Dec 10, 2016; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Barrel racer Lisa Lockhart receives a buckle for achieving the top overall average score on the final night of the National Finals Rodeo at Thomas & Mack Center. Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Bracket Action Ends At NFR Open As Top Qualifiers Turn Focus To Final Showdown

Originally posted on Rodeo on SI | Last updated Jul 12, 2025 9:53 PM ET

The final bracket is done and the NFR Open finals are set. When it was all said and done, there’s not a single event where there can be a repeat champion from the 2024 NFR Open.

Sage Allen took a clean sweep of bracket three in the bareback riding. He’s currently in hot pursuit of his first NFR qualification as he sits number 17 in the world standings. He was the only cowboy to score more than 85 in his bracket in either rounds and he was nearly 10 points ahead in the average of the number two man, Cooper Filipek.

Allen wasn’t the only roughie to get a clean sweep-bull rider Avery Mullins took both rounds and was the only one to cover both of his bulls. He was the only qualified ride in round two which meant he earned the entire pot, $7,500.

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There was a few who came close to clean sweeps including a pair of brothers in the team roping, a couple barrel racers, and a Montana tie-down roper.

Riley and Brady Minor were the only pair to be clean on two head. They took second in the first round with one of the few sub-six second times of the rodeo and then went six flat in round two for the win by over a second and a half.

Tana Renick and Lisa Lockhart had a dual in the barrel racing. Lockhart took the first round beating out Renick by .01. Flip the script for round two and it would be Renick who ran to the top of the average by beating out the NFR veteran by .02.

It is a clean slate going into the finals meaning that the previous two rounds no longer matter. Fastest time is going to win the most regardless of how well their previous runs went.

The NFR Open will conclude tonight and world standings jumps will be made. There are a plethora of contestants who qualified into the finals who are after their first NFR qualification.

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This article first appeared on Rodeo on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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