Rookie Stetson Wright Wins Two Cheyenne Titles
By Matt Naber
CHEYENNE, Wyo. – With a 93-point ride in the final round, rookie Stetson Wright won the bull riding and all-around titles in his first trip to Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days, July 28.
A second-place ride in the first performance and placing third in the semifinals took the Utah cowboy somewhere most ProRodeo athletes only dream about – Cheyenne’s bull riding short go, where he came one point shy of matching the record score at the “Daddy of ‘em All.”
“I honestly don’t know, I just did what I was supposed to do, and I couldn’t be any happier,” Wright said. “To get this win is special and super humbling. It’s like J.B. Mauney said, ‘You feel 10-foot tall and bullet proof,’ after a ride like that.”
Wright knew what he was getting into when he drew Dakota Rodeo’s Safety Meeting for Sunday afternoon.
“I’d watched him a few times and wasn’t worried about the score, just riding him,” Wright laughed.
Not only is he the only member of the Wright family to compete in two events, he’s also the only member of his family to win Cheyenne Frontier Days.
“It means everything, and I couldn’t be happier,” Wright said. “Getting to compete here, where the stock is phenomenal, and to win two saddles is all super special.”
As for saddle bronc riding, he nailed two third-place rides in the first performance and semifinals at 85.5 and 86 points, respectively, to win Cheyenne’s all-around title.
Before Cheyenne, Wright was already a serious contender in three races within the PRCA | RAM World Standings, ranked first in the all-around with $145,541, 18th in saddle bronc riding with $49,575 and second in bull riding with $132,550.
As a rookie, it’s no contest in the rookie standings, as he’s leading in both saddle bronc riding and bull riding by a large margin in both events.
“It’s just crazy,” Wright said. “I feel good and everything’s going good.”
The youngest competing member of the Wright family has been on a hot streak, racking up wins and picking up checks often and being the top money-earner for the Cowboy Christmas run earlier this month with $35,757.
“I want to win the average in bull riding and saddle bronc riding at the NFR and win the all-around world title, saddle bronc world title and bull riding world title,” Wright said earlier this month. “I hope to be the first to do it and win the rookie of the year titles too.”
With a double-win at Cheyenne under his belt, the rookie took a big step toward making those dreams a reality two days before his 20th birthday.
“I have some big goals, and I know a lot of people are looking at me like, ‘dude, that’s a little out of hand,’ but the only thing stopping me is myself,” Wright said.
Other winners at the $904,613 rodeo were bareback rider Clayton Biglow (91 points on Stace Smith Pro Rodeos’ Witchy Woman); steer wrestler Eli Lord (6.9 seconds); team ropers Dustin Bird/Trey Yates (7.8 seconds); saddle bronc rider Brody Cress (87.5 points on Stace Smith Pro Rodeos’ Resistols Top Hat); tie-down roper Seth Hall (10.5 seconds); barrel racers Nellie Miller and Shali Lord (17.22 seconds) and steer roper Trey Sheets (45.6 seconds on three head).
For more coverage of Cheyenne Frontier Days, check out the Aug. 2 issue of ProRodeo Sports News.
Courtesy of PRCA