BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN @PRORODEOBRETT
In 2021, Jordon Briggs made her first NFR since 2009, returning to full-time rodeo after years of training barrel horses.
In Rollo, the 2021 Horse of the Year, she found the perfect partner after a long wait. Briggs took the NFR by storm, winning the NFR Average and the World Championship, thwarting Hailey Kinsel’s attempt at three in a row.
Briggs and Rollo were the only pair to be clean on all 10 runs inside the Thomas & Mack Center.
In 2022, it was more of the same. Briggs entered just 31 rodeos and still finished the regular season No. 1 in the WPRA World Standings. She’ll begin her title defense with a lead of more than $50,000 on No. 2 Dona Kay Rule.
Biggest Paydays
RodeoHouston, $60,000
Jordon Briggs dominated RodeoHouston. The Texas cowgirl placed in the Top 2 of the Go-Round on all six of her runs, sweeping the final three with three consecutive times faster than 14.6 seconds. Briggs was clocked at 14.33 seconds in the Finals, her fastest time of the rodeo and good enough to win by more than two tenths of a second.
NFR Open, $23,202
After not placing on her first run, Briggs rebounded to win Round 2 to advance to the Semifinals, which she also won. She was third in the Finals, but despite being named the champion, she left the inaugural event in Colorado Springs with more money than any other barrel racer.
Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo, $14,080
Briggs finished in the Top 3 of the Go-Round on all four of her runs and advanced to the Finals where she finished third and banked $8,000. Between Fort Worth, San Antonio and Houston, Briggs pulled a check on 13-of-15 runs.
Fastest Runs
Greeley Stampede, 16.54 Seconds
Briggs’ 16.54-second run in the Finals put her second by Shelley Morgan. Briggs finished third in the Average behind Shelley Morgan, Lisa Lockhart andPaige Jones.
Reno Rodeo, 16.85 Seconds
Briggs won the Finals in Reno with what was tied for the fastest time of the rodeo and one of two runs faster than 17 seconds in all three rounds. Briggs ultimately finished second in the Average behind Michelle Darling and earned nearly $11,000.
Dodge City Round-Up, 16.96 Seconds
Briggs was the only cowgirl the entire weekend to clock faster than 17 seconds at one of Kansas’ highest paying rodeo. In fact, the next closest time was more than two tenths slower. Briggs won the Long Round, but was seventh in the Short Round to ultimately finish fourth in the Average.
Notable Wins
Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo, 17.21 Seconds
In what was her first of two wins in Utah in July, Briggs won the rodeo in Vernal by four hundredths of a second.
Ogden Pioneer Days, 16.96 Seconds
The weekend after her stellar performance at the NFR Open, Briggs took home first (and more than $8,500) at the Ogden Pioneer Days. The win was right in the middle of a streak in which she won at least $1,800 on eight straight runs.
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