Luke Brown‘s and Hunter Koch’s rocky start to the 2023 NFR all paid off on Dec. 12, as they picked up the Round 5 win with a 3.8, the first NFR round win of Koch’s career.

The 26-year-old has been paired up with 14-time NFR header Brown since 2021, and the anticipation for a round win together has long been building.

“It’s awesome,” Koch said. “To finally get it done and get to do it with Luke, it’s been a dream come true.”

Brown, who actually didn’t realize it was Koch’s first win in the Thomas & Mack, is confident the stage at the South Point will be jam-packed for tonight’s buckle ceremony.

“It’s going to be a fun night,” Brown said. “My daughter, she’s 9, and I am not so sure she doesn’t love Hunter more than me, so she’s going to be on stage and she’s going to be wound up. It’s going to be fun.”

Despite not having been at the Big Show since it was held in Fort Worth in 2020, let alone Las Vegas since 2019, Brown doesn’t see it as a hinderance.

“I just think that you can’t hardly practice for how realistic and fast it is, the start, and just getting in a groove,” Brown explained. “I’ve been here and been lucky and placed in the first round, and it’s just getting in a groove. You can’t practice this setup. I don’t know why it’s so different, but it is.”

Relaxed is key

Brown and Koch have been building to this run since the Finals started. They bounced back from a leg in Rounds 1 and 2, as well as a miss on the head side in Round 3, to finish second in Round 4 with a 3.9, and finally bag a round win Dec. 12 in Round 5. They finally had the draw they were hoping for and needing.

“I loved that steer,” Brown said. “I watched him whenever we roped them last Tuesday through the rope-through, and I watched Rogers run him. I thought he was probably a little better steer than we had last night but kind of the same pattern. He had the same horn, same size, so I was pretty confident when I seen him that I liked him a lot.”

On the backside, Koch made a horse change to Smart Little Cab, aka Casino, which helped him get in a better spot for an easier shot. While most may think aggressive is the key to winning, Koch felt relaxed in their winning run.

“I think it’s supposed to feel that way,” Koch said. “When you’re doing everything the way you’re supposed to, it is easy. So I enjoyed getting that feeling tonight.”

Brown and Koch have now jumped to No. 9 in the world with $162,726.85 won on the year. They’re fourth in average and have amassed $64,974.38 in NFR earnings.

2023 NFR Round 5 Team Roping Results:

— TRJ —

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