NFR 2026 Schedule: What Time the Wrangler NFR Starts and How to Watch

NFR 2026 schedule: what time it starts

Update (2026-11-03): The Wrangler National Finals Rodeo 2026 opens Thursday, Dec. 3 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas and runs ten straight nights through Saturday, Dec. 12. Round 1 starts at 8:45 p.m. US Eastern (5:45 p.m. in Las Vegas), and the qualifiers now have their back numbers.

Opening night, Round 1, in your time zone:

The official NFR Experience and Rodeos USA list all ten performances at 5:45 p.m. Las Vegas time, one full round per night:

How to watch NFR 2026

• Streaming: Cowboy+ calls itself the official home of ProRodeo and the 2026 Wrangler NFR.
• TV: The Rodeos USA viewing guide says all ten rounds air live on The Cowboy Channel, and that the Cowboy+ annual plan covers every night live and on replay. Before Dec. 3, check that your cable or satellite lineup carries the channel and that your Cowboy+ plan includes the NFR.
• Replays: The same guide said no replay TV schedule had been published as of Oct. 22.
• In Las Vegas without a ticket: The official NFR Experience calendar lists NFR viewing parties at hotels across town on opening night, including the Orleans, South Point, Silverton and Virgin Hotels.

Who's in the NFR 2026 field

The PRCA regular season closed Sept. 30, and on Oct. 21 Sports Illustrated published the 2026 back numbers. They go out by season earnings across all events, so No. 1 is the top money-earner. It's the list of qualifiers, not a draw for the rounds.

• No. 1, Stetson Wright ($547,281): the 10-time PRCA world champion qualified in both saddle bronc and bull riding, according to SI. In September he set a Pendleton Round-Up arena record with 92.5 points on The Black Tie, the PRCA Saddle Bronc Horse of the Year in 2022 and 2023.
• Nos. 2 to 5: Noah Lee ($405,041, bull riding), Riley Mason Webb ($353,293, tie-down roping), Tristen Hutchings ($328,764, bull riding) and Bradlee Miller ($303,911, bareback riding).
• Brothers in the bronc pen: Rusty Wright wears No. 8 and Ryder Wright No. 10.
• A debut to watch: John Crimber, the reigning PBR world champion who was chasing his first NFR in September, is No. 12 ($254,339). Brody Wells, who won the saddle bronc in Mandan with 92 points, is No. 24.

Barrel racing qualifiers

• At the top: Hayle Gibson-Stillwell led the projected barrel standings in the season's final week and wears No. 20 ($218,456), ahead of Emily Beisel (No. 28) and Carlee Otero (No. 32).
• The champion: Kassie Mowry, world champion in 2024 and 2025, is No. 53.
• Hot streak: Tayla Moeykens, who made her first NFR in 2025 and won the North Dakota Roughrider Cup in Mandan in 17.00 seconds, is No. 56.
• The veteran: Lisa Lockhart is No. 65. It's her 20th NFR qualification, a record: her 19th, in 2025, had tied Charmayne James and Sherry Cervi.
• Late charge: Andrea Busby won the Governor's Cup finals in Sioux Falls in 14.02 seconds for $34,000, moved from No. 19 to No. 14 in the projected standings and is No. 99 on the list.
• The last spot: Tricia Aldridge, 15th in the projected standings in the final week, is No. 115. LaTricia Duke, who was 16th, is not on the list.

Who calls it, and what it pays

Wayne Brooks (his 14th NFR), Roger Mooney (his 10th) and Anthony Lucia, the PRCA Announcer of the Year in 2023, 2024 and 2025, will call the action. Livestock superintendent John Barnes returns for a 21st straight year.

Every go-round now pays the top eight finishers instead of six, from just over $3,000 for eighth to almost $34,000 for the round winner.

What is the NFR?

The NFR is professional rodeo's championship finals. All season long, cowboys and cowgirls haul their horses from one PRCA rodeo to the next, and every dollar they win counts in the world standings.

World titles, the famous gold buckles, go to whoever has the most money after Round 10, counting regular-season earnings plus NFR earnings. So a rider can win the average (the best total across all ten rounds) and still finish second in the world.

The NFR dates back to 1959, spent 20 years in Oklahoma City and moved to Las Vegas in 1985. Under a contract extension announced in 2024, it stays in Vegas through 2035 and the total payout grows by $1 million a year, which puts 2026 above $18.5 million for contestants and stock contractors combined.

The seven events and eight world titles

The NFR has seven events. Team roping crowns two world champions, a header and a heeler, so eight event titles are settled in Vegas, plus the all-around title for the top earner across two or more events.

