Pendleton Round-Up Preview: Two Weeks Left To Make NFR
Pendleton Round-Up Preview: Two Weeks Left To Make NFR
The Pendleton Round-Up is nearly here as the PRCA enters its final two weeks of the 2026 season with massive NFR implications on the line.
Pendleton will add $508,500 in prize money, identical to last year’s record total. Seven of last year’s nine winners are returning to defend their title and take another large chunk of the prize.
There’s hardly any room for error for those riders on the NFR bubble, and seasons will be made and lost in Pendleton depending on how they respond.
Here’s who and what you need to know before the action kicks off on September 16th:
Bull Riding:
A different Bull Rider has swept Pendleton each of the last three years, winning both rounds and the average. Last year it was Jordan Spears, then it was Trevor Reiste in 2024, and Stetson Wright in 2023. All three will ride again this year.
Reiste was 91.5 in the Short Round in 2024 and 178.5 in the Average; both mark the highest scores of the decade.
The Bull Riding NFR bubble race is one of the calmer ones. No. 15 Braxton Whitesell currently has $134,673 and is $10,000 above No. 16 Jace Trosclair and $10,000 behind No. 14 Josh Frost.
However, Bull Riders currently ranked 19th-16th will be riding at Pendleton, chasing Whitesell.
No. 19 Tristan Mize has $116,377 and won’t have a chance at catching Whitesell in Pendleton, but he’ll have a shot at reaching No. 17 Cullen Telfer, as he’s just over $4,000 behind him. Nine bull riders have earned at least $4,000 at Pendleton in the last two years combined.
Jace Troslcair, Cullen Telfer, and Clayton Sellars are separated by just $5,000, though, and have a better chance than Mize at getting closer to the cut line.
Barrel Racing:
Every Single Average winner this decade has won exactly one round and placed in the top-3 of the other round.
Since 2021, the average round-winning time has been 28.53 seconds. The average time per ride of the Average winners in that same time frame has been 28.6, just .07 seconds more. The path to victory at Pendleton demands little room for error, forcing riders to produce two near-perfect rides.
Lisa Lockhart has placed top-5 in every Average at Pendleton this decade. She’s earned over $8,000 in four of the last five years, including over $12,000 in each of the last two years. She won the Average in 2024, and finished 2nd in 2023 and 2025.
Steer Roping:
Current World No. 1 Steer Roping Leader Cole Patterson had the fastest average time of the decade last year at 36.4 seconds on three and beat out the previous fastest time by a full second.
The 12th-17th ranked Steer Ropers are just $6,000 away from each other and are all participating this year.
No. 15 Dalton Walker holds the cut line with $38,801. But is less than $1,700 away from Slade Wood in 17th. Walker is about $2,600 behind No. 14 Clay Long, and less than $1,000 separates Long from No. 12 Tony Reina.
Tie-Down Roping:
Every Average winner since 2022 has won the Short Round, and only the Short Round. That’s resulted in 37 riders earning over $4,000 at Pendleton in that same time frame, including 13 last year alone.
The 14th-20th ranked Calf Ropers are separated by less than $9,000, and all of them are participating in Pendleton. Five athletes earned over $10,000 last year.
2x World Champion Shad Mayfield entered the top 15 for the first time this week, now 14th, and has a great history at Pendleton. He’s the only Calf Roper participating this year who’s won multiple rounds this decade. He won two rounds in 2022 and one in 2021.
Mayfield is just over $1,100 ahead of No. 15 Beau Cooper, who has $117,089.
Cole Clemons is currently 20th with $109,543. The average distance between athletes ranked 15th-20th is just $1,509, meaning that the Tie-Down NFR bubble situation may be the closest of them all, and Pendleton will shake that up.
Saddle Bronc:
Every Short Round winner has been 90+ this decade, with the past two Finals winners scoring 91 each. Every Finals winner also won the average.
Four of the last five Round Ones were won with a score of at least 88 points.
