Champions Declared at NFR 2025
Rocker Shane Steiner is one of the most charismatic rodeo athletes of this era. He’s also one of the most talented. And now the fifth-generation superstar, like his dad, Sid and granddad Bobby before him—is a world champion. He locked down his first title with a 90.5 ride on the Calgary Stampede’s D-508 Disco Party, the Bareback Horse of the Year in Canada, to win second place money of $28,980 in the final round.
The 22-year-old laid claim to the bareback riding title after a record shattering season and ended it by receiving the coveted champion’s gold buckle, his first, at the Thomas and Mack Arena. Steiner, the Weatherford, Texas talent, wins his first world title at the same age as his Hall of Fame grandpa won the bull riding title back in 1973. Steiner ended the season with $507,532.
Sam Peterson, the Helena, Montana hand making his first NFR appearance just a couple of months after he was at the Canadian Finals Rodeo was the Finals Aggregate Champion with 854 points on 10 rides for the first-place cheque of $94,036.
In steer wrestling, Canadian Scott Guenthner perhaps did not have the NFR he had hoped for. But it would be hard to be disappointed with a season that saw the Provost, Alberta rancher/family man/rodeo cowboy win his second Calgary Stampede title, then do something that had never been done—win all five rounds at the Canadian Finals Rodeo en route to his fifth Canadian championship in eleven trips to the CFR, and qualify for a sixth appearance at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. Guenthner rode out of Las Vegas with $62,099 including a go-round win and seventh place in the aggregate that accounted for $15,968 of that total.
The World Champion Steer Wrestler for 2025 was the smallest man in a big man’s sport. Tucker Allen of Ventura, California won both the aggregate (46.4 seconds on 10 head) and the world title with $398,913. Coincidentally, Allen’s hazer was riding a Canadian-bred horse out of the Danard program in Parkland County, Alberta.
Though they made a tremendous run at a world title, the cross-border team-roping tandem of Kolton Schmidt of Barrhead on the heading side and Florida’s Jonathan Torres came up just short in their quest for the elusive world champion’s buckles. A no-time in round ten left the duo in 4th place in the aggregate (33.0 seconds on 8 runs) as they won a whopping $208,870 during their ten day stay in Las Vegas. That brought the Canadian’s season total to a 4th place $338,807 in the world standings, not bad for a guy who came to the finals in 14th place in the world. Andrew Ward and Jake Long prevailed to win both the aggregate and the world title, the first for both men.
Not to be forgotten in the excitement of the battle for a world championship, is the performance of the dynamic Wainwright, Alberta team roping brother combination–Dawson and Dillon Graham–who were making their first appearance at the NFR. The 2022 Canadian Champions won two rounds, placed in five and finished 8th in the aggregate, winning a total of $112,178 in their rookie NFR appearance.
It was a storybook December for the Quebec barrel racer, Julie Plourde. After drawing into her first NFR from the 16th position in the standings to replace the injured Anita Ellis, the now-Texas resident placed in a couple of rounds but more importantly kept the barrels standing for all ten performances. When eventual world champion, Kassie Mowry, hit the last barrel of her last run, the Quebec cowgirl’s fairy-tale finals had a fairy-tale ending as she was the aggregate champion (139.67 on 10 runs), thus collecting the $94,036 to go with a pair of cheques, a 5th and a 6th in the rounds for an NFR earnings total of $109,413. And a little icing on the cake—she also captured the Jerry Ann Taylor Best-Dressed Award for barrel racers.
Despite the mishap on her final barrel, the World Champion for the second time in a row is Kassie Mowry. The Dublin, Texas cowgirl rode two horses at this NFR—Will and Cornbread—and enjoyed success on both, laying to rest any concerns people might have had that she was not riding her outstanding mount from one year ago—Jarvis. And another cowgirl with a Canadian connection, Carlee Otero had an all or nothing Finals. Otero, who was born in Red Deer and has twice competed at the CFR, won four go-rounds and ran the fastest time of the NFR in round nine, a 13.20 en route to one of her four round successes. The only issue was she failed to place in any of the other six rounds and knocked down a few barrels along the way. But the talented athlete won $146,672 at the Thomas and Mack, overall a very decent ten days in the desert.
