courtesy of the PRCA
Rodeo Fans only chance to see the champions of the PRCA, PBR, and ERA compete in one event on February 19th at AT&T Stadium
courtesy of RFD-TV’s The AMERICAN
(NASHVILLE, TENN. — December 14th, 2016) RFD-TV president and founder Patrick Gottsch announced RFD-TV’s The American top invitees on a special selection show edition of “Western Sports Weekly.” The cowboys or cowgirls invited in each event features a mixture of champions and top competitors from the PRCA, PBR, and ERA. The American is the only time the champions of these three professional organizations can be seen at one event. Two fan exemptions, Cole Bailey and Sage Kimzey, were also announced. The recipients, listed below will automatically qualify for the finals in the world’s richest one-day rodeo, to be held February 19th at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. They will be eligible for a $100,000 check plus a wealth of prizes should they win their event.
“This is a mixture of ERA, PRCA, and PBR champions,” said Patrick Gottsch, founder and president of RFD-TV. “I think what’s really neat is that all these folks will be able to compete head-to-head really for the first time since their finals took place.”
The world’s richest one-day rodeo is an action packed day, explains Gottsch. “We kind of brag about the fact that this is a five-hour rodeo. It’s gone fast in the past and I think people are going to enjoy it just as much, if not more this year.”
One million dollars is also up for grabs in the Semi-Finals, held at Cowtown Coliseum in the historic Fort Worth Stockyards February 14 – 17, 2017. This year, RFD-TV added $500,000 to the purse, making the Semi-Finals a $1,000,000 rodeo in its own right. Payouts will be larger and deeper for qualifiers. In addition to the added money in the Semi-Finals, qualifiers will have a chance to win their share of the $1,000,000 side pot should they win their event at The American. Watch the announcement online.
RFD-TV’s The American Ten Invitees (by event):
BAREBACK
- Tanner Aus
- Caleb Bennett
- Richmond Champion
- Steven Dent
- Kaycee Feild
- Austin Foss
- Orin Larsen
- Bobby Mote
- Tim O’Connell
- Jake Vold
STEER WRESTLING
- Bray Armes
- Luke Branquinho
- Dakota Eldridge
- Stockton Graves
- Clayton Hass
- Kyle Irwin
- Matt Reeves
- J.D. Struxness
- Jason Thomas
- Tyler Waguespack
TEAM ROPING
- Derrick Begay/Clay O’Brien Cooper
- Dustin Bird/Russell Cardoza
- Trevor Brazile/Patrick Smith
- Luke Brown/Jake Long
- Kaleb Driggers/Junior Nogueira
- Riley Minor/Brady Minor
- Erich Rogers/Cory Petska
- Levi Simpson/Jeremy Buhler
- Clay Smith/Paul Eaves
- Clay Tryan/Jade Corkill
SADDLE BRONC
- CoBurn Bradshaw
- Jacobs Crawley
- Cort Scheer
- Wade Sundell
- Zeke Thurston
- Jake Watson
- Cody Wright
- Jake Wright
- Ryder Wright
- Rusty Wright
TIE-DOWN ROPING
- Trevor Brazile
- Tuf Cooper
- Marcos Costa
- Tyson Durfey
- Shane Hanchey
- Hunter Herrin
- Cody Ohl
- Caleb Smidt
- Marty Yates
- Cade Swor
- Marty Yates
- Cole Bailey (Fan Exemption)
BARREL RACING
- Mary Burger
- Pamela Capper
- Sherry Cervi
- Chayni Chamberlain
- Kassidy Dennison
- Lisa Lockhart
- Amberleigh Moore
- Fallon Taylor
- Mary Walker
- Kimmie Wall
BULL RIDING
- Eduardo Aparecido
- Cooper Davis
- Ryan Dirteater
- Mike Lee
- Jess Lockwood
- Guilherme Marchi
- JB Mauney
- Kaique Pacheco
- Fabiano Vieira
- Joao Ricardo Vieira
- Sage Kimzey (Fan Exemption)
Great tickets are still available for both the Semi-Finals and the Finals. For those who might not have done their Christmas shopping, RFD-TV is offering 10% off to the Finals. Visit www.AmericanRodeo.com and click on the ticket link and enter “Top10” when prompted at checkout.