Two of the last five Saddle Bronc events at Pendleton have had a rider sweep both rounds and the average. Jake Finlay swept in 2024, and Stetson Wright swept in 2021.
Every Saddle Bronc Rider ranked 20th-13th will be riding in Pendleton.
No. 15 Gus Gaillard, No. 14 Ben Anderson, and No. 13 Damian Brennan are all at risk of losing their spot to No. 16 Zachary Dallas, as just $4,000 separates No. 13 Brennan from No. 16 Dallas.
However, $15,000 separates Dallas from No. 17 Brody Cress, and just $6,000 separates Cress from No. 20 Shorty Garrett.
11 athletes earned more than $4,000 at Pendleton in the past two years combined, while only six earned more than $6,000.
Team Roping:
There’s a large difference between the Long and Short Round winning times in the Team Roping event at Pendleton. Since 2021, the average round-winning time from Rounds One and Two has been 4.74 seconds. The Average Final Round winning time has been over a second worse, at 5.9 seconds.
The last five Average winners averaged 18.16 on three, or 6.05 seconds per out. Three of the last five Average winners won the Final Round, and no other rounds.
8x NFR qualifier Dustin Egusquiza has earned over $12,000 in each of the last two years at Pendleton, winning the Average in 2024 and placing 3rd last year. He averaged 6.27 seconds per out.
Egusquiza and every other Ream Roper ranked in their respective current top 25 will participate at Pendleton, except for World Team Roping Leaders Kaleb Driggers and Junior Nunes Nogueira.
Five duos have earned over $7,000 each in both of the last two Pendleton events. Five Headers and six Heelers are within $7,000 of the current 15th-place cut line.
Headers Brenten Hall and Nelson Wyatt are currently less than $7,000 behind the 15th-place cut line of $104,507, held by Clint Summers. Coy Rahlmann, Ketch Kelton, and Dawson Graham are less than $7,000 ahead.
Heelers Wesley Thorp, Trent Vaught, Jade Corkill, and Logan Medlin are all less than $7,000 behind Wyatt Cox in 15th with $106,815. JC Flake and Coleby Payne are less than $7,000 ahead.
Steer Wrestling:
The average round-winning time since 2021 is over a second faster than the average time per out of Average winners, at 4.73 seconds compared to 5.8 seconds.
Last year, all three round-winning times were 4.5 seconds or faster for the first time this decade.
Every single Steer Wrestler currently ranked 25th-13th will be participating at Puyallup, except No. 15 Will Lummus.
There’s only so much money to go around, and only two Bull Doggers have won over $10,000 at Pendleton in the last three years.
$10,000 separates No. 19 Tyke Kipp from No. 15.
12 athletes have earned over $6,000 at Pendleton in the last two years, though, which is how far away No. 18 Scott Guenther is from No. 15.
No. 14 Gavin Soileau and No. 13 Trisyn Kalawaia are just $1,000 and $4,600 ahead of the cut line in 15th, and will have to stay focused in Pendleton to keep their lead over those on the bubble.
Bareback Riding:
Winning Pendleton requires winning a round, which all five Average winners this decade did.
Riders have needed, on average, 87.1 points to win the first round, and 88.9 points to win the Finals. The average time per ride of the last five Average winners has been 87.15 points. No Bareback Rider has been 90+ at Pendleton since Kaycee Field in the 2022 Final Round.
Five Bareback riders who are hovering around the NFR bubble will ride in Pendleton.
Mason Stuller, in 16th, is $3,000 behind Rocker Steiner in 15th.
Wacey Schalla, in 17th, is nearly $10,000 behind 15th.
Kashton Ford, in 19th, is about $13,000 behind 15th.
Clayton Biglow, in 14th, is only about $1,200 above 15th.
Garrett Shadbolt, in 13th, just entered the top-15 and is about $4,000 ahead of 15th.
11 Bareback Riders have earned at least $3,000 at Pendleton in the last two years, while four have won over $10,000.
Rocker Steiner was a late scratch from Pendleton and is at risk of falling outside of the top-15.