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The Clements, Calif., cowboy won his fourth round in a row at the 2019 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo when he claimed the Round 8 crown with his 90-point ride on Frontier Rodeo’s Showstomper before 16,892 spectators at the Thomas & Mack Center, Thursday night.

Biglow made history in the process, becoming the first bareback rider to win four-consecutive rounds at the Wrangler NFR. Bareback rider Kaycee Feild won three rounds in a row in 2011 at the Finals. Feild won a bareback riding-record six NFR rounds that year.

“I’m dreaming and don’t wake me up,” said Biglow, who had won four career Wrangler NFR rounds before this year. “It has not hit me yet, I will tell you that. I lay in bed at night thinking about having a Finals like this and I still have two more to get on. This just doesn’t seem real.”

Biglow also set the Round 8 record at the Wrangler NFR. The old mark was held by Steven Peebles in 2015 with his 89.5-point ride on Frontier Rodeo’s Full Baggage.

“That horse (Showstomper) is a handful right there with Killer Bee (the 2019 PRCA Bareback Horse of the Year),” Biglow said.

Needless to say, Biglow is having an incredible Wrangler NFR. He won Round 5 with a 92.5-point ride on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Scarlett Belle and then shared Round 6’s top honor with Caleb Bennett and Tilden Hooper after all three riders had 88.5-point rides.

Biglow’s ride in Round 6 came on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Freckled Frog. He then added a win in Round 7 with his 91.5-point ride on Rafter G Rodeo’s Ankle Biter.

Biglow arrived at the Wrangler NFR as the leader in the PRCA | RAM World Standings, and he remains there with $319,016. He leads the average with 705 points on eight head. Orin Larsen is second in the world standings with $253,673.

Biglow has earned $137,064 at the Wrangler NFR.

“I haven’t looked at the standings once, and I don’t need to because everyone is telling me what’s going on,” he said. “I’m not letting it bother me. I’m just coming out every night wanting to ride the horse I have the best I can. That’s the only thing I’m worried about right now.”

Biglow is a four-time qualifier for the Wrangler NFR – 2016-19. His career-best finish came last year when he ended the season fourth in the world standings.

Sage Kimzey posts electric 94-point ride to win Round 8

Reigning five-time world champion bull rider Sage Kimzey was at his best Thursday night.

The Strong City, Okla., cowboy wowed the sellout crowd by winning Round 8 with a 94-point ride on Powder River Rodeo’s SweetPro’s Bruiser.

Bruiser was voted bull of the night for Round 8. The bull was also the 2017 PRCA Bull of the Year and was second in 2018. Bruiser also was top bull of the Wrangler NFR in 2015 and 2017.

Kimzey has won two rounds at the Wrangler NFR – Rounds 7 and 8. He won Round 7 with a 90-point ride on Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Smoke Wagon.

“It’s just incredible,” Kimzey said of his ride on Bruiser. “Man, Bruiser is one of the most incredible bulls of all time, and getting on him is a dream in itself. I’m speechless, honestly. Today, I kept telling myself not to let the moment be bigger than you, and I feel like I was made for this moment.”

Kimzey’s ride was a career best in terms of points and just missed breaking the round record of 95 points set by Colby Yates in 2002 aboard Big Bend Rodeo’s Unforgiven.

“This is a personal best, and it’s special to have it at the NFR,” Kimzey said. “My previous best was a 93. If you’re that many points you’re never going to have a good seat, and it is toe-to-toe and us swapping blows. It’s pretty miraculous – it was pure bliss, it really was. Bruiser is a smooth bull and is a big pet really. I scratched him in the loading alley, and he looked at me like, ‘It’s you and me tonight, champ,’ and it really was.”

Kimzey was trying to keep things in perspective before he climbed aboard SweetPro’s Bruiser.

“I knew I had a big piece over me, and it was champ vs. champ and it was the storyline of the round,” he said. “Stetson (Wright) being 93.5 or not, it was all about me and Bruiser whether we got the win or not, it was us duking it out.

“It’s going to take time for it to set in, but I can’t even put it into words. It’s awesome, I know that’s an overused word for it, but that’s what it is.”

Kimzey is leading the world standings with $390,047. Kimzey set the bull riding record for most money won in a season in 2017 with $436,479, which included ground money. He’s also leading the Finals average.

“I feel great and am healthy and riding good, obviously,” Kimzey said. “It’s been an incredible week, and it’s God’s blessings raining down in abundance.”

Jake Watson claims another saddle bronc riding win

Saddle bronc rider Jake Watson snared his second round win of the Wrangler NFR.

On Canadian night, the Hudson’s Hope, British Columbia, cowboy won Round 8 with an 89.5-point ride on Calgary Stampede’s Stampede Warrior.

“It’s pretty cool, and I know there’s going to be a lot of people cheering for me,” Watson said about winning on Canadian night on a Canadian horse. “This is our night, and that’s kind of how we go at it.”

Watson also won Round 5 with a 92-point ride on the Cervi Brothers Rodeo’s RodeoHouston’s Womanizer. Watson has earned $83,615 at the Wrangler NFR and is seventh in the world standings with $192,406.

Watson’s ride on Stampede Warrior was a match-up from the Canadian Finals Rodeo a couple of years ago.

“I’m not very good at math, but it’s either 23 or 24 points higher than the last time I had her,” Watson said. “She was a lot better today, and I was much, much better today. It worked out really good. I just picked up on my rein, and I think she had a little step sideways or something. It didn’t really surprise me, but it reminded me that I had to ride her, and she wasn’t going to do it for me. I had to pick up on my rein and spur.”

Watson and his traveling partners Zeke Thurston and Dawson Hay have won four rounds in a row and five of the first eight.

“It’s pretty cool, and I actually didn’t even realize that,” Watson said. “I knew we’d gotten half the round so far, and hopefully we get seven out of 10. We’re pretty easygoing, and when we leave the dressing room, we give each other a fist bump and say, ‘Let’s go.’ The first one out needs to set the bar high, and everybody else can go chase him and try to beat him.”

Will Lummus snares first round win

Steer wrestler Will Lummus has had a solid showing at the 2019 Wrangler NFR, and it got a lot better Thursday night.

The West Point, Miss., cowboy won Round 8 with a 3.6-second time.

 “I’d like to say I haven’t had a great Finals, but I’ve placed in four of seven rounds,” he said. “It’s been OK, but I just haven’t won a lot of money. You know, $26,000 helps a lot.”

Lummus earned a $26,231 paycheck and is sixth in the world standings with $154,498. He has earned $68,103 at the Wrangler NFR.

“Dakota Eldridge was 4-flat on him in Round 5 and won second in the round on him,” Lummus said. “It’s just a good steer. I may have gotten just a little better start than Dakota.”

Lummus switched horses before Round 8, and it worked.

“We have an awesome, gray horse that Justin Schaeffer, who I rodeo with, owns, and I’ve won a lot of money on that horse,” he said. “But for some reason or another, it just wasn’t working. We’ve got another mare named Baby we hauled all summer that’s young – she’s only 7 – and a friend of ours in Arkansas was gracious enough to let us use her all summer and bring her here as a backup. I sure was glad to have her tonight. We just needed to change something, and it worked.”

J.D. Struxness is leading the steer wrestling world standings with $190,137.

Trio of tie-down ropers share Round 8 title

It was bunched at the top for tie-down ropers in Round 8.

Tyler Milligan, Riley Pruitt and Cooper Martin each clocked 7.5-second runs to win Round 8.

This was Milligan’s second win in a row after claiming the Round 7 title with a 7.5-second run.

“I like that time and I would like to keep it,” said Milligan, who is third in the world standings with $186,307. “I really liked my calf; she is a really good calf and I just tried to do my job and not mess up. I think it’s great. The more the merrier.”

Pruitt and Martin won for the first time at this year’s Wrangler NFR. Pruitt is second in the world standings with $203,599.

“I feel good,” said Pruitt, who won the average at the 2016 Wrangler NFR. “Tonight, I had one that was wild and needed to get to her as fast as I could. I managed to sneak by her and get a go-round win, it helps for the world. I may move up in the average, but these guys are roping good this week. I hope I keep drawing good, make some good runs and keeping winning money and see what happens.”

Martin concurred with Pruitt.

“This week has been pretty rough, but these guys have been roping all week and I finally got my kinks worked out,” Martin said. “I got to practice (Wednesday) morning and I think it really helped me relax. If things don’t go right, right off the bat, it’s hard.”

Shane Hanchey is leading the world standings with $209,928.

Hall/Tryan, Driggers/Nogueira share Round 8 team roping honors

The top of the leaderboard in Round 8 was shared by team ropers Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan and Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira. Each team stopped the clock in 4.3 seconds.

This was the first round wins for both teams at this year’s Finals.

“Our steer didn’t want to stand good in the chute, and I hate sitting in the box, it makes me so nervous,” Hall said. “He finally stood up and I tried to get a good start, and I don’t remember anything after that. I can tell you everything about the first seven rounds, but the round we actually won I can’t remember anything. It’s huge to me, this is my first Finals and to win it with a guy who put so much trust in me is a great feeling.”

Tryan was just trying to do his job.

“The steer didn’t have a good track record, so I was riding as hard as I could to get to him,” he said. “It’s awesome to win a round at the NFR. I felt bad when I missed my dallies and it missed us some rounds, but it was a softer round tonight to win first. Everything fell in our favor tonight, and we’re truly blessed.”

The round win was welcomed by Driggers since his talented team has struggled in and outside the arena.

“Well, we’ve had a terrible Finals so far, and I had the flu for the first five rounds,” Driggers said. “It wasn’t enjoyable to go back to the room after each round, but the last few nights we went back to how we rope all the time.”

Nogueira agreed.

“It was like he (Driggers) said, and I got sick too and it wasn’t working the way we planned on it,” Nogueira said. “But it’s not over until the 10th round. Fortunately, we were good tonight.”

Header Clay Smith ($241,320) and his heeling partner Jade Corkill ($199,446) are leading their respective world standings.

Barrel racer Hailey Kinsel wins again in Round 8

Make it two in a row for Hailey Kinsel.

The Cotulla, Texas, cowgirl won Round 8 with a 13.54-second run, the fastest of the rodeo on her horse, Sister.

“She’s feeling really, really good,” Kinsel said. “She was a tiny bit tight tonight, and the ground was a little heavier for everybody, so I felt like I had to move her through it a little more. I’m glad we get to get back in the arena in the morning for practice tomorrow so I can relax her a little bit and get her a little more free.”

Kinsel, who leads the world standings with $262,944, is gunning for her second straight world title.

“Just to stay in (the driver’s seat) and stay on,” Kinsel said. “It’s two more runs regardless, and I want them to be two good runs. There’s good money up, and I get one really good spot on the ground tomorrow, so I hope to use that and learn from earlier in the week. I’m just going to try and make two good runs and do my best by her.”

Stetson Wright still leads tight all-around world standings race

Rookie Stetson Wright still leads the all-around race in the 2019 PRCA | RAM World Standings with $268,307. He has a slim lead over reigning world champion team roping header Clay Smith ($252,172). Tuf Cooper, the 2017 all-around champ, is third in the standings with $222,640.

Wright finished second in Round 8 in the bull riding with a 93.5-point ride on Andrews Rodeo’s Diddy Wa Diddy to earn $20,731. He is third in the bull riding world standings with $237,729.

Wright is trying to become the first roughstock rider to win the all-around crown since ProRodeo Hall of Famer Ty Murray did it in 1998.

Bareback rider Biglow takes over RAM Top Gun Award standings lead

Bareback rider Clayton Biglow’s magical ride in the 2019 Wrangler NFR received a bonus Thursday night.

Biglow’s Round 8 victory, which earned him $26,231, pushed him to $137,064 in Wrangler NFR earnings.

That is the most money earned of any 2019 contestant – not counting ground money – to put him atop the RAM Top Gun standings.

Another element of excitement at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo is the RAM Top Gun Award which goes to the one contestant who wins the most money in any single event at the Wrangler NFR.

Bull riders Sage Kimzey ($129,942) and Boudreaux Campbell ($122,327) are second and third, respectively, in the RAM Top Gun standings.

Eighth Performance Results, Thursday, Dec. 12, 2019

Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas

Bareback riding: 1. Clayton Biglow, 90 points on Frontier Rodeo’s Showstomper, $26,231; 2. (tie) Kaycee Feild and Austin Foss, 87.5, $18,192 each; 4. Tilden Hooper, 87, $11,000; 5. Tanner Aus, 86.5, $6,769; 6. (tie) Caleb Bennett and Clint Laye, 86, $2,115 each; 8. Orin Larsen, 85.5; 9. (tie) Richmond Champion and Tim O’Connell, 85; 11. Trenten Montero, 75.5; 12. Steven Dent, Ty Breuer, Jake Brown and Taylor Broussard, NS. Average standings: 1. Clayton Biglow, 705 points on eight head; 2. Tim O’Connell, 694; 3. Richmond Champion, 689; 4. Kaycee Feild, 684; 5. Orin Larsen, 683; 6. Tilden Hooper, 679; 7. Clint Laye, 672.5; 8. Trenten Montero, 666; 9. Caleb Bennett, 607 on seven; 10. Tanner Aus, 606; 11. Steven Dent, 596; 12. Austin Foss, 563.5; 13. Ty Breuer, 425.0 on five; 14. Taylor Broussard, 415.5; 15. Jake Brown, 344.5 on four. World standings: 1. Clayton Biglow, $319,016; 2. Orin Larsen, $253,673; 3. Kaycee Feild, $225,551; 4. Tilden Hooper, $211,162; 5. Richmond Champion, $195,829; 6. Caleb Bennett, $188,171; 7. Tim O’Connell, $181,553; 8. Clint Laye, $153,916; 9. Tanner Aus, $147,018; 10. Trenten Montero, $143,219; 11. Austin Foss, $126,587; 12. Ty Breuer, $120,911; 13. Jake Brown, $107,184; 14. Steven Dent, $103,799; 15. Taylor Broussard, $93,502.

