Wesley Thorp entered the NFR No. 1 on the heel side and earned his second World Title after earning over $153,000 at the 2023 NFR to finish the season with $325,284.
Thorp and his partner Tyler Wade opened the rodeo with two rounds they failed to place in. Momentum began to shift in the following two rounds. In Round 3 the pair placed fourth and in Round 4 they finished third.
The best was yet to come for the team ropers who partnered up for good in April of this year. In Round 8, they tied the arena and world record with a 3.3-second run to win the round. They followed up the Round Record-tying run of a 3.5 with a Round 9 win.
The back-to-back round wins set them up for Round 10 which required a clean run and them to keep their spot in the average for a Gold Buckle
“We had to hold our spot in the average. We had a second and a half on Andrew (Ward) and Buddy (Hawkins),” Thorp said. “It came down to if they did real well and passed us in the Average, it went to them.”
Ward and Hawkins stopped the clock at 4.0 seconds which put the pressure on Wade and Thorp. They would post a 5.40 second time, securing their spot in the average and the World Title.
Ward now has two to his name, but says this one is sweeter.
“This one is amazing. The last one was split and this one I got to win it with the guy I went through the whole year with,” he said. “We are good friends.”
Thorp’s year-end total of $325,284 was a career best and he officially finished $28,744 clear of Reserve World Champion Jake Long.
