Montana Cowboys and Cowgirls Win Big At 2024 NFR

The National Finals Rodeo (NFR), the ten biggest days in rodeo, finally came to an end this Saturday, December 14th.

The Kings and Queens of the rodeo were crowned in Vegas after competing with the best in the world. Many of our Treasure State contenders walked away with treasure of their own!

Known as the Superbowl of Rodeo, folks from all over the world (including Montana) made their way down to Las Vegas to take in all the sights and sounds of the NFR.

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How did Montanans do at the National Finals Rodeo?

Bareback Riding

Weston Timberman from Columbus, Montana, ended his first-ever NFR with a huge success. To start his accomplishments at the event, he was named "Resistol Rookie of the Year," and he was ranked 7th before the state of the NFR. With all of that on his back, it was no surprise when he won the first round with a score of 87, riding "Drunk Bunny" of J Bar J. By the end of the 10 long days, he finished with season earnings of $292,509 and an impressive 7th place.

I'm sure we will see much more from the Montana cowboy.

Richmond Champion, from Stevensville's MT, made this his 9th qualification for the NFR and had an impressive finish of 13th in the world bareback standings.

Steer Wrestling

Former Montana State University cowboy Jesse Brown ended with $33,687 and a season total of $258,553. His shining moment came in the 10th round, where he had the fastest steer wrestling time of the NFR at 3.4 seconds.

He came in 6th overall for this year's world standings.

Helena's Ty Erickson is no stranger to the NFR, making this his ninth appearance at the event. He took the world title in 2019 and won the 8th go around with a time of 3.6 seconds. Winning the 8th round brought in earnings of $33,687. The winner of the Montana Pro Rodeo Circuit Finals tied for 7th place with a time of 4.3 seconds in the 10th round.

This finish ranked him 14th in the world, with total earnings of $172,140.85.

Saddle Bronc Riding

Melstone, MT local Sage Newman has made 2024 his fourth straight NFR and took home some cash. He placed 5th in the 1st, 2nd, and 6th rounds. In the 10th round, he tied with 4 other contests, all receiving an 86.5 score. What are the odds of that?! This placed him 11th overall and a season earnings of $219,764.

Tie-Down Roping

Miles City's Haven Meged had a slow start at this year's NFR, but picked up steam as the event went on. In Round 5 he found his footing and had a hot streak coming in 2nd place, earning $26,624. He took 1st in round 6 with a prize of $33,687. In round 7, he again secured 2nd place earning another $26,624. Round 8 won 6th ($5,433), and rounded off his performance in the 9th go-around winning 5th which earned him $8,693.

Meged finished third in the world standings with a total season earnings of $332,370.46.   

Barrel Racing

Lisa Lockhart, a legendary barrel racer originally from Circle, Montana, made this year her 18th consecutive NFR qualification. In the competition, she placed 7th in Round 8, 6th in Round 7, 4th in Round 6, and tied for 4th in Round 4.

She concluded her season with total earnings of $181858.11 and finished 10th in the world standings.

Our local cowboys and cowgirls rocked it at this year's NFR! Just making it there is a fantastic accomplishment in itself, but they really went above and beyond. We're so proud of them and would like to congratulate them on this huge accomplishment.

Credit: Montana Sports , Pro Rodeo