Steer wrestling: 1. Will Lummus, 3.6 seconds, $26,231; 2. Stetson Jorgensen, 4.0, $20,731; 3. J.D. Struxness, 4.4, $15,654; 4. Tyler Pearson, 4.5, $11,000; 5. Tanner Brunner, 4.7, $6,769; 6. Matt Reeves, 4.8, $4,231; 7. (tie) Tyler Waguespack and Scott Guenthner, 4.9; 9. Ty Erickson, 5.1; 10. Riley Duvall, 5.2; 11. Bridger Chambers, 5.7; 12. Kyle Irwin, 14.0; 13. Dakota Eldridge, 16.6; 14. Hunter Cure, 17.0; 15. Cameron Morman, NT. Average standings: 1. Tyler Waguespack, 34.6 seconds on eight head; 2. Matt Reeves, 38.7; 3. Riley Duvall, 39.6; 4. Tyler Pearson, 46.1; 5. Bridger Chambers, 46.7; 6. Ty Erickson, 54.7; 7. Stetson Jorgensen, 57.5; 8. Dakota Eldridge, 59.1; 9. Scott Guenthner, 61.3; 10. Hunter Cure, 66.3; 11. Kyle Irwin, 76.3; 12. J.D. Struxness, 28.5 on seven; 13. Will Lummus, 30.7; 14. Cameron Morman, 34.2; 15. Tanner Brunner, 36.1 on six. World standings: 1. J.D. Struxness, $190,137; 2. Ty Erickson, $185,414; 3. Tyler Waguespack, $177,925; 4. Stetson Jorgensen, $173,976; 5. Hunter Cure, $158,568; 6. Will Lummus, $154,498; 7. Bridger Chambers, $151,785; 8. Scott Guenthner, $148,853; 9. Tyler Pearson, $144,443; 10. Dakota Eldridge, $140,180; 11. Kyle Irwin, $123,934; 12. Cameron Morman, $116,037; 13. Matt Reeves, $111,631; 14. Riley Duvall, $111,617; 15. Tanner Brunner, $91,720.

Team roping: 1. (tie) Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira and Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 4.3 seconds, $23,481 each; 3. (tie) Riley Minor/Brady Minor and Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 4.4 seconds, $13,327 each; 5. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 4.7, $6,769; 6. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 4.8, $4,231; 7. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 5.1; 8. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 6.2; 9. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 8.9; 10. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, 9.0; 11. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 9.8; 12. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 10.2; 13. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 14.1; 14. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes and Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, NT. Average standings: 1. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 34.9 seconds on seven head; 2. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 41.9; 3. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 42.1; 4. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 42.6; 5. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 42.9; 6. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 50.9; 7. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 74.1; 8. Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 32.8 on six; 9. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 42.4; 10. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 45.1; 11. Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 54.2; 12. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 56.3; 13. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, 36.9 on five; 14. Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, 20.3 on four; 15. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 27.2 on three. World standings (headers): 1. Clay Smith, $241,320; 2. Kaleb Driggers, $177,039; 3. Riley Minor, $173,860; 4. Chad Masters, $168,990; 5. Brenten Hall, $162,600; 6. Cody Snow, $157,938; 7. Coleman Proctor, $153,241; 8. Clay Tryan, $147,222; 9. Luke Brown, $138,939; 10. Tyler Wade, $135,856; 11. Ty Blasingame, $132,220; 12. Matt Sherwood, $124,704; 13. Erich Rogers, $112,980; 14.Tate Kirchenschlager, $108,725; 15. Jake Cooper, $103,851. World standings (heelers): 1. Jade Corkill, $199,446; 2. Junior Nogueira, $174,358; 3. Brady Minor, $173,860; 4. Joseph Harrison, $171,739; 5. Chase Tryan, $160,018; 6. Ryan Motes, $158,089; 7. Jake Long, $150,954; 8. Wesley Thorp, $150,181; 9. Paul Eaves, $143,447; 10. Kyle Lockett, $137,711; 11. Cole Davison, $134,371; 12. Travis Graves, $133,896; 13. Hunter Koch, $132,807; 14. Tyler Worley, $104,177; 15. Caleb Anderson, $103,050.

Saddle bronc riding: 1. Jake Watson, 89.5 points on Calgary Stampede’s Stampede Warrior, $26,231; 2. Chase Brooks, 89.0, $20,731; 3. Spencer Wright, 87, $15,654;

4. (tie) Sterling Crawley, Dawson Hay and Brody Cress, 86.5, $7,333 each; 7. Jacobs Crawley, 85; 8. Zeke Thurston, 84.5; 9. (tie) Rusty Wright and J.J. Elshere, 84; 11. Jesse Wright, 83.5; 12. Ryder Wright, Mitch Pollock, Bradley Harter and Colt Gordon, NS; 15. Bradley Harter, INJ. Average standings: 1. Brody Cress, 679 points on eight head; 2. Rusty Wright, 668.5; 3. Spencer Wright, 595 on seven; 4. Zeke Thurston, 520 on six; 5. Jacobs Crawley, 487; 6. Jake Watson, 437.5 on five; 7. Chase Brooks, 434.5; 8. Jesse Wright, 417.5; 9. Dawson Hay, 346.5 on four; 10. Colt Gordon, 329; 11. Sterling Crawley, 326; 12. Ryder Wright, 260 on three; 13. J.J. Elshere, 252; 14. Bradley Harter, 86.5 on one; 15. Mitch Pollock, 84. World standings: 1. Zeke Thurston, $277,953; 2. Ryder Wright, $261,988; 3. Spencer Wright, $199,207; 4. Rusty Wright, $195,884; 5. Chase Brooks, $194,681; 6. Brody Cress, $192,872; 7. Jake Watson, $192,406; 8. Jacobs Crawley, $169,089; 9. Dawson Hay, $159,529; 10. Sterling Crawley, $156,722; 11. Jesse Wright, $132,736; 12. Bradley Harter, $127,543; 13. J.J. Elshere, $119,004; 14. Colt Gordon, $110,519; 15. Mitch Pollock, $109,542.

Tie-down roping: 1. (tie) Tyler Milligan, Riley Pruitt and Cooper Martin, 7.5 seconds, $20,872 each; 4. Caleb Smidt, 7.7, $11,000; 5. Tyson Durfey, 7.9, $6,769; 6. Michael Otero, 8.4, $4,231; 7. Tuf Cooper, 8.8; 8. (tie) Haven Meged and Shane Hanchey, 9.1; 10. Rhen Richard, 10.2; 11. Taylor Santos, 11.2; 12. Ty Harris, Marty Yates, Shad Mayfield and Adam Gray, NT. Average standings: 1. Haven Meged, 69.3 seconds on eight head; 2. Tuf Cooper, 70.0; 3. Tyson Durfey, 70.4; 4. Taylor Santos, 75.5; 5. Tyler Milligan, 75.9; 6. Riley Pruitt, 79.2; 7. Caleb Smidt, 89.4; 8. Shane Hanchey, 64.2 on seven; 9. Cooper Martin, 72.4; 10. Michael Otero, 74.4; 11. Marty Yates, 52.1 on six; 12. Rhen Richard, 59.6; 13. Shad Mayfield, 63.9; 14. Ty Harris, 42.3 on five; 15. Adam Gray, 53.2. World standings: 1. Shane Hanchey, $209,928; 2. Riley Pruitt, $203,599; 3. Tyler Milligan, $186,307; 4. Ty Harris, $173,438; 5. Haven Meged, $171,975; 6. Marty Yates, $170,970; 7. Tuf Cooper, $168,477; 8. Tyson Durfey, $165,186; 9. Caleb Smidt, $159,669; 10. Taylor Santos, $150,753; 11. Adam Gray, $128,404; 12. Shad Mayfield, $127,075; 13. Cooper Martin, $121,363; 14. Michael Otero, $116,155; 15. Rhen Richard, $98,661.

Barrel racing: 1. Hailey Kinsel, 13.54 seconds, $26,231; 2. Jessica Routier, 13.57, $20,731; 3. (tie) Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi and Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 13.73, $13,327 each; 5. Shali Lord, 13.75, $6,769; 6. Lacinda Rose, 13.76, $4,231; 7. Emily Miller, 13.78; 8. Lisa Lockhart, 14.04; 9. Stevi Hillman, 18.62; 10. Dona Kay Rule, 18.72; 11. Amberleigh Moore, 18.75; 12. Ericka Nelson, 19.20; 13. Nellie Miller, 19.22; 14. Jennifer Sharp, 19.34; 15. Cheyenne Wimberley, 19.70. Average standings: 1. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 110.61 seconds on eight runs; 2. Emily Miller, 110.73; 3. Shali Lord, 111.52; 4. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 111.67; 5. Hailey Kinsel, 114.93; 6. Jessica Routier, 115.54; 7. Lisa Lockhart, 116.59; 8. Nellie Miller, 116.78; 9. Lacinda Rose, 117.41; 10. Dona Kay Rule, 121.17; 11. Jennifer Sharp, 127.38; 12. Amberleigh Moore, 129.67; 13. Ericka Nelson, 137.44; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, 137.75; 15. Stevi Hillman, 117.06 on seven. World standings: 1. Hailey Kinsel, $262,944; 2. Amberleigh Moore, $207,982; 3. Emily Miller, $196,991; 4. Nellie Miller, $193,168; 5. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, $181,750; 6. Lisa Lockhart, $181,313; 7. Jessica Routier, $180,197; 8. Dona Kay Rule, $174,623; 9. Shali Lord, $143,776; 10. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, $135,600; 11. Stevi Hillman, $130,989; 12. Lacinda Rose, $120,724; 13. Jennifer Sharp, $114,024; 14. Ericka Nelson, $110,202; 15. Cheyenne Wimberley, $107,130.

Bull riding: 1. Sage Kimzey, 94 points on Powder River Rodeo’s SweetPro’s Bruiser, $26,231, 2. Stetson Wright, 93.5, $20,731; 3. (tie) Clayton Sellars and Boudreaux Campbell, 91.5, $13,327 each; 5. Jordan Spears, 89.5, $6,769; 6. Jeff Askey, 87, $4,231; 7. Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost, Tyler Bingham, Garrett Smith, Daylon Swearingen, Jordan Hansen, Trey Kimzey and Trey Benton III, NS; 15. Koby Radley, INJ. Average standings: 1. Sage Kimzey, 621 points on seven head; 2. Boudreaux Campbell, 533 on six; 3. Koby Radley, 435.0 on five; 4. Jordan Spears, 432; 5. Tyler Bingham, 429.5; 6. Stetson Wright, 363 on four; 7. Clayton Sellars, 347.5; 8. Trey Benton III, 264.5 on three; 9. Jeff Askey, 257.5; 10. Daylon Swearingen, 180 on two; 11. Jordan Hansen, 179.5; 12. Garrett Smith, 178.5; 13. Trey Kimzey, 168; 14. Trevor Kastner, 86 on one; 15. Josh Frost, NS. World standings: 1. Sage Kimzey, $390,047; 2. Boudreaux Campbell, $263,765; 3. Stetson Wright, $237,729; 4. Tyler Bingham, $196,264; 5. Koby Radley, $178,849; 6. Trey Benton III, $175,995; 7. Garrett Smith, $171,769; 8. Jordan Spears, $164,548; 9. Jordan Hansen, $163,811; 10. Trevor Kastner, $161,216; 11. Daylon Swearingen, $159,068; 12. Clayton Sellars, $158,018; 13. Jeff Askey, $132,156; 14. Josh Frost, $129,561; 15. Trey Kimzey, $124,930.

All-Around Standings: 1. Stetson Wright, $268,307; 2. Clay Smith, $252,172; 3. Tuf Cooper, $222,640; 4. Caleb Smidt, $172,959; 5. Trevor Brazile, $129,754; 6. Daylon Swearingen, $118,151; 7. Landon McClaugherty, $112,119; 8. Steven Dent, $111,577; 9. Rhen Richard, $104,653; 10. Josh Frost, $92,732.

So far, the Sulphur, La., cowboy has been right.

Hanchey won his second round of the week, clocking a 7.5-second run in Round 4 before 16,813 spectators Sunday night at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Hanchey also won Round 1 with a 7.6-second time and placed second in Round 3 with a 7.1-second effort. The only blemish on Hanchey’s 2019 Wrangler NFR was his no-time in Round 2.

Hanchey remains the leader in the PRCA | RAM World Standings with $185,389.

“I had a great calf,” Hanchey said. “I had to take others’ word for it because I didn’t think it was a great calf, but it was. Riley Pruitt ran him for the first run and Tyler Milligan tied him this morning and said, ‘I’ve been wanting to run that calf all week.’ That gave me some last-minute confidence before the grand entry, and I’m glad it worked out.”

Hanchey did his homework before making his Round 4 run.

“Since the reruns have started and these calves were roped in Round 1, you can watch a video and talk to other contestants because that’s what’s so cool about rodeo – we’re not competing against each other, we’re competing against and with the calf,” Hanchey said. “Riley gave me some good information, and it worked out. You’ve got to pay attention to them. You can’t just nod, go and react. Now that the reruns have started, you have a better idea what they’re going to do in the arena.”

Hanchey’s no stranger to success in Las Vegas. This is his 10th appearance at the Wrangler NFR, highlighted by his 2013 world championship. That year, Hanchey also set the average record with an 80.1-second time on 10 head.

