PRCA Saddle Bronc Standings Update: Sterling Crawley Leads and Stetson Wright Jumps to No. 2 After Fort Worth

BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN

Sterling Crawley has been remarkably consistent so far in the saddle bronc riding and he sits atop the PRCA World Standings with $31,182.

Crawley is 22-for-23 and has won a check on 18 of those rides so far in the 2022 season. Crawley has hit the ground running since returning from an August leg surgery that stopped his season 2021 season and forced him to miss the NFR for the first time since 2015.

Crawley finished fourth in Fort Worth and won $8,820 at the event. He also won $4,204 at the National Western in addition to win at the Sandhills Stock Show and Rodeo and a second place finish at the Texas Circuit Finals.

Now up to second place in the PRCA World Standings is 2022 Fort Worth champion Stetson Wright, who climbed through the Wild Card to emerge victorious. Wright finished the rodeo off in style, scoring 92 points (an arena record) in the Semifinals and 91.5 in the Finals. Wright has won $27,967 in saddle bronc riding this season and almost all of it has come from Fort Worth.

WRIGHT’S 92 POINT RIDE IN FORT WORTH

Familiar names like Brody Cress, Ryder Wright and Chase Brooks are also in the Top 10, but there are some guys currently near the top who are not as decorated, but have proved they have plenty of talent in recent years. Cowboys like Sage Newman, Kade Bruno, Layton Green, Leon Fountain and Kole Ashbacher.

Newman, who made his first NFR in 2021, sits No. 3 in the world. The Montana cowboy recently had a stretch of eight straight rides in the 80s before getting bucked off in the Fort Worth Finals. Newman made about a third of his $24,836 for the year at the National Western. He won two Go-Rounds in Denver and won $7,432.

Kade Bruno is No. 5 in the PRCA World Standings after finishing 28th in his first full season in 2021. Bruno made the Finals in Fort Worth and Denver and won more than $10,000 at those two rodeos combined. He also was the champion of the Columbia River Circuit Finals in October and finished second at the Brawley Cattle Call Rodeo (California) in November. Bruno is averaging 81.75 points in 2022.

BRUNO’S 89 POINT RIDE IN FORT WORTH SEMIFINALS

After making his first NFR since 2017 last year, Layton Green has picked up where he left off. The Canadian made the Finals in Fort Worth and picked up $3,000 check there for his second place finish in the Semifinals. Green has won $3,000 or more on three rides in the 2022 season, the others came for his fourth place at the Chase Hawks Roughstock Rodeo (Montana) and his win at the Cinch World’s Toughest in Sioux City, Iowa. He also made the Finals of the Brad Gjermundson Extreme Broncs (North Dakota) in October and made three rides of 85+ points at the event.

Leon Fountain is 18-for-20 in 2022 and is ranked No. 8. His biggest check of the season so far was from a second place finish at the Chase Hawks where he earned $5,660. Fountain was also the champion of the Turquoise Circuit Rodeo in November.

Kole Ashbacher, who holds the title of tallest active saddle bronc rider in the PRCA, is No. 10 in the standings. Ashbacher has six rides of 85+ already and is 15-for-16 on the year. His best performance came in Fort Worth, he placed in the first three rounds he competed in and made the Finals. All four of his rides in Fort Worth were between 83 and 87 points and he banked $4,080.