Trio of NFR Vets Share Round 8 Win in Saddle Bronc

Defending champion Zeke Thurston was among the riders that claimed the win in Las Vegas.

Photo by Hillary Maybery for SI Rodeo Daily

Round 8 of saddle bronc at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas at the Thomas & Mack Center ended up in a three-way tie between Brody Cress, Sage Newman and Zeke Thurston.

In the eliminator pen round, featuring some of the toughest broncs in the event, all three riders finished with an 87.5-point ride, finishing just ahead of Wyatt Casper, who had an 87-point ride.

For Thurston, the defending NFR champion in the event, he won or shared the win for the third time. He shared the victory in the first round and won outright in the fifth round.

Thurston rode Frontier Rodeo’s Yellowstone on Thursday night to his share of the win. He’s finished No. 1 in the world standings in the event each of the last two seasons. He’s seeking his third NFR average title. He won his first in 2016.

Newman won the third round and was coming off a seventh round in which he failed to finish in the top six. He claimed his share on Thursday night riding Three Hills Rodeo’s DEVIL'S ADVOCATE.

Newman finished right behind Thurston in the 2023 world standings and is competing in his third straight NFR.

Cress won his first round of the event, but he finished in the top six in six of the first seven rounds. Cress rode Corey & Lange Rodeo’s Monster to his share of the eighth-round victory.

Cress is another NFR vet. He’s participating in his seventh straight NFR and has won the average title three times, with his last crown coming in 2021.

Casper is in his fourth straight NFR and has two more rounds to claim a victory after Thursday’s fourth-place finish.

NFR Saddle Bronc Round 8 Results:

1/2/3. Brody Cress, 87.5 points, Monster (Corey & Lange Rodeo), $24,433
1/2/3. Sage Newman, 87.5 points, DEVIL'S ADVOCATE (Three Hills Rodeo), $24,433
1/2/3. Zeke Thurston, 87.5 points, Yellowstone (Frontier Rodeo), $24,433
4. Wyatt Casper, 87 points, Freckles (Mosbrucker Rodeos), $12,877
5/6. Damian Brennan, 86 points, Resistol's Pretty Woman (Pete Carr Pro Rodeo), $6,438
5/6. Dawson Hay, 86 points, WEEKEND DEPARTURE (Calgary Stampede), $6,438