Kaleb Driggers defended his COJO Open championship with Nicky Northcott on Oct. 10, 2026, winning $80,000 as a team—including $75,000 for the average title—with 13.52 seconds on three head in Belton, Texas, ahead of their respective trips to the National Finals Rodeo.
Driggers and Northcott won $75,000 for the average and another $5,000 in the second round, coming down to a $40,000-a-man day. The win marked Driggers’ second consecutive COJO Open title and Northcott’s first at the roping after entering all three years since its start.
“I’m still pretty excited,” Northcott said. “I mean, it’s something I’ve wanted to win since they started it. So yeah, I’m really pumped.”
Driggers and Northcott entered the championship round with the high callback after stopping the clock in 4.77 and 3.80 seconds in the first two 60-man rounds. Their 8.57-second aggregate gave them nearly a full second over the second-high team heading into the 20-man final round, but with the field separated by hundredths, Driggers knew they couldn’t afford to play it too safe.
“I knew going into it, I was like, honestly, even if second callback goes 4-flat, I’ve got to be 4.9, 5-flat to win it,” Driggers said. “I knew that more than likely I wasn’t going to have to be silly fast.”
The pair delivered a 4.95-second run to seal the truck-and-trailer title, finishing ahead of Cody Snow and Little Michael Calmelat, who earned $55,000 as a team with 14.46 seconds on three head.
The road to the championship began during the qualifying rounds, where Driggers and Northcott put themselves in a good position early. Driggers also qualified for Saturday with regular-season partner Junior Nogueira, while Northcott advanced with both Tyler Tryan and Cody Snow.
Driggers said the key to advancing through the qualifying rounds was capitalizing on the first steer rather than trying to make up time later.
“If you make a pretty dang good run on your first one, then the second round’s always easy because it’s always just make sure and do your job,” Driggers said.
That mentality carried into Saturday’s three-head competition, where Driggers and Northcott opened with a 4.77-second run before laying down a 3.80 in the second round, the latter earning them an additional $5,000 as a team.
With an 8.57-second aggregate heading into the short round, Driggers knew the championship was within reach, but he wasn’t interested in backing off entirely.
“My biggest concern was just scoring good, but not safe and just try to get as good a start as I could and rope him when I knew I could and allow him to do his job,” Driggers said.
He was also aware of who he had to clean the runs up.
“My horse was really good and I knew that even if I went a little bit further, Nicky was going to throw fast and make up the time for me,” Driggers said.
On the heel side, Northcott admitted there were some nerves heading into the final run, despite the lead he and Driggers had built.
“Just take breaths and just tell myself to catch two feet,” Northcott said of his pre-short round thoughts.
When the flag dropped on their 4.95-second run, Northcott knew immediately they had secured the title.
“That’s exactly what I was feeling is I just won this roping and that’s why I fist pumped,” Northcott said. “We knew we did it. I seen Driggers get super excited and I think that’s what made me excited.”
Driggers’ horsepower played a role in the win, too. He rode Oliver, registered as Chics Like Hickey, through the qualifying rounds before switching to Frosty, the horse he rode throughout the 2026 summer rodeo season, for Saturday’s competition.
“I always ride him in the qualifying rounds just because it feels like he gives me an opportunity,” Driggers said of Oliver. “Oliver, no matter what the situation is, I feel like I can get out of the barrier and catch the steer on Oliver.”
Frosty—or BHR Super Shake—was also the horse Driggers rode on the final three at the 2025 COJO Open, making him an obvious choice for the championship round.
Northcott credited his yellow horse Cabo—registered as Tequila Dual—for doing his part throughout Saturday’s competition.
“Oh, my yellow felt amazing,” Northcott said. “He was hitting the turn good, stopping good, and it was great.”
The victory added another major payday to an already successful stretch for both ropers. Driggers finished the 2026 PRCA regular season ranked No. 1 in the world with Nogueira, while Northcott finished No. 2 following a breakout season with Tryan.
Northcott and Tryan closed their regular season with a victory at the Governor’s Cup in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, building momentum toward Northcott’s first NFR appearance.
For Driggers, who has spent 18 years doing this deal, the COJO Open still delivers a feeling he said is difficult to replicate.
“I don’t know what it is about that venue and all the fans and stuff,” Driggers said. “They just do such a great job with that event and it still gives you goosebumps.”
Having won the roping before, Driggers said sharing the day with Northcott made this year especially meaningful.
“Big stages, big money—that’s what I compete for nowadays,” Driggers said. “Doing it with Nicky, he’s an up and comer and great roper, great attitude. He’s going to be around for a very long time and to get that win with him was cool.”
The $40,000 day was also added to the list of reasons the two-time world champion has to be grateful after all these years.
“All the hard work and late nights and everything that we put into it and not only that, but the amount of money that we put into our horses and everything else that we do trying to give ourselves the best opportunity to see it pay off is a huge blessing for me and my family,” Driggers said.
More on Driggers
- Behind the Top 15: Kaleb Driggers
- Kaleb Driggers’ Unprecedented $1.1 Million Year in Team Roping
- Driggers, Nogueira Cap Season No. 1 with Last Hoorah Win & Regular Season Earnings Record of $251K
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