NFR DAILY ROUNDUP

EVENT RECAP

Trevor Brazile needed only half of the National Finals Rodeo to break his record for money won in a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association season.

The three-event roper from Decatur, Texas, teamed with heeler Patrick Smith of Midland, Texas, on Monday night to win their second consecutive go-round, which paid each $16,394.

They roped their steer in 4.7 seconds before a crowd of 17,235 at the Thomas & Mack Center.

"We work at it together as a team," Brazile said. "This is the first time I've had a partner that I enjoy roping with this much."

Brazile, the two-time reigning all-around and steer roping champion, is going for his fifth all-around world title in six years. He has a commanding $152,000 lead over NFR rookie Josh Peek; they are the only contestants competing in two events.

Brazile didn't get a check in calf roping, but what he won in team roping was enough to boost his total this year to $342,262, topping the record he set last year by more than $13,000. He has won $132,539 in calf roping, $63,919 in team roping and $42,452 in steer roping, which is an event not contested in the NFR but in which he won his second straight world title this year.

He has won $56,000 in the first five days of the 10-day rodeo despite competing with a herniated disc.

"It doesn't affect me much in team roping, just once I get off my horse in tie-down (calf) roping I'm not as good as I should be," Brazile said.

• BAREBACK RIDING -- Three-time and reigning world champ Will Lowe missed several months of competition this year after breaking a leg and knows it's nearly impossible to retain his title.

But that didn't stop the 25-year-old from Canyon, Texas, from going all out to win his first go-round of this year's NFR with an 89.5 score on Burch Rodeo Company's Pinball Wizard.

Lowe's horse started with big jumps out of the chute and the rider responded.

"I felt good with that horse turning back to the right and then kicking through everything like he did," Lowe said.

• STEER WRESTLING -- Canadian Lee Graves turfed his steer in 3.4 seconds to win his first go-round this year with the best time of the Finals. The win moved him to first in the world standings.

"The start is so fast here; the guy who wins the most money is the guy who gets the best starts (out of the chute)," said Graves, whose hazer was Blaine Pederson.

• SADDLE BRONC RIDING -- NFR rookie Taos Muncy won his first Finals go-round with 83 points on MJM Rodeo's No Ballou.

"I can't believe it," the 20-year-old from Corona, N.M., said.

"Me and my buddy (saddle bronc rider) Isaac Diaz ... it's our first time here. We drove up here and about halfway we had to get out and run around because we were so excited."

Diaz of Stephenville, Texas, has earned two sixth-place checks.

• CALF ROPING -- Blair Burke won his first go-round and first check of his 13th consecutive NFR, tying his calf in 7.2 seconds to edge reigning world champion Cody Ohl by a tenth of a second.

"You want to try to get a check as quickly as you can," said Burke, 34, who lives in Durant, Okla. "It's been a long four days getting started."

• BARREL RACING -- Lindsay Sears from High River, Alberta, and horse Martha have been the best of class except for a fallen barrel and resulting five-second penalty in the first round.

But the 26-year-old rebounded and won her second go-round in a time of 13.93 seconds. She also was runner-up on the third night and has won $45,745 to pull within $33,000 of leader Brittany Pozzi-Phar.

Sears' first-round penalty has her ranked seventh in the aggregate standings, where Pozzi-Phar is first.

• BULL RIDING -- Clint Craig, 24, of Mena, Ark., scored 89.5 on Sammy Catalena Rodeo's South Point to win the round and received his first paycheck. It also was the first time he has covered his bull in 16 previous NFR go-rounds.

"You can't get discouraged in this game," Craig said. "You can't let down times get you down or you'll stay down."

JEFF WOLF/REVIEW-JOURNAL