Final Day Preview: Feild, Peebles enter final round of bareback riding gold buckle battle

Kaycee Feild and Steven Peebles have duked it out in a bareback riding battle for the ages at the National Finals Rodeo over the last nine nights at the Thomas & Mack Center. The world champion will finally be crowned following today's 10th and final round.

Each cowboy has claimed four round wins, with Feild winning Friday's ninth round with an 82-point ride on Cervi Championship Rodeo's RodeoHouston's Control Freak to increase his lead to $35,000 over Peebles, who didn't place.

"This is something that I'm going to remember for the rest of my life," said Feild, who has won the last four world titles and NFR average titles. "This NFR, win or lose, is going to mean more to me than any other one because it's been so much fun to compete with Steven every night. This whole thing has felt like a dream, and it's going to be something that we talk about forever. (Friday night), the way it panned out, I wish Steven would've done better, but I had a lot of fun on my horse."

Peebles still leads the average race and Feild is in third, a difference of more than $24,000, so Feild will likely have to beat Peebles in the final round to secure his fifth straight gold buckle.

"What happened (Friday) is over, and I'm coming here (tonight) to win the round and the world title," Feild said. "I'm a competitor, and so is Steven. But I'm here to prove I'm the best, and I don't want to rely on what Steven does, I want to take control. I want him to do really well, and then I want to top what he does. That's what a true champion wants to do."

Trevor Brazile, who has already won the steer roping and all-around world titles this year, also is poised to win the gold buckle in tie-down roping, which would give him his third career Triple Crown, a feat accomplished only by Jim Shoulders. Brazile leads the world standings by more than $23,000 over Caleb Smidt, who leads the average over Brazile, a difference of almost $13,000. Brazile will probably have to top Smidt in the final round to prevail.

For good measure, Brazile and team roping partner Patrick Smith won the round with a 4.0-second run as Brazile became the PRCA's first $6 million man, surpassing $6 million in career earnings.

"It just shows how much this sport has changed and grown," Brazile said. "I never take winning and records for granted. I've been blessed beyond my wildest dreams in my career."

Said Smith: "They asked him in our TV interview what's next. I say $7 million. This guy can go as far as he wants to go. There's only one Trevor Brazile, and I don't know that he can be stopped. He's learned the game so well. His mental game, horsemanship and attitude are so strong."

If the rodeo ended after the ninth round, team roping average leaders JoJo LeMond and Junior Nogueira would be the world champs. LeMond finished 16th in the regular-season standings and only got into the NFR as a last-minute replacement for seven-time world champ Jake Barnes, who suffered a serious head injury and a broken ankle during a practice session at him home arena near Scottsdale, Ariz. Only two cowboys have ever made it from 15th place to first and nobody has climbed from 16th to first.

Average leaders Jacobs Crawley (saddle bronc riding), Elko native Dakota Eldridge (steer wrestling) and Callie duPerier (barrel racing) each control their own destiny in the world title chase.