ProRodeo Sports News - 2021 Year End Edition

SADDLE BRONC RIDING WORLD CHAMPION

Saddle bronc world champion Stetson Wright rides Calgary Stampede’s Wild Cherry in Round 5 of the 2021 National Finals Rodeo. PRCA ProRodeo photo by Phillip Kitts

PRCA ProRodeo photo by Rod Connor

Branching Out

(twice) than he had reached the pay window (once). Wright leaned on his family for perspective. “I was sitting back in the room with Rusty, Ryder, my mom and dad and they just reminded me that I’m not riding for the average. That’s not how we were raised to ride. We were raised to go 90 or nothing,” Wright said. “They had to remind me that, they shouldn’t have, but they did. I wouldn’t have any of this without my awesome support system.” The following night, the cowboy rode Calgary Stampede’s Wild Cherry to a 90.5-point ride, earning himself a split second-place finish. Wright earned three more top-two finishes entering the final round, including a split Round 8 victory with a 91-point ride. Even with the stellar stretch, Wright found himself as the underdog heading into Round 10. A round-record tying ride and some help pushed him to the top. Fellow

competitor Cody DeMoss, ahead of Wright in the average, was bucked off. This opened the door for a spot in the average. The Utah native rode Cervi Championship Rodeo’s Vitalix Ricky Bobby to a 93-point ride, earning himself the Round 10 victory. “It felt like one of the best rides I’ve ever made but it’s not for me to say,” saidWright. “It’s my job to make the best ride I can, and I felt like I couldn’t have done much more.” Wright won the title by a slim $1,187 and finished the 2021 season with $343,524 in earnings. The announcement he had won caught Wright by surprise. “I’m not going to lie, when they told me I won it, I looked at Ryder and I said ‘I came in here to play defense for you tonight’, saidWright. “I didn’t know I even had a chance, but I guess as long as there’s still rounds there’s always a chance.”

Stetson Wright adds saddle bronc title

BY DAGIN RENCK, Special to ProRodeo Sports News S tetsonWright doesn’t do average. His goal was always to become one of the best rough stock riders rodeo has ever seen. On Dec. 11, Wright added another gold buckle to his name, securing his first saddle bronc riding world title. The Milford, Utah, cowboy now holds a PRCA world title in bull riding and saddle bronc riding to pair with his three consecutive all-around titles.

“I’ve always wanted one in each,” Wright said. “I never set out to be mediocre. I set out to be the best. All of this is just a dream come true.” The all-around star entered

the week atop the leaderboard with a slimmargin, leading his brother Ryder Wright by nearly $12,000. The lead disappeared faster than chips at the blackjack table. After the first four rounds, Wright had been bucked off more times

ProRodeo Sports News 12/17/2021

ProRodeo Sports News 12/17/2021

ProRodeo.com

ProRodeo.com

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