This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Las Vegas • Thirteen qualifiers from Utah begin competition on the $10 million Wrangler National Finals Rodeo on Friday night at the Thomas & Mack Center.
The top 15 money-winners in each event reached the National Finals, which will run nightly through Dec. 10.
Utah will be well-represented, especially in the saddle bronc competition. Seven members of the 15-man field are Utahns, including brothers Cody Wright of Milford, Jake Wright of Hurricane and Jesse Wright of Milford.
Two of Cody Wright's sons, Rusty and Ryder, also qualified for the National Finals. So did CoBurn Bradshaw of Beaver and Allen Boore of Axtell. Bradshaw is the brother-in-law of Cody, Jake and Jess Wright.
With season earnings of $130,751, Bradshaw sits in second place in the world standings heading into the NFR. Rusty Wright is third with $117,942.
Utah is also represented at the National Finals by Kimmie Wall of Roosevelt in the barrel racing, Caleb Bennett of Tremonton in bareback, Baylor Roche of Tremonton in steer wrestling, Quinn Kesler of Holden in team roping and Joe Frost of Randlett and Tim Bingham of Honeyville in bull riding.
Frost is ranked No. 2 in the world with earnings of $116,494. He trails front-runner Sage Steele Kimzer of Strong City, Okla., by $63,000 in the race for the world championship.