However, Hanchey knows every NFR trip is different and mental toughness counts.

“All of us want to do well, not only for us but our families,” he said. “We’ve put an extended amount of pressure on ourselves, it can be a roller coaster for sure.

“My first thought is I want my horse to do well in the box and I want to get a good start. After that, roping the neck. For me, when I rope the neck, everything else is reaction. We’ve done so much it’s repetition and muscle memory.”

Stetson Wright adds to Wrangler NFR memories with second win

Bull rider Stetson Wright’s rookie season seems to get better with each passing day.

Wright, 20, won his second round of the Wrangler NFR, recording a 91-point ride on Painted Pony Championship Rodeo’s Holy Holly in Round 4.

Wright also was victorious in Round 1 with a 91-point trip on 4L & Diamond S Rodeo’s Monte Walsh.

“I guess I’m just drawing good, and everyone told me to quit using the word ‘lucky,’ but I feel like I am riding good, and tonight I told myself to finish,” Wright said.

Although competing in the Thomas & Mack Center can be nerve-wracking, Wright wasn’t going to let the magnitude of the moment faze him.

“Before my ride, I was loose and cool, and it was the least tense I’ve been,” Wright said. “I was joking and having fun, and everything felt good. I was joking around in the chute too, and just happy to be here. The last couple days I was making it a job and it’s not, it is to have fun.”

Counting ground money, Wright has earned $62,462 at the Finals. He is second in the world standings.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “I want to build a house after this year, but there’s no pressure since I’m young and I want to start a life on the ranch.”

Reigning five-time world champion Sage Kimzey remains the PRCA | RAM World Standings leader with $301,271.

Orin Larsen’s 90-point ride wins bareback riding

Before Sunday night, Orin Larsen had never matched up with Frontier Rodeo’s Night Fist.

Their first encounter together was memorable.

Larsen had a 90-point ride on Night Fist to win the round. He was a half-point away from tying the Round 4 Wrangler NFR record, shared by Will Lowe (set in 2004) and Ty Breuer (2017).

“Everyone I talked to in the dressing room was pretty pumped up that I had a good horse (Sunday night),” Larsen said. “That horse definitely didn’t fail. It fit my style and got in the air and was really showy. He hangs in the air and is just a good bucking horse, and I was glad to have him.”

After earning $26,231, Larsen moved from third to second in the PRCA | RAM World Standings with $211,789. He has earned $38,346 at the Wrangler NFR.

“When you are hot, you are hot, and when you are not, you are not,” Larsen said. “You just try and ride the high spots as long as you can. I’m not really thinking about the end result. I’m just focusing on the whole process. All 15 of us deserve to have a gold buckle by the end of the week. I’m just going to do my part and do a lot of praying, and if there’s a gold buckle by my name I will be stoked.”

Clayton Biglow leads the world standings with $219,452.

Bridger Chambers wins steer wrestling with 3.6-second run

Steer wrestler Bridger Chambers is developing quite a liking for the Wrangler NFR.

After earning $135,583 in his NFR debut last year, he’s not letting off the gas pedal in his return trip.

Chambers won Round 4 Sunday with a 3.6-second run. He’s earned $61,756 through four rounds at the NFR.

“Oh, man, that’s pretty exciting,” Chambers said about his first career Wrangler NFR round win and subsequent victory lap. “I don’t know how you can describe it to anybody, but I was just trying to soak it all in. It happens so fast, and I was just excited. It was a very special moment.”

Chambers is keeping things in perspective the remainder of the week as he chases a gold buckle.

“I guess the goal and game plan is to just run at every round and don’t back off,” Chambers said. “I don’t feel I have anything to lose, especially with the (broken) barrier in the mix. We’re going to keep running at them.”

Chambers is riding two-time Canadian Steer Wrestling Horse of the Year Tyson, owned by Curtis Cassidy, who is hazing for Chambers.

Ty Erickson leads the steer wrestling world standings with $174,273.

Saddle bronc rider Rusty Wright snares sixth career Wrangler NFR round win

Rusty Wright is making his fourth appearance at the Wrangler NFR, and the saddle bronc rider always seems to find success in the Thomas & Mack.

Wright won Round 4 with an 89.5-point ride on Diamond G Rodeos’ Miss Nancy for the sixth round win of his career.

“She almost bucked me off,” Wright said. “That horse jumped out there and has big, long jumps. It was feeling really good, and I felt tapped-off confident, so I went to try and go flash her up. As soon as I did that, she had a big, empty jump and threw her head back at me. It kind of got me loose a little bit, but she took her head back again and continued bucking. I was able to sit back down and finish it off pretty good.”

With his $26,231 payday, Wright is third in the world standings with $175,153.

“I felt like it was going to be pretty good, and I was really excited,” Wright said. “I didn’t know how many (points) I was going to be, I just knew I was dang sure going to place, and it felt awesome.

“I’d watched my little brother, Ryder, get on her in Norco, Calif., last year, and he was 88 on her. Then, this year, Spencer got on her in Norco and was 86. So they’d both won rodeos on it before, and that horse is in our circuit (Wilderness), so I’d seen it a lot. I’m not going to lie to you, I was really nervous and a little scared, because that horse bucks so hard and bucks a lot of guys off. But I knew, as long as I stayed back and lifted, things would work out.”

Rusty is hoping to use Round 4 as a springboard for the rest of the Wrangler NFR.

“It’s good to win any time, but it seems like after you win a round, your confidence goes through the roof and you just get the ball rolling,” he said. “It was rolling before, and it’s hopefully going to take off now. A little confidence does wonders.”

Zeke Thurston overtook Ryder Wright to take the lead in the world standings with $249,607.

Team ropers Masters/Harrison claim Round 4 crown

Chad Masters and Joseph Harrison set the pace in Round 4, capturing a victory with a 3.7-second run.

“I knew it was actually going to be fast and I knew I had a good steer,” said Masters, a two-time team roping header world champion (2007 and 2012). “I left early, and it wasn’t a picture-perfect run, but I am happy with the end result.”

The round win was welcomed by Masters and Harrison.

“It’s been since 2011 since I’d won a round and I’d been waiting on getting one,” Masters said.

Harrison, meanwhile, was celebrating his first career round record.

“I have been waiting for 24 steers to walk across the stage and get that buckle, and it’s finally happening,” he said.

Moving forward in Vegas, Masters and Harrison are hoping for more of the same.

“I’m afraid to say anything, but I hope that’s the start of it,” Masters said.

Harrison was more to the point

“I’ll ride that train!” he said.

Clay Smith and Jade Corkill are leading the respective header and heeler world standings.

Barrel racer Emily Miller wins her second round

Emily Miller is having quite the Wrangler NFR.

The barrel racer captured a victory in Round 1 and added another win Sunday in Round 4 with her 13.64-second run.

Miller moved into first place in the world standings with $196,991. She has earned $98,848 so far at the Wrangler NFR, the most of any contestant.

“(ProRodeo Hall of Famer) Joe (Beaver) made the comment the other day at the WPRA luncheon that, ‘It’s fun in Vegas, but it’s a lot more fun when you’re winning,’” Miller said. “I have to agree with him. It’s been a great four days, and we’ve really enjoyed it.”

Miller is riding her 9-year-old gelding, Chongo.

“You know, I think every run you just go out there and try to focus on what you’ve worked on all year, and that’s one (barrel) to the right, two to the left and leave them up,” Miller said. “He’s working outstanding, and I couldn’t be happier with him. As a rider, I feel like I failed him a bit on the first barrel, but that’s something I can fix. Luckily, he’s doing his job, so that’s huge.”

Even though Miller was the first barrel racer out Sunday, it didn’t rattle her nerves.

“I think you have to ride a little bit smarter the farther down on the ground you get because of the ruts and stuff, and you want to stay inside the tracks,” she said. “I’ve been more worried about the second and third barrels, but he’s staying super honest for me. He’s doing great, and I’m absolutely thrilled with how he’s working.”

All-around race getting interesting

Thanks to winning his second round in bull riding, Stetson Wright maintained his lead in the all-around standings.

Wright has $245,461 – $38,982 more than second-place Clay Smith, the reigning team roping header world champ. Tuf Cooper, the 2017 all-around world champ, is third with $195,986.

Fourth Performance Results, Sunday, Dec. 8, 2019

Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas

Bareback riding: 1. Orin Larsen, 90 points on Frontier Rodeo’s Night Fist, $26,231; 2. Clint Laye, 88, $20,731; 3. (tie) Caleb Bennett and Ty Breuer, 87, $13,327 each; 5. (tie) Kaycee Feild and Trenten Montero, 86.5, $5,500 each; 7. (tie) Tilden Hooper, Austin Foss and Jake Brown, 86; 10. Steven Dent, 85.5; 11. Tim O’Connell, 85; 12. (tie) Clayton Biglow and Richmond Champion, 84; 14. Tanner Aus, 83.5; 15. Taylor Broussard, 82.5. Average standings: 1. Trenten Montero, 350 points on four head; 2. Tim O’Connell, 349.5; 3. Richmond Champion, 343.5; 4. Clayton Biglow, 342.5; 5. Kaycee Feild, 339; 6. Steven Dent, 337.5; 7. Clint Laye,334; 8. Tilden Hooper, 330; 9. (tie) Orin Larsen and Taylor Broussard, 329; 11. Caleb Bennett, 261 points on three; 12. Ty Breuer, 258; 13. Tanner Aus, 256; 14. Austin Foss, 253.5; 15. Jake Brown, 172.5 points on two. World standings: 1. Clayton Biglow, $219,452; 2. Orin Larsen, $211,789; 3. Kaycee Feild, $207,359; 4. Richmond Champion, $182,714; 5. Tim O’Connell, $161,668; 6. Tilden Hooper, $158,559; 7. Caleb Bennett, $154,184; 8. Clint Laye, $149,685; 9. Trenten Montero, $143,219; 10. Ty Breuer, $120,911; 11. Tanner Aus, $117,826; 12. Jake Brown, $105,068; 13. Steven Dent, $103,799; 14. Austin Foss, $102,895; 15. Taylor Broussard, $93,502.

Steer wrestling: 1. Bridger Chambers, 3.6 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Ty Erickson and Cameron Morman, 3.7, $18,192 each; 4. J.D. Struxness, 3.9, $11,000; 5. Hunter Cure, 4.1, $6,769; 6. (tie) Scott Guenthner and Dakota Eldridge, 4.4, $2,115 each; 8. (tie) Stetson Jorgensen, Tyler Pearson and Matt Reeves, 4.5; 11. (tie) Tyler Waguespack and Will Lummus, 4.7; 13. Riley Duvall, 5.1; 14. Kyle Irwin, 9.8; 15. Tanner Brunner, NT. Average standings: 1. J.D. Struxness, 16.3 seconds on four head; 2. Tyler Waguespack, 16.7; 3. (tie) Matt Reeves and Cameron Morman, 18.1; 5. Riley Duvall, 20.4; 6. Hunter Cure, 21.5; 7. Bridger Chambers, 25.9; 8. Tyler Pearson, 27.9; 9. Dakota Eldridge, 28.7; 10. Stetson Jorgensen, 28.8; 11. Scott Guenthner, 34.3; 12. Kyle Irwin, 34.4; 13. Ty Erickson, 36.2; 14. Will Lummus, 13.1 seconds on three; 15. Tanner Brunner, 16.6 seconds on two. World standings: 1. Ty Erickson, $174,273; 2. Hunter Cure, $147,568; 3. Tyler Waguespack, $147,464; 4. J.D. Struxness, $145,150; 5. Bridger Chambers, $140,785; 6. Scott Guenthner, $130,661; 7. Stetson Jorgensen, $127,015; 8. Dakota Eldridge, $119,449; 9. Will Lummus, $115,998; 10. Tyler Pearson, $112,712; 11. Cameron Morman, $106,307; 12. Kyle Irwin, $97,703; 13. Matt Reeves, $96,259; 14. Riley Duvall, $95,963; 15. Tanner Brunner, $84,950.

Team roping: 1. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 3.7 seconds, $26,231 each; 2. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 3.8, $20,731; 3. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 3.9, $15,654; 4. (tie) Clay Smith/Jade Corkill and Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 4.3, $8,885 each; 6. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 4.4, $4,231; 7. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 5.0; 8. Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 6.1; 9. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 9.1; 10. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 9.7; 11. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 14.7; 12. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves and Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, NT. Average standings: 1. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 17.9 seconds on four head; 2. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 24.9; 3. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 28.7; 4. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 28.8; 5. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 38.8; 6. Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 40.3; 7. Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 13.7 seconds on three; 8. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 14.9; 9. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 16.8; 10. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 17.5; 11. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 18.1; 12. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 28.0; 13. Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, 10.5 seconds on two; 14. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 22.8; 15. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, 4.6 seconds on one. World standings (headers): 1. Clay Smith, $195,628; 2. Kaleb Driggers, $153,558; 3. Chad Masters, $138,529; 4. Tyler Wade, $135,856; 5. Coleman Proctor, $135,049; 6. Brenten Hall, $134,888; 7. Riley Minor, $134,303; 8. Clay Tryan, $133,896; 9. Cody Snow, $120,707; 10. Luke Brown, $112,708; 11. Ty Blasingame, $111,490; 12. Matt Sherwood, $111,166; 13. Erich Rogers, $99,653; 14. Tate Kirchenschlager, $93,071; 15. Jake Cooper, $90,524; World standings (heelers): 1. Jade Corkill, $153,753; 2. Junior Nogueira, $150,877; 3. Joseph Harrison, $141,278; 4. Ryan Motes, $139,897; 5. Jake Long, $137,627; 6. Cole Davison, $134,371; 7. Brady Minor, $134,303; 8. Chase Tryan, $132,307; 9. Kyle Lockett, $124,384; 10. Hunter Koch, $119,269; 11. Paul Eaves, $117,216; 12. Travis Graves, $113,165; 13. Wesley Thorp, $112,950; 14. Caleb Anderson, $89,723; 15. Tyler Worley, $88,524.

