Wright captures saddle bronc

LAS VEGAS – Cody Wright won the PRCA saddle bronc world title and moved into first place in the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo average Friday, winning the ninth round with an 85-point ride on Wild Bill.

Wright, from Milford, Utah, took the standings lead from Billy Etbauer of Edmond, Okla., who was bucked off Friday.

“That (his first gold buckle) is what I’ve been shooting for, for a long time,” Wright said.

None of the three Spokane-area cowboys cashed Friday, but two of them remained second in the aggregate.

Ryan Gray of Cheney scored 81.5 on Jailhouse Rock to place 10th in bareback riding. He’s second after nine rounds with 756.5 points, 9.5 ahead of third and 17.5 out of first.

Tyson Durfey of Colbert timed 7.9 for seventh in tie-down roping. His 80.30 total is .20 ahead of third and .40 out of first.

Zack Oakes of Elk, Wash., failed to score for the eighth time in 10 rounds in bull riding and remains 13th overall.

In bareback riding, world standings leader Bobby Mote of Culver, Ore., increased his lead by winning his fourth NFR round with an 88.5 on Peaches N Cream. Mote has earned $199,912. Steven Dent of Mullen, Neb., has $186,189.

Justin McDaniel of Porum, Okla., who placed second with an 88 on South Point, owns the NFR lead with an aggregate of 774 on nine rides.

In steer wrestling, Trevor Knowles of Mount Vernon, Ore., finished first at the NFR for the third time in a row with a ninth-round win in 3.4. He tied for first in round nine with Dean Gorsuch of Gering, Neb., who rode the same horse (Jesse) and had the same hazer (Lee Graves) as Knowles.

World standings leader Luke Branquinho of Los Alamos, Calif., who placed third, stayed in first for his eighth consecutive day with $185,768. Branquinho also was first in the average with a nine-round aggregate of 38.20.

In team roping, Matt Sherwood and Randon Adams of Logandale, Nev., finished first in 3.7 to enter the final round as the world leaders.

Trevor Brazile of Decatur, Texas, and Patrick Smith of Midland, Texas, led the team roping average at 55.40 for nine rounds.

In tie-down roping, Tuf Cooper of Decatur, Texas, got his first NFR victory in 6.7.

Hunter Herrin of Apache, Okla., who placed second in 6.8, held the world lead with $169,006. World all-around leader Brazile followed with $162,540.

Stran Smith of Childress, Texas, remained the average leader with an aggregate of 79.90 over nine rounds.

In barrel racing, world champion Lindsay Sears of Canada won round nine in 13.53 and has earned an event-high $107,091 at the NFR and a season-record $291,658. Jill Moody of Letcher, S.D., leads the average standings with an aggregate of 126.12.

In bull riding, B.J. Schumacher of Hillsboro, Wis., won with his first successful ride, an 89 on Vitalix Hot Diggity Damn.

Standings leader Chance Smart of Philadelphia, Miss., who placed second with an 88.5 on Road Hazard, remained in first with $193,168. J.W. Harris of May, Texas, is the aggregate leader with 507 points on six rides and was the lone rider to stay on six bulls.