Starting the 2025 National Finals Rodeo at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, there were 120 contestants, with the top 15 money earners across seven events. The events being competed in are bareback, saddle bronc, bull riding, steer wrestling, tie-down roping, team roping, and barrel racing, plus breakaway roping happening separately. Having 15 athletes per event across all standard events, leading to a large field of the world’s best rodeo competitors competing for world titles within the ten nights in Las Vegas.
In the barrel racing event this year, the winner coming out on top was Kassie Mowry. She had a best time of 13.42 seconds running on her 11-year-old sorrel gelding, Heavens Got Credit, “Cornbread”. Mowry was running Cornbread and CP He Will Be Epic, “Will”, a 10-year-old gray gelding, throughout the 2025 NFR, earning just over $200,000 just at the finals.
With the team roping this year, the header was Andrew Ward, and the healer was Jake Long. Round one kicked off with an upset when Lightning Aguilera and Kaden Profili posted a 4.0-second run to take an early lead, picking up some money along the way. Another outstanding performance was delivered by Tanner and Travis Graves, who secured a 3.4-second win in round six, one of the fastest runs in the team roping event. Other teams, such as Dawson and Dillon Graham, also had a time with key go-round wins. Andrew Ward and Jake Long were the most consistent, which helped them both snag the PRCA World Championship and NFR Average titles.
Within the Bareback riding event, they saw multiple standout go-round winners. Including Cooper Cooke’s opening night ride of an 88.5 and Waylon Bourgeois’s 88.75 score in round three. Throughout the finals, riders like Wacey Schalla and Rocker Steiner continued climbing the leaderboard with impressive rides. In the final round, Steiner sealed his first PRCA World Bareback Riding Championship with a huge 90.5-point ride. He sealed his season dominating and setting a new earnings benchmark of $507,533. Sam Peterson took the NFR Average title with a total of 854 points throughout the ten rounds.
Straight out of the gates, veteran Ty Erickson had a 3.5-second run in round three, the fastest time in the finals. Tucker Allen from Ventura, California, dominated with many go-round wins, including standout performances in rounds two, four, and eight, slowly but surely climbing the NFR aggregate leaderboard. Allen finished with the best cumulative time on ten heads with 46.4 seconds, securing both the NFR Average title and the 2025 PRCA World Steer Wrestling Championship, also setting a new single-season earnings mark of $398,913 during the 2025 PRCA season.
Performances throughout the event were a sight to see, starting with Shad Mayfield’s early go-round victories, with a 6.8-second win on night one that set the tone for the week. Other contenders like John Douch and Haven Meged also picked up checks and shifted the leaderboard throughout the finals. In the end, Riley Mason Webb was the most consistent competitor, capturing both the NFR Average title with 82.3 seconds on ten head and his third consecutive PRCA World Tie-Down Roping Championship, finishing the season with more than $555,000 in earnings.
Early rounds saw a standout ride, but it was Statler Wright who came out on top as the 2025 PRCA World Champion, also claiming the NFR Average title with 864.25 points on ten head and finishing the season just a touch over his brother, Ryder, for the gold buckle. Statler also had multiple go-round wins in rounds three, six, and seven. He showed the grit that featured some goods from his brothers, Ryder and Stetson. Decided by just over $300 in world-standings earnings. This highlighted both the intensity of the competition and the Wright family’s enduring impact on the sport.
Meanwhile, T.J. Gray had strong performances all week and capped off the finals by winning round ten with an 88.5-point ride aboard Rosser Rodeo’s Mr. Prifert, securing the NFR Average title and the Top Gun award for highest event earnings at the 2025 NFR. Other nights had standout rides and key placements from competitors like Wacey Schalla, Ky Hamilton, and Tristen Hutchings. Stetson Wright was an outstanding rider in both bull riding and saddle bronc riding. He stormed back from injury to add many more gold buckles to his resume. Stetson had multiple go-round wins in bull riding, including rounds one and two. Ultimately finishing the season with more than $546,000 in earnings despite a late buck-off. Stetson also won the All-Around competition. He proved himself among the elite, excelling in both bull riding and saddle bronc riding to secure the PRCA World All-Around Championship, his fourth career gold buckle in the category.
With the 2025 National Finals Rodeo at an end for this season, these athletes have put in the work improving themselves as well as inspiring others within the sport.
