in front of thousands of horrified attendees in Texas on Thursday. The tragedy led to some wondering whether the rodeo star’s death was preventable?
Dylan Grant, 24, was in the second round at the Wharton County Youth Fair Xtreme Bulls show when he was bucked off a bull named Commander, according to a release from the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA).
Grant was ‘stepped on,’ leading to him incurring mortal injuries. It is not immediately known how much Commander weighs, but some bulls can reach 2,000 pounds.
A rising star in the professional bull rider circuit was killed in a horrific rodeo accident in Texas in front of thousands of people. Dylan Grant, 24, suffered fatal injures after he was bucked off and stepped on by a bull. @ABCMireya reports. https://t.co/zk6mib9mGH pic.twitter.com/1YC1CYTmIP
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) April 4, 2025
Bull rider death described as rare freak accident
Grant, of Wyoming, was airlifted transported by ambulance and then airlifted to a Houston hospital, where he mortally succumbed to his injuries.
‘Our rodeo family lost a talented young cowboy last night,’ Kendra Santos, of the No Spin Rodeo podcast, mourned on Facebook.
‘There are no worthy words of sympathy at a time of such profound shock and sadness.’
Speaking of his son’s tragic death, Wade Grant decried the incident as a ‘very rare freak accident.’
‘He got his neck stepped on,’ the father told ABC News. ‘He ran out of the arena and straight to the ambulance with these injuries.’
The father further insisted that ‘he absolutely knew of the dangers of the sport,’ saying ‘Dylan wore a protective armoured vest along with a custom made hockey helmet every time he rode.’
Wade said his son was ‘double tough’ and ‘filled with kindness.’
Animal cruelty and safety
Grant was a rising star in the professional rodeo community, earning $3,760 in winnings so far this season and a career earnings of $15,710, x reported.
While a student at the University of Wyoming, where he graduated in 2023, Grant was awarded the bull riding title at the Mountain States Circuit Finals Rodeo.
He had been bull riding since 2018.
It is not clear what will happen to Commander — with the bull achieving a 100% ‘buck off’ rate knocking cowboys off his back the past two seasons, though is not uncommon for rodeo bulls to remain in circuit, even after killing their cowboys.
Pressing on the minds of social media commentators was- whether all safety protocol was being followed?
Wrote one commentator, ‘Sorry, but that’s what he signed up for. He knew the risk.’
Stated another, ‘It’s a cruel sport…needs to be banned.’
Reflected a commentator, ‘Rodeos are cruel and clearly unsafe. Time to end this barbaric entertainment’
While another wrote, ‘Score one for the bull!’
Responded the PRCA to the nypost: ‘This was a very unfortunate incident. The PRCA has procedures to review all incidents to ensure safety for our contestants and animals. The review may end in financial fines or expulsion from future competition if necessary.’
The tragedy comes less than two weeks after another young bull rider was nearly killed in an incident — rider Tyler Kippes took a horn to the chest while competing in Rodeo Austin, but survived after emergency open heart surgery.
Bull rider Peter De Luna was killed last year when he was also trampled to death during a competition in Bandera, Texas. The 22-year-old had only been riding for about a year.