Saddle bronc riding: 1. Rusty Wright, 89.5 points on Diamond G Rodeos’ Miss Nancy, $26,231; 2. Spencer Wright, 84.5, $20,731; 3. Zeke Thurston, 83.5, $15,654; 4. Brody Cress, 81.5, $11,000; 5. Sterling Crawley, 80.5, $6,769; 6. Jacobs Crawley, 80, $4,231; 7. Ryder Wright, Chase Brooks, Jesse Wright, Mitch Pollock, Jake Watson, Dawson Hay, Colt Gordon and J.J. Elshere, NS; Bradley Harter, INJ. Average standings: 1. Rusty Wright, 340 points on four head; 2. Brody Cress, 333.5; 3. Zeke Thurston, 261 points on three; 4. Spencer Wright, 257.5; 5. Jacobs Crawley, 249; 6. Chase Brooks, 176 points on two; 7. Jesse Wright, 175; 8. Dawson Hay, 171.5; 9. Colt Gordon, 162; 10. Jake Watson, 87 points on one; 11. Ryder Wright, Bradley Harter and J.J. Elshere, 86.5; 14. Mitch Pollock, 84; 15. Sterling Crawley, 80.5. World standings: 1. Zeke Thurston, $249,607; 2. Ryder Wright, $234,488; 3. Rusty Wright, $175,153; 4. Spencer Wright, $163,669; 5. Chase Brooks, $159,847; 6. Brody Cress, $156,205; 7. Jacobs Crawley, $150,897; 8. Jesse Wright, $132,736; 9. Sterling Crawley, $131,197; 10. Bradley Harter, $127,543; 11. Dawson Hay, $125,965; 12. Jake Watson, $124,291; 13. J.J. Elshere, $119,004; 14. Mitch Pollock, $109,542; 15. Colt Gordon, $101,071.

Tie-down roping: 1. Shane Hanchey, 7.5 seconds, $26,231; 2. Riley Pruitt, 7.7, $20,731; 3. Marty Yates, 8.0, $15,654; 4. (tie) Haven Meged and Taylor Santos, 8.1, $8,885; 6. Cooper Martin, 8.7, $4,231; 7. (tie) Caleb Smidt and Tuf Cooper, 9.5; 9. Tyson Durfey, 10.1; 10. Rhen Richard, 10.2; 11. Tyler Milligan, 10.4; 12. Shad Mayfield, 14.1; 13. Ty Harris, Michael Otero and Adam Gray, NT. Average standings: 1. Taylor Santos, 32.8 seconds on four head; 2. Marty Yates, 33.1; 3. Haven Meged, 33.6; 4. Tuf Cooper, 34.0; 5. Tyson Durfey, 36.3; 6. (tie) Rhen Richard and Shad Mayfield, 39.7; 8. Cooper Martin, 43.2; 9. Tyler Milligan, 44.0; 10. Caleb Smidt, 44.6; 11. Riley Pruitt, 48.3; 12. Shane Hanchey, 22.2 seconds on three; 13. Michael Otero, 28.2; 14. Adam Gray, 37.4; 15. Ty Harris, 17.8 seconds on two. World standings: 1. Shane Hanchey, $185,389; 2. Haven Meged, $167,744; 3. Marty Yates, $162,085; 4. Taylor Santos, $150,753; 5. Caleb Smidt, $141,90; 6. Tuf Cooper, $141,823; 7. Tyson Durfey, $137,263; 8. Tyler Milligan, $134,974; 9. Riley Pruitt, $130,266; 10. Shad Mayfield, $127,075; 11. Ty Harris, $120,976; 12. Michael Otero, $111,924; 13. Adam Gray, $102,173; 14. Cooper Martin, $100,491; 15. Rhen Richard, $98,661.

Barrel racing: 1. Emily Miller, 13.64 seconds, $26,231; 2. Amberleigh Moore, 13.75, $20,731; 3. Jessica Routier, 13.77, $15,654; 4. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 13.79, $11,000; 5. Ericka Nelson, 13.81, $6,769; 6. Hailey Kinsel, 13.88, $4,231; 7. Jennifer Sharp, 13.91; 8. Nellie Miller, 13.93; 9. Shali Lord, 14.03; 10. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 14.05; 11. Lisa Lockhart, 14.06; 12. Lacinda Rose, 14.16; 13. Stevi Hillman, 19.04; 14. Dona Kay Rule, 19.06; 15. Cheyenne Wimberley, 23.84. Average standings: 1. Emily Miller, 54.64 seconds on four runs; 2. Jessica Routier, 55.48; 3. Lisa Lockhart, 55.55; 4. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 55.59; 5. Nellie Miller, 55.82; 6. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 55.91; 7. Shali Lord, 56.07; 8. Jennifer Sharp, 56.18; 9. Lacinda Rose, 56.89; 10. Hailey Kinsel, 60.23; 11. Dona Kay Rule, 60.51; 12. Ericka Nelson, 60.87; 13. Amberleigh Moore, 64.96; 14. Stevi Hillman, 65.73; 15. Cheyenne Wimberley, 71.44. World standings: 1. Emily Miller, $196,991; 2. Hailey Kinsel, $183,828; 3. Lisa Lockhart, $181,313; 4. Nellie Miller, $175,611; 5. Amberleigh Moore, $161,021; 6. Dona Kay Rule, $148,392; 7. Jessica Routier, $138,736; 8. Stevi Hillman, $130,989; 9. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, $125,269; 10. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, $122,273; 11. Shali Lord, $121,776; 12. Ericka Nelson, $110,202; 13. Jennifer Sharp, $107,254; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, $100,361; 15. Lacinda Rose, $98,936.

Bull riding: 1. Stetson Wright, 91 points on Painted Pony Championship Rodeo’s Holy Holly, $26,231; 2. Trey Benton III, 90, $20,731; 3. Boudreaux Campbell, 88, $15,654; 4. Sage Kimzey, 86.5, $11,000; 5. Trey Kimzey, 86, $6,769; 6. Jeff Askey, 85, $4,231; 7. Jordan Spears, 84; 8. Koby Radley, 82.5; 9. Tyler Bingham, 80; 10. Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost, Garrett Smith, Daylon Swearingen, Jordan Hansen and Clayton Sellars, NS. Average standings: 1. Boudreaux Campbell, 262 points on three head; 2. Koby Radley, 261; 3. Sage Kimzey, 258.5; 4. Stetson Wright, 183.5 points on two; 5. (tie) Jordan Hansen and Trey Benton III, 179.5; 7. Garrett Smith, 178.5; 8. Tyler Bingham, 170; 9. Jordan Spears, 166.5; 10. Trey Kimzey, 86 points on one; 11. Jeff Askey, 85; 12. Clayton Sellars, 84.5; 13. Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost and Daylon Swearingen, NS. World standings: 1. Sage Kimzey, $301,271; 2. Stetson Wright, $214,883; 3. Boudreaux Campbell, $196,143; 4. Trey Benton III, $175,996; 5. Garrett Smith, $171,769; 6. Jordan Hansen, $163,811; 7. Trevor Kastner, $159,100; 8. Koby Radley, $158,118; 9. Tyler Bingham, $153,181; 10. Clayton Sellars, $139,191; 11. Jordan Spears, $131,548; 12. Josh Frost, $129,561; 13. Jeff Askey, $127,925; 14. Trey Kimzey, $124,930; 15. Daylon Swearingen, $121,837.

All-Around Standings: 1. Stetson Wright, $245,461; 2. Clay Smith, $206,479; 3. Tuf Cooper, $195,986; 4. Caleb Smidt, $155,190; 5. Trevor Brazile, $129,754; 6. Landon McClaugherty, $112,119; 7. Steven Dent, $111,577; 8. Rhen Richard, $104,653; 9. Josh Frost, $92,732; 10. Daylon Swearingen, $80,920.

But the 2018 PRCA Bull of the Year met his match Saturday night.

Montpelier, La., cowboy Koby Radley registered an electric 92-point ride on Spotted Demon to win Round 3 at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo before 16,831 at the Thomas & Mack Center.

“I don’t know – but I knew a lot of it was the bull,” Radley said about his ride, which was a career best. “He has been around a long time and I’d seen a lot of good guys get on him and a lot of good guys get bucked off him.

“It’s huge to ride Spotted Demon and to be 92 on him and win a round on him. To be able to ride one of the greatest bulls of all time is great. You are on Cloud 9; he was stout and all there, and I felt all 92 points out of him.”

Radley – counting ground money – earned $33,560 for his victory.

“It’s great,” Radley said of the big payday. “This is the rank pen and the best bulls in the world, and everyone who rode here had their hands full.”

Radley made his Wrangler NFR debut a year ago but didn’t win a round.

“I didn’t get a round win last year, and that was one of my goals this year,” Radley said. “It’s huge for my confidence to get a big win early in the Finals.”

Chase Brooks ties Round 3 saddle bronc riding record

 Chase Brooks won his first round of the 2019 Wrangler NFR with a Round 3 record-tying ride.

The Deer Lodge, Mont., cowboy had a 90-point ride on Outlawbuckers Rodeo’s Lunatic Party.

Brooks shares the Round 2 record with ProRodeo Hall of Famer Billy Etbauer, who had 90-point rides in 1999 and 2005, and Isaac Diaz, who did it in 2018.

“Yeah, it was nice to have one that was that much fun,” Brooks said of Lunatic Party. “(Friday night) was a lot of work, and I came up a little short.

“Oh, man, that’s awesome (to tie the record). Shoot, it’s cool to have my name by those guys. I’ve watched them since I was starting and looked up to them.”

Between the 2018 Wrangler NFR and this year’s Finals, Brooks has been on a roll, winning three of the last seven rounds.

“That’s pretty cool,” he said. “It’s nice to do one by myself, because I split every other (round win). It’s good to get one alone.”

Tuf Cooper tops tie-down ropers

Tuf Cooper, a three-time, tie-down roping world champion, knows how to win at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Cooper added to his Wrangler NFR success by winning Round 3 with a 6.9-second run.

Cooper earned a $26,231 check for his win. He’s sixth in the PRCA | RAM World Standings with $141,823. He’s also leading the average with a 24.5-second time on three head.

Cooper, who won the 2017 all-around world title, is third in the all-around standings after three rounds.

“It’s every cowboy’s dream to compete here, and winning a round feels amazing,” Cooper said. “I felt relaxed and was able to get the start that I wanted, so that helped out.”

Although Cooper is a Wrangler NFR veteran, he still enjoys soaking in the experience.

“Vegas is Cowboy Town during the NFR, it’s amazing,” Cooper said. “Our whole family is here and the entire Western industry. If you’re not here and read this, you’ve got seven nights to get out here. It’s a 10-day marathon, each night you’ve got to do your best. Every night you’ve got to rope better than all the other guys.”

Bareback rider Tanner Aus takes win with 90-point ride

The rematch for Tanner Aus was as good as the first.

After winning Rodeo Corpus Christi (Texas) with a 90-point ride on Frontier Rodeo’s Full Baggage in April, it was more of the same for Aus and Full Baggage in Round 3 of the Wrangler NFR.

Aus had a 90-point trip on Full Baggage to win the round and earn $26,231.

“I would like to keep this 90-point streak going with that horse,” Aus said. “I was really excited to see that I had that one. That was a great horse to have in this pen. There were a lot of strong horses out (Saturday night), horses that strike fear into the hearts of men. I had a little history with that horse, and I was thankful. It feels good. You can’t stub your toe on him.”

The ride was everything Aus thought it would be – and more. Full Baggage was the PRCA Bareback Horse of the Year in 2011 and 2013.

“It kind of felt like it was all I could do to keep up with him to be honest,” Aus said. “It was a fight to the end, and he got to the fence right there at the whistle and it timed out perfectly. It was one of those where you don’t know what the score is going to be. I was thankful to hear it (the score). I’m kind of getting things rolling this week. It was a tough first couple of rounds, and now I got something good.”

Aus received a no score in Round 1 and failed to place in Round 2.

Team ropers Wade/Davison claim second win in three rounds

Team ropers Tyler Wade and Cole Davison have already had a stout Wrangler NFR, and only three rounds have been completed.

Wade/Davison won Round 1 with a 4.0-second run, then went out Saturday night and recorded a 3.7-second run to capture the Round 3 victory.

“The money is awesome, and we have $62,000 won already and that is a good feeling,” Wade said. “It’s nice to have that much in the third round, but right now it’s too early to talk averages.”

Davison also is happy about the way things are unfolding for his team.

“Obviously, we are here to catch every one of them, and nobody thinks about the average until the end of the week because there’s so much money,” Davison said. “This is a humbling sport, so I just try to stay even keeled.”

Wade and Davison know their respective horses are fueling their victory binge.

“I rode my new bay named Spur,” Wade said. “This is his fifth steer with me in a rodeo setup, but he’s 12 years old now and was used for roping before by his previous owner. We did a lot of practice with him and he is taking it well. I was a little nervous about the crowd and sounds, but he’s doing great so far, and I hope he keeps it up.”

Davison also praised his mount.

“I was riding Apollo Oak,” Davison said. “I bought him from Rhen Richard. He (Apollo Oak) is pretty spot on, and I didn’t do a good job of getting out, but he reads the cow well.”

