BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN @PRORODEOBRETT
As we gear up for 100 Rodeos in 100 Days, the steer wrestling is fixing to go through the two most decorated cowboys on the road right now - Hunter Cure and Tyler Waguespack.
1. Hunter Cure, $75,506
Cure hit the road hard on the weekend of June 12 and placed on his four of his six runs, including a second place finish at the Gladewater Round-Up Rodeo (Texas). Dating back to Guymon Pioneer Days (Oklahoma) on May 6, the two-time World Champion is 10-for-11 and all 10 qualified times have been 4.6 second or faster.
2. Tyler Waguespack, $65,989
Waguespack placed in a round at the Will Rogers Stampede (Oklahoma) on May 29 and another at Old Fort Days (Arkansas) on June 4. The reigning and three-time World Champ is currently averaging a career-best 4.91 seconds per qualified time.
3. Tristan Martin, $54,923
Martin entered three rodeos on the weekend of June 12, but did not win any money. It was the first weekend he rodeoed since he earned almost $6,000 in Guymon by turning in three consecutive runs of 3.9 seconds or faster to win the rodeo.
4. J.D. Struxness, $47,510
Struxness’ average qualified time of 4.99 seconds is almost a full second better than his previous career-best of 5.95 seconds in 2021. The three-time NFR qualifier has not rodeoed much lately. Since the San Angelo Cinch Chute Out on April 16, he has entered in just three rodeos, winning one check for a fourth place finish in Round 1 in Guymon.
5. Dirk Tavenner, $39,677
In his last five runs, Tavenner has been first or second in the round on four of them. He was second in both rounds at Back When They Bucked (South Dakota) on May 30 to bring in $4,409 total then two weeks later, he won the Eagle Rodeo (Idaho) and finished second in a round at the Sisters Rodeo (Oregon).
6. Tanner Brunner, $38,145
Brunner’s last four runs have ended in no times and his last nine have ended without checks. However, before that streak started, the three-time NFR qualifier won the American Royal Rodeo (Kansas City) and tied for fifth in Guymon on the same weekend.
7. Payden McIntyre, $36,634
McIntyre has only entered three rodeos in May and June combined and earned one check on five runs. The 33-year-old won Round 2 in Guymon with a 3.4 second run. McIntyre has finished in the Top 36 each of the last two seasons and prior to that, his best finish was 49th.
8. Ty Erickson, $35,844
Erickson has competed at just three rodeos since April 21, but placed in at least one round at all of them. He’ll enter the summer run with a streak of five consecutive times of 5.2 seconds or faster.
9. Dalton Massey, $36,698
The West Coast has been good to Massey in 2022 as all four of his wins have come in either in California or Oregon. His most recent triumph came in Redding on May 21. He turned in three times of 4.4 seconds or faster and won two of the three rounds to win the rodeo and bring in $5,620 total.
10. Stetson Jorgensen, $34,387
The three-time NFR qualifier won close to $3,000 on the weekend of June 12, his first rodeo action since the Clovis Rodeo (California) on April 24.
11. Jesse Brown, $34,186
After winning the Santa Maria Elks Rodeo (California) on June 5, Brown kept the momentum the next weekend by winning checks at the Eagle Rodeo and Livermore Rodeo (California). The two-time NFR qualifier was No. 16 in the world less than three weeks ago.
12. Will Lummus, $33,833
Last weekend was very good to Lummus. He made three runs of 3.9 seconds or faster and finished first in Coleman (Texas) and Gladewater. Both of those wins earned him checks of more than $2,000. Like Brown, Lummus has also made a big jump in the last three weeks as he was No. 19 in the world as of May 25.
13. Timmy Sparing $33,778
Sparing placed in both rounds of Back When They Bucked. Sparing has a qualified time on an impressive 35-of-36 runs in 2022. He has finished in the Top 40 three times in his career, but that has not happened since 2017.
14. Dakota Eldridge, $33,186
In his first rodeo since May 22, Eldridge placed in the Livermore Rodeo on June 12 with a 4.6 second run. Eldridge, who won San Angelo in April, has been to eight of the last nine NFRs and has finished in the Top 5 four times in his career.
15. Nick Guy, $32,518
Guy had success at several of the marquee rodeos over the last seven weeks. He placed in three rounds in Clovis, two rounds in Guymon and one round at Back When They Bucked. The Wisconsin native is looking for his first NFR qualification since 2018.
16. Rowdy Parrott, $31,328
Parrott made a 3.8 second run to place third at Parker County Sheriff’s Posse Frontier Days (Texas) on June 11. This past weekend was his first rodeo since May 14. Parrott is looking to return to the NFR for a third time after his first career Top 10 finish in 2021.
17. Talon Roseland, $29,750
Roseland has struggled recently and dropped to No. 17 after being ranked No. 10 two months ago. He has won just two checks since winning Rodeo Austin on March 26.
18. Taz Olson, $28,616
Olson, like Roseland, has also not been winning much since Rodeo Austin, where he finished fourth. Since March 26, Olson has cashed a single check for an eighth place finish in Round 3 in Red Bluff.
19. Kyle Irwin, $27,915
Irwin has competed in just three rodeos since the conclusion of San Angelo on April 15 and won one of them. The Alabama native is looking to return to the NFR for a sixth time in December.
20. Cameron Morman, $26,930
Morman has yet to rodeo in June and won his only check of May with a second place finish in Round 1 at Back When They Bucked.
STANDINGS VIA PRORODEO.COM. ACCURATE AS OF JUNE 15, 2022 AT 11 AM ET.