PRCA Standings Shuffle: 37 Move Up in Top 15
In the race for a spot in the Top 15 of the PRCA | RAM World Standings by the end of the regular season Sept. 30, it’s nearly as important to check who’s coming from behind as it is to look ahead at the end goal – a qualification to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
While nobody wants to be on the bubble when the season ends, it’s not a bad spot to be in at this point in the season. For the first time in three years, six ProRodeo athletes moved to the 16th spot at the same time and are less than $1,500 away from breaking into the Top 15 for their respective events.
There must be something special about the first full week of August because the only other time this happened in recent years was Aug. 10, 2017.
This time around the cowboys who moved to 16th were:
• Clayton Hass moved from 19th in steer wrestling and is $1,403 away from breaking into the Top 15.
• Brenten Hall moved from 18th in team roping heading and is $295 away from breaking into the Top 15.
• Chase Tryan moved from 18th in team roping heeling and is $654 away from breaking into the Top 15.
• Taos Muncy moved from 22nd in saddle bronc riding and is $1,086 away from breaking into the Top 15.
• Chet Herren moved from 17th in steer roping and is $632 away from breaking into the Top 15.
• Brody Yeary moved from 17th in bull riding and is $610 away from breaking into the Top 15.
Climbing the ranks was no easy task for the cowboys on the bubble because it’s a moving target. From Aug. 3-9, 37 cowboys moved up within the Top 15 for their respective events thanks to the $977,538 in prize money that was on the table.
Team roping heeler Junior Nogueira broke the bubble and made the biggest move within the Top 15 last week, jumping eight spots from 16th to eighth.
Nogueira’s stellar move came partially due to winning the Cache County Fair and Rodeo in Logan, Utah, for $3,271 with his partner, team roping header Cody Snow. The duo placed second at the Lawton (Okla.) Rangers Rodeo for $4,994 and picked up $566 by tying for ninth at the Sikeston (Mo.) Jaycee Bootheel Rodeo.
Nogueira, 29, already has twice made ProRodeo history. The first milestone came as a rookie in 2014 as the first Brazilian team roper to qualify for the NFR. He topped that when he became the first Brazilian world champion, winning the 2016 all-around world title. He’s never missed qualifying for the NFR (2014-19) since competing in ProRodeo and has earned more than $1.36 million.
With the Fallon County Fair & Rodeo in Baker, Mont., this week, big jumps like Nogueira’s could happen again.
Other cowboys to improve their position within the Top 15 last week include:
Five Spots
• Andrew Ward moved from 14th to ninth in team roping heading.
• Isaac Diaz moved from 16th to 11th in saddle bronc riding.
• Denton Fugate moved from 16th to 11th in bull riding.
Four Spots
• Marty Yates moved from 17th to 13th in tie-down roping.
Three Spots
• Buddy Hawkins II moved from 13th to 10th in team roping heeling.
• Ty Wallace moved from 15th to 12th in bull riding.
Two Spots
• Trevor Brazile moved from third to first in steer roping.
• Cory Solomon moved from 11th to ninth in tie-down roping.
Lefty Holman moved from 12th to 10th in saddle bronc riding.
• Thomas Smith moved from 12th to 10th in steer roping.
• Richmond Champion moved from 13th to 11th in bareback riding.
• Matt Sherwood moved from 13th to 11th in team roping heading.
• Westyn Hughes moved from 16th to 14th in tie-down roping.
• Shayde Etherton moved from 17th to 15th in steer wrestling.
One Spot
• Boudreaux Campbell moved from second to first in bull riding.
• Colby Lovell moved from fourth to third in team roping heading.
• Jake Long moved from fourth to third in team roping heeling.
• Ky Hamilton moved from fourth to third in bull riding.
• Tilden Hooper moved from fifth to fourth in bareback riding.
• Dakota Eldridge moved from fifth to fourth in steer wrestling.
• Vin Fisher Jr. moved from fifth to fourth in steer roping.
• Timber Moore moved from sixth to fifth in tie-down roping.
• Brady Portenier moved from sixth to fifth in bull riding.
• Cody Snow moved from seventh to sixth in team roping heading.
• Jace Melvin moved from seventh to sixth in steer wrestling.
• Cole Elshere moved from seventh to sixth in saddle bronc riding.
• Clayton Biglow moved from eighth to seventh in bareback riding.
• Levi Lord moved from eighth to seventh in team roping heeling.
• Shane Hanchey moved from eighth to seventh in tie-down roping.
• Nelson Wyatt moved from ninth to eighth in team roping heading.
• Ryan Jarrett moved from ninth to eighth in tie-down roping.
• Tyler Bingham moved from ninth to eighth in bull riding.
• Zeke Thurston moved from 10th to ninth in saddle bronc riding.
• Parker McCown moved from 10th to ninth in bull riding.
• Blake Knowles moved from 13th to 12th in steer wrestling.
• Jim Locke moved from 15th to 14th in steer roping.
More changes in the world standings are likely in the coming week, particularly for those competing in Baker. Fans can catch Baker’s rodeo action on the PRCA on the Cowboy Channel Plus App, Aug. 15-16 at 3 p.m. (ET).
The outcome of the Fallon County Fair & Rodeo, and the rest, are sure to make an impact on the world standings and possibly on who will qualify for the 2020 Wrangler NFR and 2020 Clem McSpadden National Finals Steer Roping.
Check back with ProRodeo.com next week to see who moved up within the Top 15 of the world standings.
Courtesy of PRCA