Four brothers making history at National Finals Rodeo

If a movie is ever made about the Wright brothers — the saddle bronc riders, not Orville and Wilbur — the title probably would be a play on the family name, such as “All the Wright Moves” or “The Wright Stuff.”

However, if the film focuses on this year, “Fantastic Four” might be more apropos. It’s the first time ever that four brothers have qualified for the National Finals Rodeo — let alone in the same year and same event, as Cody, Jesse, Jake and Spencer Wright have done.

“I think it’s awesome to set a record like that,” Jesse Wright said. “Not too many people have that many brothers in their family that have interest in the same thing and succeed at a high level. It’s pretty sweet.”

Cody Wright — at 37 the oldest of seven brothers in the family of 13 from Milford, Utah — is a two-time world champion (2008, 2010) competing at his 12th consecutive NFR. He entered the Finals in second place after a season in which he was energized by traveling with his 19-year-old son, Rusty — the 2014 PRCA saddle bronc riding Rookie of the Year — and 23-year-old Spencer.

“They’re young and invincible. There’s always a spark when you’re young like that and indestructible,” Cody said. “It helps keep things alive because they don’t know no better. It helps to travel with those younger guys, and I enjoy it.”

Before this year, Cody had traveled with 25-year-old twins Jesse and Jake Wright. Jesse, the 2012 world champion, is making his fifth straight NFR appearance. Jake, who took second in the world last year, is at his third straight NFR.

In his third PRCA season, Spencer qualified for his first NFR in 13th place, $470 ahead of Jake.

“I ran out of rodeos a couple weeks before the deadline,” Spencer said. “I had to just sit and wait and see what everybody else did toward the end. It was pretty nerve-wracking.”

Jake can relate. He didn’t clinch a spot at the NFR until his final ride of the season. “I figured I’d stay on and try to keep together and not throw up,” Jake said. “You work all year to try to make it to the Finals.”

Spencer, the 2012 PRCA saddle bronc riding Rookie of the Year, said traveling with Cody helped put him over the top this season.

“You kind of absorb the attitude,” he said. “Attitude plays a big part in rodeo. He’s a real positive guy. You can’t get him down.”

Spencer is the only Wright brother to have placed in each of the NFR’s first three rounds at the Thomas &Mack Center. In fact, Cody and Jesse have yet to make any money in Las Vegas, while Jake took fourth in the second round.

Spencer took fifth Thursday and sixth Friday before tying for second Saturday, when he scored 84 points on Red Horse Crossin in front of a sellout crowd of 17,943. He’s third in the average, with 239 points.

Taking his first NFR in stride, Spencer didn’t ask any of his older brothers for advice on how to handle it.

“He’s pretty go easy. He’s trying to figure it out himself,” Jesse said. “He’s calm and collected, so it don’t bother him.”

Jesse said the siblings’ success stems from their parents, Bill and Evelyn Wright. Bill Wright competed in all three roughstock events in high school and college, along with a brief stint in the PRCA, and built a rodeo arena for his kids at the family ranch.

“The way my parents raised us, they had us work at it,” Jesse said. “My dad always preaches, ‘You get out of something what you put into it.’ He hounded us and made sure we practiced right and practiced hard.”

Cody led his brothers into saddle bronc riding.

“I rode all three roughstock events, but I thought I rode broncs the best,” he said. “I thought that would be the event I could do the longest.”

Jesse said competition between the brothers at the family ranch lifted them all to a higher level.

“It was fun. I think it pushes you a little bit,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons we’re pretty good at it and all do the same event. You want to win, so when (your brothers) ride really good, you have to ride really good to beat them.”

Jake said there was another reason the brothers banded together on saddle broncs.

“Hell, we were good at all of (the roughstock events), but it’s hard to get good travel partners. Four of us, we rode broncs and we figured we could all go together,” he said. “When Cody’s boy started rodeoing this year, there were too many in the truck, so (Cody) had to jump out.”

Alex Wright, yet another PRCA saddle bronc riding Wright brother, traveled with the twins this season before he was sidelined by a broken ankle, but the 27-year-old already has his sights set on the 2015 NFR.

“With a little good health and a little luck, he’ll be right there,” Cody said. “He rides really good.”

So does Cody’s son, Rusty, who won the PRCA Permit Challenge in saddle bronc riding Thursday morning at South Point.

Along with Rusty, Alex plans to hit the road hard next year with CoBurn Bradshaw — who recently married the Wright’s younger sister, Rebecca, and, naturally, is a saddle bronc rider.

If those three qualify for the NFR, the next movie about the Wright family just might be a remake of “The Magnificent Seven.”

■ NOTE — Trevor Brazile continued to rewrite the PRCA record books, as he clinched his ninth straight and 12th overall all-around title, bringing his career total to 21 gold buckles.

Contact reporter Todd Dewey at tdewey@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0354. Follow him on Twitter: @tdewey33.