Steer wrestler Hunter Cure claims title

Hunter Cure, a two-time PRCA world champion steer wrestler, grabbed the headlines Saturday night.

The Holliday, Texas, cowboy won the round with a 3.8-second run. The victory came after Cure had a wild Round 2 run where he flipped over and still registered an 8.9-second time.

“It feels good to actually break the ice at any point in the week and get your first check, and it’s pretty sweet following up a pretty unique run from (Friday night) to a first-place run (Saturday night). It’s kind of a daylight and dark kind of thing.”

Cure used his Friday run as a learning tool.

“My hazer, Lee Graves, and I took about five minutes (Friday) when we finally got the right angle of both horses and the steer,” Cure said. “We frame-by-framed it until we figured out where our deficiencies were and got up this morning and tried to work on those.”

Cure was quick to credit his success to Graves, who won steer wrestling world championships in 2005 and 2009.

“You can’t replace a two-time world champion steer wrestler, but also a man who’s hazed over 100 steers in this building,” Cure said. “So, I’m very fortunate to have him in my corner.”

Amberleigh Moore is tops in barrel racing

Barrel racer Amberleigh Moore is back on track.

After knocking down a barrel in Round 1, she picked up an $11,000 check in Round 2.

In Round 3, Moore claimed the title with a 13.62-second run.

“Paige (Moore’s horse) just loves this arena so much,” Moore said. “She came in the first night, and she was so excited to be here that I think she got too excited. She over-worked and lost me. She came back (Friday night) and played it safe, which was fine because we picked up a check. Then tonight, I knew she’d come back and tighten it up, and I just had to be ready to let it roll.”

Moore said her Wrangler NFR experience is paying off.

“Being that it’s my fourth year here and it’s Paige’s 33rd run in that arena, we both know every inch of that arena, and I just have to be ready for it every step of the way,” Moore said.

Third Performance Results, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019

Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas

Bareback riding: 1. Tanner Aus, 90 points on Frontier Rodeo’s Full Baggage, $26,231; 2. Trenten Montero, 89, $20,731; 3. Kaycee Feild, 88, $15,654; 4. Tim O’Connell, 87, $11,000; 5. Clayton Biglow, 86, $6,769; 6. Caleb Bennett, 84, $4,231; 7. Steven Dent, 82; 8. Tilden Hooper, 79.5; 9. Richmond Champion, 79; 10. Taylor Broussard, 76; 11. Orin Larsen, 75; 12. Clint Laye, 71; 13. Austin Foss, Ty Breuer and Jake Brown, NS. Average standings: 1. Tim O’Connell, 264.5 points on three head; 2. Trenten Montero, 263.5; 3. Richmond Champion, 259.5; 4. Clayton Biglow, 258.5; 5. Kaycee Feild, 252.5; 6. Steven Dent, 252; 7. Taylor Broussard, 246.5; 8. Clint Laye, 246; 9. Tilden Hooper, 244; 10. Orin Larsen, 239; 11. Caleb Bennett, 174 points on two; 12. Tanner Aus, 172.5; 13. Ty Breuer, 171; 14. Austin Foss, 167.5; 15. Jake Brown, 86.5 points on one. World standings: 1. Clayton Biglow, $219,452; 2. Kaycee Feild, $201,859; 3. Orin Larsen, $185,558; 4. Richmond Champion, $182,714; 5. Tim O’Connell, $161,668; 6. Tilden Hooper, $158,559; 7. Caleb Bennett, $140,857; 8. Trenten Montero, $137,719; 9. Clint Laye, $128,954; 10. Tanner Aus, $117,826; 11. Ty Breuer, $107,584; 12. Jake Brown, $105,068; 13. Steven Dent, $103,799; 14. Austin Foss, $102,895; 15. Taylor Broussard, $93,502.

Steer wrestling: 1. Hunter Cure, 3.8 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Will Lummus and Tyler Pearson, 4.1, $18,192 each; 4. (tie) Tyler Waguespack, J.D. Struxness and Bridger Chambers, 4.3, $7,333; 7. Matt Reeves, 4.4; 8. Cameron Morman, 4.7; 9. Ty Erickson, 4.8; 10. (tie) Riley Duvall and Kyle Irwin, 5.7; 12. Tanner Brunner, 6.6; 13. Scott Guenthner, 7.4; 14. Dakota Eldridge, 13.6; 15. Stetson Jorgensen, 16.0. Average standings: 1. Tyler Waguespack, 12.0 seconds on three head; 2. J.D. Struxness, 12.4; 3. Matt Reeves, 13.6; 4. Cameron Morman, 14.4; 5. Riley Duvall, 15.3; 6. Hunter Cure, 17.4; 7. Bridger Chambers, 22.3; 8. Tyler Pearson, 23.4; 9. (tie) Stetson Jorgensen and Dakota Eldridge, 24.3; 11. Kyle Irwin, 24.6; 12. Scott Guenthner, 29.9; 13. Ty Erickson, 32.5; 14. Will Lummus, 8.4 seconds on two; 15. Tanner Brunner, 16.6. World standings: 1. Ty Erickson; $156,081; 2. Tyler Waguespack, $147,464; 3. Hunter Cure, $140,799; 4. J.D. Struxness, $134,150; 5. Scott Guenthner, $128,545; 6. Stetson Jorgensen, $127,015; 7. Dakota Eldridge, $117,334; 8. Will Lummus, $115,998; 9. Bridger Chambers, $114,554; 10. Tyler Pearson, $112,712; 11. Kyle Irwin, $97,703; 12. Matt Reeves, $96,259; 13. Riley Duvall, $95,963; 14. Cameron Morman, $88,114; 15. Tanner Brunner, $84,950.

Team roping: 1. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 3.7 seconds, $26,231 each; 2. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 3.9, $20,731; 3. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 4.0, $15,654; 4. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 4.6, $11,000; 5. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 4.7, $6,769; 6. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 5.1, $4,231; 7. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 8.9; 8. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 14.0; 9. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 14.5; 10. Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 14.8; 11. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, Clay Tryan/Jake Long, Riley Minor/Brady Minor and Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, NT. Average standings: 1. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 13.5 seconds on three head; 2. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 14.0; 3. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 14.9; 4. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 19.9; 5. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 25.1; 6. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 28.0; 7. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 29.1; 8. Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 34.2; 9. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 7.7 seconds on two; 10. Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 9.4; 11. Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, 10.5; 12. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 13.6; 13. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 13.8; 14. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, 4.6 seconds on one; 15. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 19.0. World standings (headers): 1. Clay Smith, $186,743; 2. Kaleb Driggers, $153,558; 3. Tyler Wade, $135,856; 4. Clay Tryan, $133,896; 5. Brenten Hall, $130,657; 6. Riley Minor, $125,418; 7. Cody Snow, $120,707; 8. Coleman Proctor, $114,318; 9. Chad Masters, $112,298; 10. Ty Blasingame, $111,490; 11. Matt Sherwood, $111,166; 12. Erich Rogers, $99,653; 13. Luke Brown, $97,055; 14. Tate Kirchenschlager, $93,071; 15. Jake Cooper, $90,524. World standings (heelers): 1. Junior Nogueira, $150,877; 2. Jade Corkill, $144,869; 3. Jake Long, $137,627; 4. Cole Davison, $134,371; 5. Chase Tryan, $128,076; 6. Brady Minor, $125,418; 7. Kyle Lockett, $124,384; 8. Hunter Koch, $119,269; 9. Ryan Motes, $119,166; 10. Joseph Harrison, $115,047; 11. Travis Graves, $113,165; 12. Wesley Thorp, $112,950; 13. Paul Eaves, $101,562; 14. Caleb Anderson, $89,723; 15. Tyler Worley, $88,524.

Saddle bronc riding: 1. Chase Brooks, 90 points on Outlawbuckers Rodeo’s Lunatic Party, $26,231; 2. Zeke Thurston, 89.5, $20,731; 3. Dawson Hay, 88.5, $15,654; 4. Brody Cress, 88, $11,000; 5. (tie) Spencer Wright and Jake Watson, 87, $5,500 each; 7. Ryder Wright, 86.5; 8. Jesse Wright, 85.5; 9. Jacobs Crawley, 84.5; 10. Mitch Pollock, 84; 11. Rusty Wright, 83.5; 12. Colt Gordon, 82.5; 13. Sterling Crawley, Bradley Harter and J.J. Elshere, NS. Average standings: 1. Brody Cress, 252 points on three head; 2. Rusty Wright, 250.5; 3. Zeke Thurston, 177.5 points on two; 4. Chase Brooks, 176; 5. Jesse Wright, 175; 6. Spencer Wright, 173; 7. Dawson Hay, 171.5; 8. Jacobs Crawley, 169; 9. Colt Gordon, 162; 10. Jake Watson, 87 points on one; 11. (tie) Ryder Wright, Bradley Harter and J.J. Elshere, 86.5; 14. Mitch Pollock, 84; 15. Sterling Crawley, NS. World standings: 1. Ryder Wright, $234,488; 2. Zeke Thurston, $233,953; 3. Chase Brooks, $159,847; 4. Rusty Wright, $148,923; 5. Jacobs Crawley, $146,666; 6. Brody Cress, $145,205; 7. Spencer Wright, $142,938; 8. Jesse Wright, $132,736; 9. Bradley Harter, $127,543; 10. Dawson Hay, $125,965; 11. Sterling Crawley, $124,427; 12. Jake Watson, $124,291; 13. J.J. Elshere, $119,003; 14. Mitch Pollock, $109,542; 15. Colt Gordon, $101,071.  

Tie-down roping: 1. Tuf Cooper, 6.9 seconds, $26,231; 2. Shane Hanchey, 7.1, $20,731; 3. (tie) Ty Harris and Shad Mayfield, 7.3, $13,327; 5. Tyler Milligan, 7.6, $6,769; 6. Taylor Santos, 7.9, $4,231; 7. Rhen Richard, 8.5; 8. Haven Meged, 8.6; 9. Tyson Durfey, 9.1; 10. Adam Gray, 9.2; 11. Marty Yates, 9.4; 12. Michael Otero, 10.5; 13. Cooper Martin, 11.0; 14. Caleb Smidt, 15.7; 15. Riley Pruitt, 16.7. Average standings: 1. Tuf Cooper, 24.5 seconds on three head; 2. Taylor Santos, 24.7; 3. Marty Yates, 25.1; 4. Haven Meged, 25.5; 5. Shad Mayfield, 25.6; 6. Tyson Durfey, 26.2; 7. Michael Otero, 28.2; 8. Rhen Richard, 29.5; 9. Tyler Milligan, 33.6; 10. Cooper Martin, 34.5; 11. Caleb Smidt, 35.1; 12. Adam Gray, 37.4; 13. Riley Pruitt, 40.6; 14. Shane Hanchey, 14.7 seconds on two; 15. Ty Harris, 17.8. World standings: 1. Shane Hanchey, $159,158; 2. Haven Meged, $158,860; 3. Marty Yates, $146,431; 4. Caleb Smidt, $141,900; 5. Taylor Santos, $141,869; 6. Tuf Cooper, $141,823; 7. Tyson Durfey, $137,263; 8. Tyler Milligan, $134,974; 9. Shad Mayfield, $127,075; 10. Ty Harris, $120,976; 11. Michael Otero, $111,924; 12. Riley Pruitt, $109,535; 13. Adam Gray, $102,173; 14. Rhen Richard, $98,661; 15. Cooper Martin, $96,260.

Barrel racing: 1. Amberleigh Moore, 13.62 seconds, $26,231; 2. Emily Miller, 13.63, $20,731; 3. Dona Kay Rule, 13.68, $15,654; 4. Jessica Routier, 13.84, $11,000; 5. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 13.88, $6,769; 6. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 13.90, $4,231; 7. Nellie Miller, 13.93; 8. Lisa Lockhart, 13.94; 9. Hailey Kinsel, 13.96; 10. Lacinda Rose, 13.99; 11. Shali Lord, 14.11; 12. Stevi Hillman, 14.18; 13. Jennifer Sharp, 14.19; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, 14.31; 15. Ericka Nelson, 19.03. Average standings: 1. Emily Miller, 41.00 seconds on three runs; 2. Dona Kay Rule, 41.45; 3. Lisa Lockhart, 41.49; 4. Jessica Routier, 41.71; 5. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 41.80; 6. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 41.86; 7. Nellie Miller, 41.89; 8. Shali Lord, 42.04; 9. Jennifer Sharp, 42.27; 10. Lacinda Rose, 42.73; 11. Hailey Kinsel, 46.35; 12. Stevi Hillman, 46.69; 13. Ericka Nelson, 47.06; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, 47.60; 15. Amberleigh Moore, 51.21. World standings: 1. Lisa Lockhart, $181,313; 2. Hailey Kinsel, $179,597; 3. Nellie Miller, $175,611; 4. Emily Miller, $170,760; 5. Dona Kay Rule, $148,392; 6. Amberleigh Moore, $140,290; 7. Stevi Hillman, $130,989; 8. Jessica Routier, $123,082; 9. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, $122,273; 10. Shali Lord, $121,776; 11. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, $114,269; 12. Jennifer Sharp, $107,254; 13. Ericka Nelson, $103,433; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, $100,361; 15. Lacinda Rose, $98,936.

