What an opening night of the 2026 Phoenix Hondo Rodeo Fest! Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, was electric with energy and intense competition.
With a total of $1 million on the line, cowboys and cowgirls came gunning for the money on Friday night and put on a performance fans won’t soon forget.
If this is any indication of the level of competition we are about to witness at the National Finals Rodeo, gear up because it was hard to even take a break for a drink.
Some of professional rodeo’s very best were in attendance, and from world champions to rookies, the performances were impressive.
Kade Bruno Edged Out Stetson Wright For the Saddle Bronc Win
The star-studded lineup in the saddle bronc riding made it one of the night’s most highly anticipated events, and the cowboys showed up.
Kade Bruno rode Molly’s Game for 88 points to take the win of the night worth $12,000. Stetson Wright put together a beautiful ride aboard E.T. for second place that earned him $7,500.
Ryder Wright and Sage Newman tied for third with 86.5 points.
A scary moment occurred when Rusty Wright took a hard fall and had to be helped out of the arena. As of press time, there was not an injury report, but Rodeo On SI will update as soon as anything is reported.
Stetson also competed in the bull riding where he finished third with 88.8 points aboard Crimson Sky and earned an additional $3,500 to bring his first night earnings to $11,000 total for the two events.
Lisa Lockhart and Riley Webb Continue to Dominate
If the Hondo Rodeo Fest isn’t Lisa Lockhart’s favorite rodeo, we would be completely shocked. Lockhart has dominated the event and even walked away with the coveted $50,000 bonus before. She is already working her way toward another one.
Lockhart continued her winning ways aboard the horse aptly named, Whenthestarsalign, owned by Lana Tibbetts. She stopped the clock at 13.70 to take the first place check on Friday evening.
Mackenzie Mayes finished second, right on Lockhart’s tail, with a 13.77, followed by Emily Beisel with a 13.79.
In the breakaway roping, the girls were smoking fast. Just when you thought it couldn’t get any faster, the ladies proved you wrong.
Hali Williams took the big prize when she stopped the clock at a blistering 1.61 seconds. Cheyenne McCartney, who has been hot all year, followed in second with a 1.81 and Martha Angelone was third with a 1.88. In fact, you had to be under two seconds to be in the top four.
Keeping it in the roping, and moving on to the tie-down, a very familiar name was the fastest guy in town yet again.
Three-time World Champion Riley Webb absolutely smoked a run and threw his hands up at 6.61 seconds. Kincade Henry was second at 7.09 and Shad Mayfield rounded out the top three with his 7.71-second run.
Daniel Keeping and Leighton Berry Claim Roughstock Victories
An absolutely impressive ride by PRCA Rookie Noah Lee looked like it was going to win the bull riding competition, but that was before Daniel Keeping nodded his head.
With a bull named The Hondo, Keeping made a nearly unbelievable ride and topped the leaderboard at 89.8 points. Austin Richardson was second with a very close 89.3.
Stetson Wright wowed the crowd with his 88.8 and Noah Lee finished fourth. Does that tell you anything about the quality of bull riding the crowd witnessed? It was breathtaking.
The price of admission was surely earned by just the bull riding.
In the bareback riding, the event that kicked off the rodeo, Leighton Berry claimed the victory with 89 points aboard Fire Fly.
There was a crowd after that all scoring 87 points to earn the second through fourth positions. Bradlee Miller, Cooper Cooke and RC Landingham all had to split that check each earning $4,166.
Steer Wrestling superstar JD Struxness was the fastest on Friday with a 4.05 to earn the $12,000 payday.
Complete Friday Night Hondo Rodeo Winners
- Bareback riding: Leighton Berry — 89 points
- Steer wrestling: JD Struxness — 4.05 seconds
- Team roping: James Arviso and Levi Lord — 4.16 seconds
- Saddle bronc riding: Kade Bruno — 88 points
- Tie-down roping: Riley Webb — 6.61 seconds
- Breakaway roping: Hali Williams — 1.61 seconds
- Barrel racing: Lisa Lockhart — 13.70 seconds
- Bull riding: Daniel Keeping — 89.8 points
The Hondo Rodeo Fest competition continues on Saturday evening at 6 p.m. Mountain Standard Time.
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