Stetson Wright Wins $23,000 at Xtreme Broncs Match
For Stetson Wright, scoring a 90-plus-point ride on a rank horse has more meaning than what he would earn for that ride.
Well, $23,000 will help, too.
Wright, the reigning two-time all-around world champ and 2020 bull riding world titlist, had his season’s finest hour May 22 at the Veater Financial Group Battle of the Best Xtreme Broncs in Coarsegold, Calif.
Wright, of Milford, Utah, rode Big Bend Rodeo Company’s Kool Toddy for 91.5 points to win the four-man finals for the overall title.
“To do that on a horse like that means more to me than any amount of money,” said Wright, 21. “The four of us who made it to the finals drew our final-round horse out of a hat, and I was the last guy out. I needed a 90 to win. I’ve never made a perfect ride, but this was one of my better rides. The horse was jumping and leaping and was just a great ride. It’s one every guy would want.”
The event featured four sections of go-rounds, with the winner of each section advancing to the finals. The top 10 finishers in the 2020 PRCA | RAM World Standings, the top eight in the current world standings, and the 2020 California Circuit year-end champion and RAM California Circuit Finals Rodeo average champion were invited to compete.
The event offered $50,000 of added money.
Wright was joined by Spencer Wright – his uncle – in the finals, along with Dawson Hay and Jake Finlay.
Earlier in the day, Spencer Wright won his section with an 84-point ride aboard Rosser Rodeo’s Domino Theory for $3,000 that put him into the final round.
Hay took the lead in the finals with 89.5 points on Rosser Rodeo’s Yeti Hopper and earned $13,000 for his efforts.
“I have a routine before I go, when I get behind the chutes, not to get too serious,” Wright said. “I like to watch the other riders. I saw Dawson go 89.5 and honestly, I just told my brothers (Rusty and Ryder) and Spencer that I wanted to make the best ride I could. I can’t control anything other than that.”
With his winnings in Coarsegold, Wright extended his lead in the all-around standings and got quite a bit closer to brother Ryder in the saddle bronc standings, moving to within $10,000 of the top spot.
It’s all part of the master plan.
“My goal since I started in 2019 is to win what I call the triple crown: bulls, broncs and the all-around,” Wright said. “I’m going to keep after it.”
Courtesy of PRCA