Bull riding: 1. Koby Radley, 92 points on Big Stone Rodeo Inc.’s Spotted Demon, $33,564; 2. Jordan Hansen, 90, $28,064; 3.Trey Benton III, 89.5, $22,987; 4. Stetson Wright, Sage Kimzey, Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost, Tyler Bingham, Jeff Askey, Garrett Smith, Daylon Swearingen, Jordan Spears, Trey Kimzey, Clayton Sellars, Boudreaux Campbell, NS. Average standings: 1. Jordan Hansen, 179.5 points on two head; 2. (tie) Koby Radley and Garrett Smith, 178.5; 4. Boudreaux Campbell, 174.0; 5. Sage Kimzey, 172; 6. Stetson Wright, 92.5 points on one; 7. Tyler Bingham, 90; 8. Trey Benton III, 89.5; 9. Clayton Sellars, 84.5; 10. Jordan Spears, 82.5, 11. Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost, Jeff Askey, Daylon Swearingen, Trey Kimzey, NS. World standings: 1. Sage Kimzey, $290,271; 2. Stetson Wright, $188,652; 3. Boudreaux Campbell, $180,489; 4. Garrett Smith, $171,769; 5. Jordan Hansen, $163,811; 6. Trevor Kastner, $159,100; 7. Koby Radley, $158,118; 8. Trey Benton III, $155,264; 9. Tyler Bingham, $153,181; 10. Clayton Sellars, $139,191; 11. Jordan Spears, $131,548; 12. Josh Frost, $129,561; 13. Jeff Askey, $123,694; 14. Daylon Swearingen, $121,837; 15. Trey Kimzey, $118,160.

All-Around Standings: 1. Stetson Wright, $219,230; 2. Clay Smith, $197,595; 3. Tuf Cooper, $195,986; 4. Caleb Smidt, $155,190; 5. Trevor Brazile, $129,754; 6. Landon McClaugherty, $112,119; 7. Steven Dent, $111,577; 8. Rhen Richard, $104,653; 9. Josh Frost, $92,732; 10. Daylon Swearingen, $80,920.

Making his eighth appearance at the Wrangler NFR, Wright won his 10th career round with an 89.5-point ride on United Pro Rodeo’s Awesome Sauce before 16,809 spectators at the Thomas & Mack Center, Friday night.

“My nephew (Ryder) got on him in Cheyenne (Wyo.) and missed him out, and Stetson had been on him three or four times,” Jesse Wright said. “That horse is really hard to mark out and is really droppy. I got a good start on him, my mark out was good and strong, and then it got rolling after that.”

Jesse’s trips to the Wrangler NFR have come in 2010-14, 2016 and 2017, highlighted by his 2012 world championship. He entered this Wrangler NFR 13th in the PRCA | RAM World Standings.

After his $26,231 victory, Wright moved into eighth place in the world standings with $132,736.

“It feels really good,” Wright said. “You go from really low (after getting a no score in Round 1) to really high. It’s been a while (since I won a round), and it felt good.”

Jesse had reason to smile since only four saddle bronc riders made 8-second rides Friday. Rusty Wright, Jesse’s nephew, placed second in the round with an 85.5-point ride on Dakota Rodeo’s Cash Deal.

“Horse by horse and just try to stay positive, have fun and take it all in,” Jesse said about his mindset for the remainder of the Wrangler NFR. “You’ve got to keep having fun no matter what is going on, because if you start beating yourself up too bad it isn’t going to get too much better than what it is. Round by round, and horse by horse.”

Trenton Montero wins with Round 2 bareback riding record

This is Trenton Montero’s first appearance at the Wrangler NFR, and it didn’t take him long to create a lasting memory.

The Winnemucca, Nev., cowboy had a 90.5-point ride on Sankey Pro Rodeo & Phenom Genetics’ Prairie Rose to break the NFR Round 2 record and capture the victory.

Montero broke the Round 2 record of 89.5 points set by Cimarron Gerke in 2004.

“It is a huge honor to be able to get on a horse like that, and being able to get by him was great,” said Montero, 27. “I thought I was going to be on the ground more than once during that ride, and I feel like I definitely worked hard for it. I’m humbled to be part of that legacy.

“It’s a huge relief to win a round here. Even though I have worked my whole life for this and I was able to get here, you see the guys like Kaycee Feild and Clayton Biglow and Orin Larsen in the locker room with you, and it is hard not to question yourself. I proved to myself that I belong here with these guys.”

It was Montero’s first trip aboard Prairie Rose, and it was a match-up he was craving.

“I have watched it a ton of times, and I have to say I was pretty stoked to see that I had it drawn,” Montero said. “(The ride) was pretty much all reaction. I didn’t even know where I was half of that ride. All I could do was just keep setting my feet. It goes back to getting on the spur board and it all just clicked, and I kept gassing it.”

Tyler Waguespack continues success in Vegas

The Thomas & Mack Arena has been extremely good to steer wrestler Tyler Waguespack.

The Gonzales, La., cowboy won world championships and average titles at the Wrangler NFR in 2016 and 2018, and he shows no signs of slowing down at the 2019 Finals.

Waguespack won Round 2 with a 3.6-second run, claiming the ninth NFR round win of his career.

“It’s amazing to have a round win at the National Finals,” Waguespack said. “I actually ran that steer in the Cinch Shootout in Fort Madison (Iowa) earlier this year, and I was fortunate enough to win it on him. So, I had a really good game plan and knew some particulars about him. I was 4.3 on him in the Cinch Shootout and came back and cleaned it up a lot with a 3.6 tonight, so it was awesome.”

Waguespack, with his $26,231 round win, moved into second place in the PRCA | RAM World Standings with $140,130.

“My goal going forward is to do the best I can on each steer I draw, and if I’m fortunate enough to get another gold buckle, that would be outstanding,” he said. “In the meantime, I’ve got eight more rounds to go and I’m going to try to do as well as I can on each animal I draw.”

Marty Yates wins tie-down roping in Round 2

Marty Yates has always been known as a fast roper who is not afraid to take chances.

The Stephenville, Texas, cowboy had his skills on display Friday, winning Round 2 with a 7.3-second run.

“It’s awesome to start off on a good foot,” Yates said. “(Thursday night) I was fortunate to place a little bit (splitting fourth with an 8.4-second run). The calves have been a little funny. … So, it’s nice to come out on top the second round and have a little bit of a lead so far.”

Yates, who came to the Wrangler NFR seventh in the world standings, moved up to second in the standings with $146,431. He’s already earned $45,115 at the NFR.

“It’s great starting the momentum off early and being able to carry it through the week and put as much money in my pocket as possible,” said Yates, who is making his sixth consecutive appearance at the NFR.

Garrett Smith captures bull riding Round 2 win

Bull rider Garrett Smith is making the most of his third-career appearance at the Wrangler NFR.

The Rexburg, Idaho, cowboy has already covered two bulls, his latest 8-second ride a 91.5-point, Round 2 victory on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Black Gold.

Counting ground money, Smith collected a $33,564 check, which pushed him to fourth in the world standings with $171,769. He’s also leading the NFR average with 178.5 points on two head.

“That’s pretty sweet,” Smith said. “I didn’t even know how much it was at first, but just winning a round even if everyone stays on is big money. I knew he (Black Gold) went right, but that’s pretty much all. Riding him is like letting a balloon loose. It was going by really fast and at one point I closed my eyes, and it worked out.”

Smith won Round 10 in 2016 and Round 2 in 2017 and was thrilled to get his third round victory.

“This one is big. I’d won two rounds before, but it was all on the same bull, Rafter G Rodeo’s J Lazy, and now I needed to pick a new one,” he said.

Team ropers Smith/Corkill claim Round 2 crown

Team roping header Clay Smith and heeler Jade Corkill know how to win world championships.

Smith is the reigning team roping header world champion, and Corkill has three team roping heeler world titles – 2012-14.

The duo teamed up this summer, and the partnership is still paying dividends at the Wrangler NFR.

Smith and Corkill won Round 2 Friday with a 4.4-second run.

“He (Corkill) did everything,” Smith said. “I kind of missed my dally, and by the time I looked up, it was time to face.”

Corkill also was quick to credit his partner.

“I tried to focus on doing my job and plan on him turning the steer, and he does it better than anyone else,” Corkill said.

Smith and Corkill were quick to acknowledge their horsepower.

“I was riding Marty, he’s 12 years old,” Smith said. “He’s been good for a long time, and I’ve had him since he was 4 years old. He did pretty good tonight.”

Corkill also praised his horse.

“I was riding Huey,” he said. “He’s 10 years old, and I’ve had him for a year. He scores good and fast and can do everything we need – and he wants to do it. He did first-place good tonight.”

After their Round 2 victory, Smith and Corkill are leading their respective world standings, but Corkill knows there are no guarantees with eight rounds remaining.

“When you do well early, it helps, but it’s over now and we have to start over (Saturday) night and do our jobs every time and hope the end results are what we want,” Corkill said. “It won’t be for lack of trying. We’re feeling 10 times better than last night.”

Smith and Corkill had a 9.4-second run in Round 1 and did not place.

Dona Kay Rule sets pace in barrel racing

Barrel racer Dona Kay Rule didn’t place in Round 1 but made up for it in Round 2.

Rule, making her inaugural appearance at the Wrangler NFR, won Round 2 with a 13.69-second run.

“Oh, it’s incredible,” Rule said. “I never doubted my ability, but I never had a good opportunity like I do now with the beautiful, wonderful horse I have and all the extras he comes with that you need. I envisioned myself doing this years ago, and I remember being at the Cow Palace in the early ’70s or late ’60s and Sammy Thurman riding by, and she turned and winked at me. I thought, ‘I want to be her someday.’ It just took me 60-something years to get there.”

Rule was pleased with the smooth run she made Friday.

“We had a little trouble last night and stumbled, and I just knew I needed to hold his hip in on barrel one,” she said. “Boy, he took it.”

Rule is riding High Valor, 10, the winner of the 2019 Purina Horse of the Year presented by AQHA Award.

“I knew he was special, but it took me a long time to train him because he’s pretty busy-minded. I’ve really enjoyed him, and he counts on me a lot. It’s been kind of fun having a real friend and an ally.”

Second Performance Results, Friday, Dec. 6, 2019

Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas

Bareback riding: 1. Trenten Montero, 90.5 points on Sankey Pro Rodeo & Phenom Genetics’ Prairie Rose, $26,231; 2. Tim O’Connell, 89.5, $20,731; 3. Richmond Champion, 89, $15,654; 4. (tie) Clint Laye and Ty Breuer, 87.5, $8,885 each; 6. Taylor Broussard, 87, $4,231; 7. Jake Brown, 86.5; 8. Steven Dent, 84; 9. Tanner Aus, 82.5; 10. Clayton Biglow, 82; 11. Austin Foss, 81.5; 12. Kaycee Feild, 77.5; 13.Orin Larsen, 76.5; 14. Tilden Hooper, 76; 15. Caleb Bennett, NS. Average standings: 1. Richmond Champion, 180.5 points on two head; 2. Tim O’Connell, 177.5; 3. Clint Laye, 175; 4. Trenten Montero, 174.5; 5. Clayton Biglow, 172.5; 6. Ty Breuer, 171; 7. Taylor Broussard, 170.5; 8. Steven Dent, 170; 9. Austin Foss, 167.5; 10. (tie) Kaycee Feild and Tilden Hooper, 164.5; 12. Orin Larsen, 164; 13. Caleb Bennett, 90 points on one head; 14. Jake Brown, 86.5; 15. Tanner Aus, 82.5. World standings:1. Clayton Biglow, $212,683; 2. Kaycee Feild, $186,205; 3. Orin Larsen, $185,558; 4. Richmond Champion, $182,714; 5. Tilden Hooper, $158,559; 6. Tim O’Connell, $150,668; 7. Caleb Bennett, $136,627; 8. Clint Laye, $128,954; 9. Trenten Montero, $116,988; 10. Ty Breuer, $107,584; 11. Jake Brown, $105,068; 12. Steven Dent, $103,799; 13. Austin Foss, $102,895; 14. Taylor Broussard, $93,502; 15. Tanner Aus, $91,595.

Steer wrestling: 1. Tyler Waguespack, 3.6 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) Scott Guenthner, Stetson Jorgensen and J.D. Struxness, 4.3, $15,795 each; 5. Matt Reeves, 4.7, $6,769; 6. Kyle Irwin, 4.9, $4,231; 7. Riley Duvall, 5.0; 8. Cameron Morman, 5.4; 9. Dakota Eldridge, 7.1; 10. Hunter Cure, 8.9; 11. Tanner Brunner, 10.0; 12. Bridger Chambers, 14.2; 13. Ty Erickson, 14.3; 14.Tyler Pearson, 15.0; 15. Will Lummus, NT. Average standings: 1. Tyler Waguespack, 7.7 seconds on two head; 2. J.D. Struxness, 8.1; 3. Stetson Jorgensen, 8.3; 4. Matt Reeves, 9.2; 5. Riley Duvall, 9.6; 6. Cameron Morman, 9.7; 7. Dakota Eldridge, 10.7; 8. Hunter Cure, 13.6; 9. Bridger Chambers, 18.0; 10. Kyle Irwin, 18.9; 11. Tyler Pearson, 19.3; 12. Scott Guenthner, 22.5; 13. Ty Erickson, 27.7; 14. Will Lummus, 4.3 seconds on one head; 15.Tanner Brunner, 10.0. World standings: 1. Ty Erickson, $156,081; 2. Tyler Waguespack, $140,130; 3.Scott Guenthner, $128,545; 4. Stetson Jorgensen, $127,015; 5. J.D. Struxness, $126,816; 6. Dakota Eldridge, $117,334; 7. Hunter Cure, $114,568; 8. Bridger Chambers, $107,221; 9. Will Lummus, $97,805; 10. Kyle Irwin, $97,703; 11. Matt Reeves, $96,259; 12. Riley Duvall, $95,963; 13. Tyler Pearson, $94,520; 14. Cameron Morman, $88,114; 15.Tanner Brunner, $84,950.