Roughstock: judged rides of 8 seconds

• Bareback riding: no saddle and no rein, just a leather rigging held with one hand.
• Saddle bronc riding: a special saddle, one thick rein and a spurring rhythm that has to match the horse.
• Bull riding: one hand on a flat braided rope. It's the only NFR event without a horse under the rider.

Two judges each score the rider and the animal, up to 25 points apiece, for a maximum of 100. The ride has to last 8 seconds to earn a score.

Timed events: fastest time wins

• Tie-down roping: rope a calf from horseback, run down the rope and tie three legs.
• Steer wrestling: slide from a running horse onto a steer and bring it to the ground, while a second rider, the hazer, keeps the steer running straight.
• Team roping: the header ropes the horns and the heeler catches both hind feet; catching only one foot adds 5 seconds.
• Barrel racing: a cloverleaf around three barrels, with 5 seconds added for each barrel knocked over.

Breakaway roping isn't part of the Las Vegas finals. Its world champion is crowned at the Wrangler WPRA National Breakaway Finals, Dec. 18–19 at Will Rogers Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas. Browse every sport on our disciplines page or look up rodeo terms in the glossary.

How qualifying works

• It's money, not points. The world standings rank prize money won at PRCA rodeos; barrel racers are ranked in the WPRA standings.
• Top 15 per event. When the season closed Sept. 30, the 15 highest earners in each event qualified. Team roping takes 15 headers and 15 heelers.
• Earnings carry over. Season money follows each contestant to Vegas. The leader starts with a cushion, but NFR paychecks are big enough to reshuffle the order.

Sixteenth is the toughest spot in rodeo: one place separates a December in Las Vegas from a winter at home.

Fifteenth can still win it all. With almost $34,000 for each round win plus the average payoff, ten strong nights can carry a contestant from the bottom of the list to a gold buckle.

The horses behind the NFR

Six of the seven events depend on a horse. Bucking horses like The Black Tie are bred and raised for the job, and the best earn PRCA Horse of the Year honors. Timed-event contestants may bring a barrel horse or a rope horse, and in steer wrestling a second horse carries the hazer.

Arena size changes everything. Pendleton runs much of its rodeo on a big grass arena, and first-round barrel runs there took about 29 seconds; Mandan was won in 17.00; and in the smaller, indoor Thomas & Mack, Kassie Mowry won Round 1 of the 2025 NFR in 13.66 seconds.

Horse health is part of the sport. In November 2025 an EHV-1 (equine herpesvirus) outbreak led to cancelled events and new travel limits in several states. The 2025 NFR required a seven-day certificate of veterinary inspection, a Nevada entry permit and daily temperature checks for every horse, and the breakaway finals and a bucking-horse sale planned for Las Vegas that week were postponed.

Mowry's Round 1 winner, CP He Will Be Epic, had caught the virus at an event in Waco, Texas, recovered and was testing negative by the finals. She kept her other top horse, Force The Goodbye, at home after a possible exposure, a reminder that rodeo runs on healthy horses and careful horsemanship.

The lesson applies to every owner: know your horse's normal temperature, keep health papers current before you haul, and call your vet if your horse runs a fever after an event. Our health basics guide covers vital signs.

Going in person: a family checklist

Tickets (official 2026 face value)

• Balcony: $130.50 per performance, $522 for a 4-night pack, $783 for a 6-night pack.
• NFR Access ONLY: $80 all-in. You get inside to watch on concourse screens, but no seat.
• Kids 3 and under don't need a ticket if they sit on an adult's lap.
• Mini packages sold out in August, so single-night seats may be scarce.

Before you go

1. Buy only through the official NFR site or AXS, and skip scalpers.
2. Tickets are digital: load them through your MyNFRAccount at NFRexperience.com or the NFR app.
3. Bring one clear bag (a gallon zip bag or 12" x 6" x 12") plus a small clutch.
4. Leave extra time to get through security before the 5:45 p.m. start.

Free and family-friendly: Cowboy Christmas, the NFR's official gift show, runs Dec. 3–12 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Admission is free, Santa visits daily, and the YETI Junior NFR runs ten straight days of youth competition in a tent on the convention center's Platinum lot.

Curious about western riding? Start with our get started guide and the kids section.

What to watch for

Three storylines to follow:

• How much can Stetson Wright add as No. 1, riding in two events every night?
• Can Hayle Gibson-Stillwell hold off Emily Beisel and Carlee Otero for the barrel racing world title?
• How will John Crimber handle his first NFR, and Lisa Lockhart her record 20th?

For more rodeo and horse news, keep an eye on our trends page.