Legendary Champions Emerge at Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo

Tie Down Roping

Money, money, money! It's Shad "Money" Mayfield for the win. Coming into the finals, Mayfield was leading the world standings by $22,000. Add in the $20,000 from his win at Fort Worth, and he will have already banked more than $63,000 for the season.

Roping second in the line-up was no pressure for Mayfield. He and his bay horse, whom he calls Lollipop, went through the motions in 7.8 seconds to stand above the crowd. With six more of the best in the world to rope, Mayfield watched intently, but none rose to the occasion.

"I've got to give credit to my horse. He makes everything easy for me. I've got a lot of goals this year. This is one of my favorite rodeos, and winning this is pretty special. Two weeks ago, the doctors told me I need surgery on both of my hips. After this win, I decided I am going to tough it out and go all year because I want another gold buckle, and this is my year," Mayfield said.

Team Roping

Saving the best for last, the team ropers from Broken Bow, Okla., and Stephenville, Texas, took the win. Clay Smith and his partner Coleby Payne picked up checks for $20,000 each for being just one-tenth faster than the first team out.

While Brenten Hall and Kaden Michael Profili held the lead the entire roping with a 4.6, Smith and Payne looked up at the clock to see a 4.5, which was good enough for the win.

"When we have to be pretty aggressive, I feel like, is when we rope our best. I knew we had a good steer and could be fast," Payne said.

After winning Fort Worth for the second time, Smith said, "I want to thank my savior, first of all, for letting all this be possible. My family is here, and this is an awesome win and a good start to the year."

Barrel Racing

After the last team to go took the win in the team roping, the very first barrel racer down the alleyway stole the show and earned her big payday.

Sara Winkelman from Big Lake, Minn., ran the fastest time of the entire rodeo in the second semifinal set with her 16.26. Winkelman advanced out of bracket number two, winning $3,000 for her efforts on her first two runs. Add that to her $4,000 win in the semifinals and the $20,000 from the finals, and Winkelman will find herself catapulted into the top five of the World Standings.

Winkelman came through the alleyway aboard her trusty horse, Fairway ta Fame, whom she affectionately calls Rory. After turning three pretty barrels, she crossed the electric eyes in 16.40 seconds and held on for the entire race to earn the win.

"This just shows how much heart Rory has; he is truly amazing," Winkelman said with a twinkle in her eye. When asked whether winning Fort Worth was a big deal, she smiled and said, "We all know it's a big deal to win this rodeo."

Bull Riding

Only two of the eight scheduled riders covered their bulls for eight seconds. Rafter G Rodeo had five bulls in the finals, and their own Goin Brandon was the champion, with Cody Teel scoring 87 championship points.

The solid black bull came out with two big, powerful jumps followed by a spin to the right and then throwing a change up to turn back left, and Teel never missed a beat.

"This was a tough set of bulls all week. As a bull rider, when you draw one you like, you have to take advantage of it. I was happy to do that today. Getting that buckle is really special," Teel said.

Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo Final Round Full Results:

Bareback Riding: 1. Rocker Steiner, 92.5 points on J Bar J’s Straight Stick, $20,0002. Dean Thompson, 91.5, $12,0003. Keenan Hayes, 89, $8,0004. (tie) Ty Pope and Jacek Lane Frost, $2,000 each 6. (tie) Sam Petersen and Cole Reiner, 87 each8. Jayco Roper, 86.5

 Steer Wrestling: 1. (tie) Tanner Brunner and Dalton Massey, 3.7 seconds, $16,000 each3. Will Lummus, 4.1, $8,0004. Winsten McGraw, 4.3, $4,0005. Stan Branco, 4.8 6. Don Payne, 5.37. Gavin Soileau, 5.48. Rowdy Parrott, NT

Team Roping: 1. Clay Smith/Coleby Payne, 4.5 seconds, $20,000 each2. Brenten Hall/Kaden Profili, 4.6, $12,0003. Clint Summers/Jake Long, $8,0004. Ty Arnold/Tyler McKnight, 6.6, $4,0005. Jake Clay/Trey Yates, 9.36. Cole Thomas/Dylin Ahlstrom, 9.57. Kaleb Driggers/Jake Minor, 19.08. Dustin Egusquiza/Levi Lord, NT

Saddle Bronc Riding: 1. Damian Brennan, 91.5 points on Andrews Rodeo’s All or Nothing, $20,0002. Zeke Thurston, 90.5, $12,0003. Wyatt Casper, 88.5, $8,0004. (tie) Ryder Wright and Statler Wright, $2,000 each6. Dawson Hay, 877. Lefty Holman, 76.58. Logan Hay, NS

Tie-Down Roping: 1. Shad Mayfield, 7.8 seconds, $20,0002. Tyler Milligan, 8.1, $12,0003. Chance Oftedahl, 8.6, $8,0004. Tom Crouse, 10.4, $4,0005. Marty Yates, 12,06. Lane Livingston, 19.47. (tie) Haven Meged and King Pickett, NT

Barrel Racing: 1. Sara Winkelman, 16.40 seconds, $20,0002. Sissy Winn, 16.46, $12,0003. Hailey Kinsel, 16.51, $8,0004. Ilyssa Riley, 16.86, $4,0005. Rainey Skelton, 21.026. Lisa Lockhart, 21.467. Andrea Busby, 21.758. Sharin Hall, 22.25

Bull Riding: 1. Cody Teel, 87 points on Rafter G Rodeo’s Goin Brandon, $20,000;2. T Parker, 84, $12,0003. Brody Yeary, NS, $8,0004. Taylor Toves, NS, $4,0005. (tie) Jestyn Woodward, Justin Houston, Braden Richardson and Hayes Weight, NS

Breakaway Roping: 1. Danielle Lowman, 1.8 seconds, $20,000 2. Rickie Fanning, 1.9, $12,0003. Bailey Bates, 2.1, $8,0004. Bradi Good, 2.3, $4,0005. Jordan Jo Hollabaugh, 2.46. Lari Dee Guy, 2.77. Jill Tanner, 2.88. Maddy Deerman, NT