Team roping: 1. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 4.4 seconds, $26,231; 2. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, 4.6, $20,731; 3. Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 4.7, $15,654; 4. (tie) Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley and Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 4.8, $7,333; 7. Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, 5.0; 8. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 5.1; 9. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 6.0; 10. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 9.7; 11. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 10.7; 12. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 14.4; 13. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, Luke Brown/Paul Eaves and Tyler Wade, NT. Average standings: 1. (tie) Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira and Riley Minor/Brady Minor, 9.4 seconds on two head; 3. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 9.6; 4. Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, 10.5; 5. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 10.9; 6. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 13.8; 7. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 14.0; 8. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 14.6; 9. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 14.8; 10. Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 19.4; 11. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 20.4; 12. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 4.0 seconds on one head; 13. Clay Tryan/Jake Long, 4.6; 14. Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 4.7; 15. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 19.0. World standings (headers): 1. Clay Smith, $186,743; 2. Kaleb Driggers, $142,558; 3. Clay Tryan, $133,896; 4. Riley Minor, $125,418; 5. Coleman Proctor, $114,318; 6. Ty Blasingame, $111,490; 7. Brenten Hall, $109,927; 8. Tyler Wade, $109,625; 9. Matt Sherwood, $106,935; 10. Chad Masters, $105,529; 11. Cody Snow, $105,054; 12. Erich Rogers, $99,653; 13. Luke Brown, $97,055; 14. Tate Kirchenschlager, $93,071; 15. Jake Cooper, $90,524. World standings (heelers): 1. Jade Corkill, $144,869; 2. Junior Nogueira, $139,877; 3. Jake Long, $137,627; 4. Brady Minor, $125,418; 5. Kyle Lockett, $124,384; 6. Ryan Motes, $119,166; 7. Hunter Koch, $115,038; 8. Travis Graves, $113,165; 9. Joseph Harrison, $108,278; 10. Cole Davison, $108,140; 11. Chase Tryan, $107,345; 12. Paul Eaves, $101,562; 13. Wesley Thorp, $97,296; 14. Caleb Anderson, $89,723; 15. Tyler Worley, $88,524.

Saddle bronc riding: 1. Jesse Wright, 89.5 points on United Pro Rodeo’s Awesome Sauce, $26,231; 2. Rusty Wright, 85.5, $20,731; 3. Jacobs Crawley, 84.5, $15,654; 4. Brody Cress, 78.0, $11,000; 5. Ryder Wright, Zeke Thurston, Chase Brooks, Spencer Wright, Sterling Crawley, Mitch Pollock, Jake Watson, Dawson Hay, Bradley Harter, Colt Gordon, J.J. Elshere, NS. Average standings: 1. Rusty Wright, 167.0 points on two head; 2. Brody Cress, 164.0; 3. Jesse Wright, 89.5 points on one head; 4. Zeke Thurston, 88; 5. (tie) Bradley Harter, J.J. Elshere, 86.5; 7. Chase Brooks and Spencer Wright, 86; 9. Jacobs Crawley, 84.5; 10. Dawson Hay, 83; 11. Colt Gordon, 79.5; 12. Ryder Wright, Sterling Crawley, Mitch Pollock and Jake Watson, NS. World standings: 1. Ryder Wright, $234,488; 2. Zeke Thurston, $213,222; 3. Rusty Wright, $148,923; 4. Jacobs Crawley, $146,666; 5. Spencer Wright, $137,438; 6. Brody Cress, $134,205; 7. Chase Brooks, $133,617; 8. Jesse Wright, $132,736; 9. Bradley Harter, $127,543; 10. Sterling Crawley, $124,427; 11. J.J. Elshere, $119,004; 12. Jake Watson, $118,791; 13. Dawson Hay, $110,311; 14. Mitch Pollock, $109,542; 15. Colt Gordon, $101,071.

Tie-down roping: 1. Marty Yates, 7.3 seconds, $26,231; 2. Tyler Milligan, 8.2, $20,731; 3. (tie) Haven Meged and Shad Mayfield, 8.6, $13,327 each; 5. (tie) Taylor Santos and Tyson Durfey, 8.7, $5,500 each; 7. Tuf Cooper, 8.9; 8. Michael Otero, 9.1; 9. Adam Gray, 9.3; 10. Cooper Martin, 9.6; 11. Caleb Smidt, 9.7; 12. Ty Harris, 10.5; 13. Rhen Richard, 11.7; 14. Riley Pruitt, 13.6; 15. Shane Hanchey, NT. Average standings: 1. Marty Yates, 15.7 seconds on two head; 2. Taylor Santos, 16.8; 3. Haven Meged, 16.9; 4. Tyson Durfey, 17.1; 5. Tuf Cooper, 17.6; 6. Michael Otero, 17.7; 7. Shad Mayfield, 18.3; 8. Caleb Smidt, 19.4; 9. Rhen Richard, 21.0; 10. Cooper Martin, 23.5; 11. Riley Pruitt, 23.9; 12. Tyler Milligan, 26.0; 13. Adam Gray, 28.2; 14. Shane Hanchey, 7.6 seconds on one head; 15. Ty Harris, 10.5. World standings: 1. Haven Meged, $158,860; 2. Marty Yates, $146,431; 3. Caleb Smidt, $141,900; 4. Shane Hanchey, $138,428; 5. Taylor Santos, $137,638; 6. Tyson Durfey, $137,263; 7. Tyler Milligan, $128,205; 8. Tuf Cooper, $115,592; 9. Shad Mayfield, $113,748; 10. Michael Otero, $111,924; 11. Riley Pruitt, $109,535; 12. Ty Harris, $107,649; 13. Adam Gray, $102,173; 14. Rhen Richard, $98,661; 15. Cooper Martin, $96,260.

Barrel racing: 1. Dona Kay Rule, 13.69 seconds, $26,231; 2. Hailey Kinsel, 13.73, $20,731; 3. Emily Miller, 13.74, $15,654; 4. Amberleigh Moore, 13.78, $11,000; 5. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 13.83, $6,769; 6. Lisa Lockhart, 13.85, $4,231; 7. Jessica Routier, 13.90; 8. Shali Lord,13.92; 9. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 13.96; 10. Ericka Nelson, 13.98; 11. Nellie Miller, 14.06; 2. Jennifer Sharp, 14.11; 13. Cheyenne Wimberley, 14.20; 14. Lacinda Rose, 14.28; 15. Stevi Hillman, 18.76. Average standings: 1. Emily Miller, 27.37 seconds on two runs; 2. Lisa Lockhart, 27.55; 3. Dona Kay Rule, 27.77; 4. Jessica Routier, 27.87; 5. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 27.90; 6. Shali Lord, 27.93; 7. Nellie Miller, 27.96; 8. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 27.98; 9. Ericka Nelson, 28.03; 10. Jennifer Sharp, 28.08; 11. Lacinda Rose, 28.74; 12. Hailey Kinsel, 32.39; 13. Stevi Hillman, 32.51; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, 33.29; 15. Amberleigh Moore, 37.59. World standings: 1. Lisa Lockhart, $181,313; 2. Hailey Kinsel, $179,597; 3. Nellie Miller, $175,611; 4. Emily Miller, $150,029; 5. Dona Kay Rule, $132,738; 6. Stevi Hillman, $130,989; 7. Shali Lord, $121,776; 8. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, $115,503; 9. Amberleigh Moore, $114,059; 10. Jessica Routier, $112,082; 11. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, $110,038; 12. Jennifer Sharp, $107,254; 13. Ericka Nelson, $103,433; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, $100,361; 15. Lacinda Rose, $98,936.

Bull riding: 1. Garrett Smith, 91.5 points on Pete Carr Pro Rodeo’s Black Gold, $33,564; 2. Sage Kimzey, 84.5, $28,064; 3. Boudreaux Campbell, 82, $22,987; 4. Stetson Wright, Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost, Tyler Bingham, Koby Radley, Jeff Askey, Daylon Swearingen, Jordan Hansen, Jordan Spears, Trey Kimzey, Clayton Sellars and Trey Benton III, NS. Average standings: 1. Garrett Smith, 178.5 points on two head; 2. Boudreaux Campbell, 174; 3. Sage Kimzey, 172; 4. Stetson Wright, 92.5 points on one head; 5. Tyler Bingham, 90; 6. Jordan Hansen, 89.5; 7. Koby Radley, 86.5; 8. Clayton Sellars, 84.5; 9. Jordan Spears, 82.5; 10. Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost, Jeff Askey, Daylon Swearingen, Trey Kimzey and Trey Benton III, NS. World standings: 1. Sage Kimzey, $290,271; 2. Stetson Wright, $188,652; 3. Boudreaux Campbell, $180,489; 4. Garrett Smith, $171,769; 5. Trevor Kastner, $159,100; 6. Tyler Bingham, $153,181; 7. Clayton Sellars, $139,191; 8. Jordan Hansen, $135,747; 9. Trey Benton III, $132,277; 10. Jordan Spears, $131,548; 11. Josh Frost, $129,561; 12. Koby Radley, $124,554; 13. Jeff Askey, $123,694; 14. Daylon Swearingen, $121,837; 15. Trey Kimzey, $118,160.

All-Around World Standings: 1. Stetson Wright, $219,230; 2. Clay Smith, $197,595; 3. Tuf Cooper, $169,756; 4. Caleb Smidt, $155,190; 5. Trevor Brazile, $129,754; 6. Landon McClaugherty, $112,119; 7. Steven Dent, $111,577; 8. Rhen Richard, $104,653; 9. Josh Frost, $92,732; 10. Daylon Swearingen, $80,920; 11. Tanner Green, $72,714.

Three riders all broke the previous round record, as Richmond Champion became the king of Round 1 with his 91.5-point ride on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Night Crawler before 16,792 spectators at the Thomas & Mack Center.

“It’s pretty fun,” Champion said. “I’ve never gone out in the NFR and gotten a round win this early. That’s always the goal when you come here, you want to come out hot. Hopefully it will stay that way. The guys are riding great and the horses are great. I expect these records to keep getting broken all week long.”

Earlier in the round, Caleb Bennett set the Round 1 record with his 90-point ride on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Top Egyptian. The previous Round 1 record was 89 points, shared by Kaycee Feild (2011) and Wes Stevenson (2006).

Bennett held the record for less than five minutes as Clayton Biglow made a 90.5-point trip on Cervi Champion Rodeo’s RodeoHouston’s Ain’t No Angel.

But Champion claimed the record on Night Crawler. Wyatt Denny won Round 1 of the 2018 Wrangler NFR with an 87.5-point ride on Night Crawler.

“I had never been on that horse before,” Champion said. “I saw him on video a couple of times, and Caleb and I were talking and saying how (Night Crawler and Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Nightlivin) are about the same horse. Nightlivin had an off day and Night Crawler saved the day. The nerves for the first one are always the hardest here. That (first ride) brought me back to level ground, and I was feeling excited to get on that re-ride.”

Champion entered the Wrangler NFR fifth in the PRCA | RAM World Standings and was thrilled with his start at the Thomas & Mack. Champion earned $26,231 for his ride, moving him to fourth in the world standings – $45,623 behind leader Biglow.

“That (re-ride) was awesome,” Champion said. “It was one of those where you black out for a few seconds off the start, and the next thing you know you’re in the middle of him with your feet over your head. It was a lot of fun. It’s the kind you dream about getting on. This is a great confidence boost, and I want to keep the momentum rolling.”

Wade/Davison tie team roping Round 1 record

Team ropers Tyler Wade and Cole Davison equaled NFR history Thursday.

The partners registered a 4.0-second time to tie the NFR Round 1 record set by Turtle Powell and Dakota Kirchenschlager in 2014.

“Oh, man, that’s pretty cool, and the steers are better this year and that makes for faster rounds and faster roping,” Wade said.

The round win moved Wade to eighth in the header world standings and Davison to 10th.

“Last year I roped terribly for the first three rounds and didn’t catch one,” Davison said. “I don’t get worked up either way, but this is an easier start than last year. I’m humbled to even be here, and every win is a big win to me.”

Rookie Stetson Wright wins round in first Wrangler NFR trip

It didn’t take bull rider Stetson Wright long to win a round at the Wrangler NFR.

The rookie won Round 1 with an electric 92.5-point ride on 4L & Diamond S Rodeo’s Monte Walsh.

“It was amazing, I have envisioned it since I was a little kid here watching my dad (Cody Wright),” Wright said about his memorable eight-second performance. “I wanted to win a round in saddle bronc riding too, but I’m not complaining one bit.”

Wright, who also entered the NFR leading the all-around standings over team roping header Clay Smith, was excited to get aboard Monte Walsh – a bull he had done his homework on.

“I have watched him a bunch of times, and I wanted him before when we were out rodeoing and was so glad, I got him here instead,” Wright said. “He did exactly what I thought he would do, and he looked a little juicier.”

With one round victory under his belt, Wright felt a sense of relief.

“It means everything, it’s a great way to start the week, and my nerves have left the room because of that ride,” he said. “The main thing was proving I should be here, and now I know I belong here.”

Hanchey notches tie-down roping win

Shane Hanchey was in top form in Round 1.

Hanchey, the 2013 PRCA Tie-down Roping World Champion, stopped the clock in 7.6 seconds to capture the victory.

“It feels good. It’s important to get off on the right foot,” Hanchey said. “It’s such a long rodeo. Going for 10 days, it seems like if it doesn’t go perfect the first couple rounds you get to panicking. I’ve been fortunate to have good luck in the past in the first round. This builds a lot of confidence and momentum for me, and I’m looking forward to it the next nine nights.”

