Wrangler NFR Round 2
Round 2 – Dec. 3, 2021
Country singer Easton Corbin is the opening act, and the national anthem will be performed by country singer Jenna LaMaster. Coors is the performance sponsor. The PRCA Veterinarian of the Year Dr. Benjamin Espy will honored during the performance.
WRANGLER NFR LIVE ON TELEVISION, RADIO AND INTERNET
The 2021 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo® presented by Teton Ridge airs nightly Dec. 2-11 at 5:45 p.m. PST/8:45 p.m. EST. The Cowboy Channel is the official network partner of PRORODEO® and the exclusive broadcast and streaming partner of the NFR. Live coverage of the NFR can be found on The Cowboy Channel and RFD-TV through its cable and satellite partners, and online at cowboychannelplus.com.
TIE-DOWN SHANE HANCHEY CAPTURES EMOTIONAL ROUND 1 WIN
Less than two weeks before the 2021 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo presented by Teton Ridge, tie-down roper Shane Hanchey was dealt some adversity. The primary horse Hanchey was aboard all season – TJ – passed away. The horse was owned by Logan Bird. Hanchey said the loss wouldn’t set him back at the Wrangler NFR and it didn’t – at least for Round 1. The Sulphur, La., native clocked a 7.4-second run to win the round before 16,804 fans at the Thomas & Mack Center. “That run was so much more than a round win, with me losing TJ, 10 days ago and he was what I was planning on riding at the Finals, so I really wasn’t sure what I was going to do,” Hanchey said. Hanchey, the 2013 world champion, leads the world standings with $212,076. He earned $26,997 for the victory. However, Hanchey had his doubts about getting on Peso. “I said Logan, he’s never been there, and Logan said, ‘you have to trust me’,” Hanchey said. “I put my trust in him and the man upstairs and it paid off.”
EARNINGS STARTED EARLY FOR WRANGLER NFR CONTESTANTS
At the 63rd Wrangler National Finals Rodeo presented by Teton Ridge, each of the 119 qualifiers received a $10,000 stipend for qualifying for the NFR. Stetson Wright received an additional $10,000 for qualifying in two events – saddle bronc riding and bull riding. The stipend for each NFR contestant counts in the PRCA | RAM World Standings. After Round 1 Thursday, the only leader to change spots in the world standings was in saddle bronc riding. Ryder Wright, the reigning world champ, scooted past his brother Stetson Wright by $119. Ryder took the lead by placing fourth in Round 1 with an 87-point ride on Hi Lo Pro Rodeo’s Palindrome and earning $11,321.
NEWS & NOTES
In bareback riding, 2019 PRCA World Champion Clayton Biglow looks to bounce back after a slow start in Round 1 on Bridwell Pro Rodeos’ Meat Sweats. Meat Sweats has had three 45-point stock scores this year including an 88.5-point ride from Tim O’Connell earlier this year to pick up a round win at the High Desert Stampede in Redmond, Ore., March 25. Six-time NFR Qualifier Tanner Aus looks to earn some money after drawing Calgary Stampede’s Zig Zag Cherry. The horse enters the NFR with an average score of 84.75 points including a 90.5-point ride from Orin Larsen in Round 10 of the Calgary Stampede, July 18….In the saddle bronc riding, Stetson Wright matches up with J Bar J’s In The Lu. During the 2021 ProRodeo season the average score on the horse was 88 points. Fellow Wrangler NFR qualifier Tegan Smith won the Jordan (Mont.) Match Xtreme Bronc Ride on June 20 with a 92.5-point ride on In The Lu, his highest score of the year. Wyatt Casper draws Frontier Rodeo’s Maple Leaf in Round 2. It’s bucked off 43% of would-be riders this season. Casper posted an 87-point ride on the horse in 2020 at the San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo…..In the bull riding, Sage Kimzey will look to accomplish a feat that’s never been done in the PRCA. He matches up with Sankey Pro Rodeo & Phenom Genetics’ Arctic Assassin, a bull that’s never been ridden in ProRodeo during its 18 outs. It’ll be the first meeting between the two. Trey Benton III draws another tough task in Harper & Morgan Rodeo’s Pickup Man in Round 2. Only two cowboys in the last three years have covered the eight seconds aboard Pickup Man. The last qualified ride was in 2019.
Record times and scores for the second round of the Wrangler NFR:
Bareback riding: 90.5 points, Trenten Montero, 2019
Steer wrestling: 3.1 seconds, Luke Branquinho, 2004
Team roping: 3.8 seconds, Turtle Powell/Dakota Kirchenschlager, 2014;
Dustin Egusquiza and Travis Graves, 2020
Saddle bronc riding: 92 points, Cort Scheer, 2018
Tie-down roping: 6.8 seconds, Randall Carlisle, 2013
Barrel racing: 13.54 seconds, Amberleigh Moore, 2017
Bull riding: 95 points, Mike White, 1999; Terry Don West, 2003
RELATED: Wrangler NFR Round 1 Results & Highlights
Courtesy of PRCA