Stetson Wright came to Las Vegas an eight-time World Champion. He left town with two more notches on his pistol, adding a hard-fought bullriding title (his third) and a sixth All-Around buckle to a resume that is even more remarkable when you factor in that the Beaver, Utah mega-talent is just 26 years-old. His six All Around titles tie him with Larry Mahan and Tom Ferguson. The Aggregate Bull Riding Champion was Dairy, Oregon’s stand-out TJ Gray. He rode seven of his ten bulls, the only man to get by that many.
The saddle bronc riding was dominated by the Wright family with the youngest of the three brothers, Statler, prevailing in the aggregate and compiling $455,940 in season earnings, edging brother and defending champion Ryder by less than $500 with the third of the Wrights, Stetson, in third spot. Zeke Thurston who battled hard throughout, suffered his first buck-off in 56 NFR rides in round nine and it was costly, knocking the four-time world champ out of the running. Ryder split the final round with an 89.75 on the Calgary Stampede bronc, D-19 Dandy Delight and another outstanding Calgary horse C-35 Crocket, carried CFR qualifier Zachary Dallas to an 88 point 4th place cheque of $15,377.
Thurston, the six-time Canadian title-holder placed six times at Las Vegas for $78,067 and finished fifth in the world standings. Dawson Hay struggled a little at this NFR with just two placings and $27,796 to finish 8th in the world standings. Eckville, Alberta’s Ben Andersen placed in three rounds and finished fifth in the average to leave Vegas with $68,900 in his Wranglers. And the fourth Canadian bronc rider, Q. Taylor, placed twice for a total of $21,291 at his first NFR.
The tie down roping was an up and down affair for the Canadian contingent. The only competitor from north of the 49th parallel, Kyle Lucas, picked up a third place cheque in the fifth round, for $21,882, his lone trip to the pay window. But a couple of Canadian horses were outstanding.
Peso the four-legged, buckskin superstar belonging to Nanton, Alberta’s Logan Bird was amazing again. Peso was the chosen mount of both of the Harris brothers from Texas. The buckskin carried his riders to nine placings in total, including three go round wins and a total NFR haul of $279,150. and carried the two Texans to $279,150.
California tie down roper, Brushton Minton was riding Lincoln, the horse belonging to Medicine Hat roper, Tyler Popescul. The two combined for five placings, and finished second in the average for $124,198 in total earnings for Minton.
The 2025 tie down roping Aggregate and Champion is Texan Riley Webb for the third year running. Webb was once again a dominant force as he amassed $555,543 for the season.
And on the rough stock side, four rounds were won on Canadian horses, two on the Wayne Vold bronc, Renegade, another bronc riding round on the Calgary Stampede’s Freedom Xpress while there was one round win in bareback riding, that on Legend Rodeo’s Ramblin Man. Several Canadian contractors saw their horses and bulls carry competitors to solid placings throughout the Finals while a few others put the best cowboys on the planet on the ground prior to the eight second horn. And in the arena for a second year in a row was Canadian pickup man extraordinaire, Tyler Kraft, looking after both two-legged and four-legged athletes.
One final note, rodeo competitors and fans bid a fond farewell to one of the greatest bucking horses ever, C5 Rodeo’s F-13 Virgil, a World Champion in both bareback and saddle bronc. The great gray made his final appearance in the tenth round of the saddle bronc riding at the Thomas and Mack arena in Vegas.
Canadians can be proud of the men, the women, the contractors and the animals, every one of whom, gave their all at the 2025 Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
BREAKAWAY ROPING FINALS:
The breakaway roping competition is set for Dec 22-23 at the Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas. Check back for results during the event.
For complete WNFR results, visit www.prorodeo.co