Hanchey, who is competing in his 10th NFR, was staying focused on his job at hand.

“I didn’t watch many other runs,” Hanchey said. “When (Taylor Santos) recorded a time of 8.1 (seconds), I thought if I went a little faster than him, I’d win some good money. I bought my horse from Mike Johnson in 2016, his name is Bam Bam. He fits my style. This is my fourth NFR with him.”

Steer wrestler Eldridge gets off to fast start

Dakota Eldridge seems to perform his best in Las Vegas’ bright lights.

In his first five appearances at the Wrangler NFR, he’s won the average twice – 2015 and 2017.

The Elko, Nev., cowboy had his talent on full display during his sixth trip, winning Round 1 in 3.6 seconds. The victory helped him rocket up from 11th to second in the world standings – $38,747 behind leader Ty Erickson.

“That was really one of my goals, to put the pedal down at the beginning,” Eldridge said. “This year, I just told myself I’m going to give it 100 percent and go for every round (win). I’m coming in at the best place you could ever come in, down toward the bottom, and nobody knows you’re in contention for a world title. So, my plan is to just keep slipping up there and go for every one and just have fun.

“It’s just a blessing to be down here after last year when I tore up my knee. You never take it for granted down here.”

In 2018, Eldridge suffered a season-ending left knee injury July 17 at Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days. Eldridge finished second in the world standings in 2015 and third in the world in 2017. He was quick to credit his horsepower and his hazer for his most-recent success.

“I’m riding Rusty, my good horse, that I’ve ridden every year here,” Eldridge said. “He’s actually been here more than I have, and he knows the start here better than I do. Clayton Hass is hazing for me, and he’s worth his weight in gold. He just brings them where I need him to bring them. We’re a good team together.”

Thurston tops saddle bronc riding Round 1 leaderboard

Zeke Thurston entered the 2019 Wrangler NFR in second place in the world standings –

$47,497 behind Ryder Wright.

Thurston, of Big Valley, Alberta, edged closer to Wright by winning Round 1 with an 88-point ride on Mo Betta Rodeo’s Sue City Sue.

The $26,231 victory by Thurston got him within $21,266 of Wright.

“I’d never had it (Mo Betta Rodeo’s Sue City Sue) before, but I’d seen it lots,” Thurston said. “Cort Scheer and I split the sixth round here last year, and he was on that horse. They’ve won lots of rounds on it, and it’s a great horse. Everywhere they get on that horse, they’re going to win. I was very happy with the draw.

“She tries hard every time. She jumps out there and has a right-hand move, goes down the front of the chutes, gets up under herself and kicks really good. Just a bronc rider’s dream, I guess. She’s got lots of timing, has lots of snap and is kind of an electric little thing. She’s awesome.”

Thurston said the early win was just what he wanted.

“Oh, it’s great,” Thurston said. “It gives you a confidence boost. You’ve got the hardest one out of the way, and you just try to keep the ball rolling and just have fun.”

Barrel racer Emily Miller snares win

Rookie Emily Miller was nearly overcome with emotion when she claimed a Round 1 victory with a 13.63-second run.

“I’m about to cry, I’m so excited, honestly,” Miller said. “It’s a dream come true. Any time you get to run with this caliber of women and this much horsepower, it’s surreal. To get the win tonight is pretty neat. You know it’s going to be amazing (to be here), but to actually experience it is unbelievable.”

Miller also praised her 9-year-old horse Chongo.

“Chongo, he’s spectacular,” she said. “That horse is such an athlete. Honestly, I struggled with him for a long time, because he was so athletic. I was over-riding him and not giving him the space. He needed to do his job, so it took us a little while.

“I took him back to Kylie Weast, who trained him, and she helped a lot. It kind of took just dumbing it down and letting him do his job. He knows what to do, and I’m so proud of him. It’s so neat to get to bring him here, because he deserves it.

First Performance Results, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019

Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas

Bareback riding: 1. Richmond Champion, 91.5 points on Pickett Pro Rodeo’s Night Crawler, $26,231; 2. Clayton Biglow, 90.5, $20,731; 3. Caleb Bennett, 90, $15,654; 4. Tilden Hooper, 88.5, $11,000; 5. Tim O’Connell, 88, $6,769; 6. (tie) Orin Larsen and Clint Laye, 87.5, $2,115 each; 8. Kaycee Feild, 87; 9. Steven Dent and Austin Foss, 86; 11. Trenten Montero, 84; 12. Ty Breuer and Taylor Broussard, 83.5; 14. Jake Brown and Tanner Aus, NS. World Standings: 1. Clayton Biglow, $212,683; 2. Kaycee Feild, $186,205; 3. Orin Larsen, $185,558; 4. Richmond Champion, $167,060; 5. Tilden Hooper, $158,559; 6. Caleb Bennett, $136,627; 7. Tim O’Connell, $129,938; 8. Clint Laye, $120,069; 9. Jake Brown, $105,068; 10. Steven Dent, $103,799; 11. Austin Foss, $102,895; 12. Ty Breuer, $98,699; 13. Tanner Aus, $91,595; 14. Trenten Montero, $90,757; 15. Taylor Broussard, $89,271.

Steer wrestling: 1. Dakota Eldridge, 3.6 seconds, $26,231; 2. (tie) J.D. Struxness and Bridger Chambers, 3.8, $18,192 each; 4. Stetson Jorgensen, 4.0, $11,000; 5. Tyler Waguespack, 4.1, $6,769; 6. (tie) Cameron Morman, Tyler Pearson and Will Lummus, 4.3, $1,410 each; 9.           Matt Reeves, 4.5; 10. Riley Duvall, 4.6; 11. Hunter Cure, 4.7; 12. Ty Erickson, 13.4; 13. Kyle Irwin, 14.0; 14. Scott Guenthner, 18.2; 15. Tanner Brunner, NT. World Standings: 1. Ty Erickson, $156,081; 2. Dakota Eldridge, $117,334; 3. Hunter Cure, $114,568; 4. Tyler Waguespack, $113,900; 5. Scott Guenthner, $112,750; 6. Stetson Jorgensen, $111,220; 7. J.D. Struxness, $111,022; 8. Bridger Chambers, $107,221; 9. Will Lummus, $97,805; 10. Riley Duvall, $95,963; 11. Tyler Pearson, $94,520; 12. Kyle Irwin, $93,472; 13. Matt Reeves, $89,490; 14. Cameron Morman, $88,114; 15. Tanner Brunner, $84,950.

Team roping: 1. Tyler Wade/Cole Davison, 4.0 seconds, $26,231; 2. Matt Sherwood/Hunter Koch, 4.1, $20,731; 3. Erich Rogers/Kyle Lockett, 4.3, $15,654; 4. Brenten Hall/Chase Tryan, 4.5, $11,000; 5. Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira, 4.6, $6,769; 6. (tie) Riley Minor/Brady Minor and Luke Brown/Paul Eaves, 4.7, $2,115 each; 8. Cody Snow/Wesley Thorp, 4.9; 9. Ty Blasingame/Travis Graves, 5.5; 10. Chad Masters/Joseph Harrison, 6.0; 11. Clay Smith/Jade Corkill, 9.4; 12. Tate Kirchenschlager/Tyler Worley, 9.8; 13. Jake Cooper/Caleb Anderson, 14.6; 14. Coleman Proctor/Ryan Motes, 19.0; 15.      Clay Tryan/Jake Long, NT. World Standings (headers): 1. Clay Smith, $160,512; 2. Kaleb Driggers, $135,225; 3. Coleman Proctor, $114,318; 4. Clay Tryan, $113,165; 5. Ty Blasingame, $111,490; 6. Brenten Hall, $109,927; 7. Riley Minor, $109,764; 8. Tyler Wade, $109,625; 9. Matt Sherwood, $106,935; 10. Chad Masters, $105,529; 11. Cody Snow, $105,054; 12. Erich Rogers, $99,653. 13. Luke Brown, $97,055; 14. Tate Kirchenschlager, $85,738; 15. Jake Cooper, $83,191. World Standings (heelers): 1. Junior Nogueira, $132,544; 2. Kyle Lockett, $124,384; 3. Ryan Motes, $119,166; 4. Jade Corkill, $118,638; 5. Jake Long, $116,896; 6. Hunter Koch, $115,038; 7. Travis Graves, $113,165; 8. Brady Minor, $109,764; 9. Joseph Harrison, $108,278; 10. Cole Davison, $108,140; 11. Chase Tryan, $107,345; 12. Paul Eaves, $101,562; 13. Wesley Thorp, $97,296; 14. Caleb Anderson, $82,390; 15. Tyler Worley, $81,190.

Saddle bronc riding: 1. Zeke Thurston, 88 points on Mo Betta Rodeo’s Sue City Sue, $26,231; 2. (tie) Bradley Harter and J.J. Elshere, 86.5, $18,192 each; 4. (tie) Chase Brooks, Brody Cress and Spencer Wright, 86, $7,333 each; 7. Dawson Hay, 83; 8. Rusty Wright, 81.5; 9. Colt Gordon, 79.5; 10. (tie) Ryder Wright, Jacobs Crawley, Sterling Crawley, Jesse Wright, Mitch Pollock and Jake Watson, NS. World Standings: 1. Ryder Wright, $234,488; 2. Zeke Thurston, $213,222; 3. Spencer Wright, $137,438; 4. Chase Brooks, $133,617; 5. Jacobs Crawley, $131,012; 6. Rusty Wright, $128,192; 7. Bradley Harter, $127,543; 8. Sterling Crawley, $124,427; 9. Brody Cress, $123,205; 10. J.J. Elshere, $119,004; 11. Jake Watson, $118,791; 12. Dawson Hay, $110,311; 13. Mitch Pollock, $109,542; 14. Jesse Wright, $106,505; 15. Colt Gordon, $101,071.  

Tie-down roping: 1. Shane Hanchey, 7.6 seconds, $26,231; 2. Taylor Santos, 8.1, $20,731; 3. Haven Meged, 8.3, $15,654; 4. (tie) Tyson Durfey and Marty Yates, 8.4, $8,885 each; 6. Michael Otero, 8.6, $4,231; 7. Tuf Cooper, 8.7; 8. Rhen Richard, 9.3; 9. Caleb Smidt and Shad Mayfield, 9.7; 11. Riley Pruitt, 10.3; 12. Cooper Martin, 13.9; 13. Tyler Milligan, 17.8; 14. Adam Gray, 18.9; 15. Ty Harris, NT. World Standings: 1. Haven Meged, $145,533; 2. Caleb Smidt, $141,900; 3. Shane Hanchey, $138,428; 4. Taylor Santos, $132,138; 5. Tyson Durfey, $131,763; 6. Marty Yates, $120,200; 7. Tuf Cooper, $115,592; 8. Michael Otero, $111,924; 9. Riley Pruitt, $109,535; 10. Ty Harris, $107,649; 11. Tyler Milligan, $107,474; 12. Adam Gray, $102,173; 13. Shad Mayfield, $100,421; 14. Rhen Richard, $98,661; 15. Cooper Martin, $96,260.

Barrel racing: 1. Emily Miller, 13.63 seconds, $26,231; 2. Lisa Lockhart, 13.70, $20,731; 3. Stevi Hillman, 13.75, $15,654; 4. Nellie Miller, 13.90, $11,000; 5. (tie) Jessica Routier and Jennifer Sharp, 13.97, $5,500 each; 7. Shali Lord, 14.01; 8. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, 14.02; 9. Ericka Nelson, 14.05; 10. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, 14.07; 11. Dona Kay Rule, 14.08; 12. Lacinda Rose, 14.46; 13. Hailey Kinsel, 18.66; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, 19.09; 15. Amberleigh Moore, 23.81. World Standings: 1. Lisa Lockhart, $177,082; 2. Nellie Miller, $175,611; 3. Hailey Kinsel, $158,867; 4. Emily Miller, $134,376; 5. Stevi Hillman, $130,989; 6. Shali Lord, $121,776; 7. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi, $115,503; 8. Jessica Routier, $112,082; 9. Jennifer Sharp, $107,254; 10. Dona Kay Rule, $106,507; 11. Ericka Nelson, $103,433; 12. Ivy Conrado-Saebens, $103,269; 13. Amberleigh Moore, $103,059; 14. Cheyenne Wimberley, $100,361; 15. Lacinda Rose, $98,936.

Bull riding: 1. Stetson Wright, 92.5 points on 4L & Diamond S Rodeo’s Monte Walsh, $26,231; 2. Boudreaux Campbell, 92, $20,731; 3. Tyler Bingham, 90, $15,654; 4. Jordan Hansen, 89.5, $11,000; 5. Sage Kimzey, 87.5, $6,769; 6. Garrett Smith, 87, $4,231; 7. Koby Radley, 86.5; 8. Clayton Sellars, 84.5; 9. Jordan Spears, 82.5; 10. Trevor Kastner, Josh Frost, Jeff Askey, Daylon Swearingen, Trey Kimzey and Trey Benton III, NS. World Standings: 1. Sage Kimzey, $262,207; 2. Stetson Wright, $188,652; 3. Trevor Kastner, $159,100; 4. Boudreaux Campbell, $157,502; 5. Tyler Bingham, $153,181; 6. Clayton Sellars, $139,191; 7. Garrett Smith, $138,205; 8. Jordan Hansen, $135,747; 9. Trey Benton III, $132,277; 10. Jordan Spears, $131,548; 11. Josh Frost, $129,561; 12. Koby Radley, $124,554; 13. Jeff Askey, $123,694; 14. Daylon Swearingen, $121,837; 15. Trey Kimzey, $118,160.