One $11,991 week was enough to change the complexion of the 2026 summer for Dustin Egusquiza and JC Flake, taking the win at Sikeston, Missouri, and placing in a round in Lovington, New Mexico.
Egusquiza, 30, jumped to No. 14 in the world heading standings, while Flake, 27, climbed to No. 16 on the heel side with $85,284.49 each. After a summer that neither would call easy, the checks at Sikeston and Lovington moved them into a more ideal spot the standings heading into the middle of August.
“It’s definitely good on the spirits after a pretty rough summer,” Egusquiza said. “We had a really good winter, won a lot of money, and then it just hasn’t quite gone our way yet. It happens to everybody. It’s happened to me before.”
Their week centered around Sikeston, where Egusquiza and Flake won the average with a 9.6 on two for $4,633 a man. They first stopped the clock in 5.0 seconds for fourth in Round 1 and $1,880 a man, then followed it with a 4.6 worth second and another $2,686.
The setup at Sikeston can make the team roping tricky, with the left fence angling toward the bucking chutes and leaving little room on a fast run. But they drew steers that stayed straight and let them make the runs they needed.
“Our first steer wasn’t absolutely great, but we’ve kind of been doing better on steers that we don’t really like to draw,” Flake said. “Dustin made a strong steer for us to have a chance on.”
The brothers-in-law kept the momentum rolling in Lovington, placing in the first round with another 4.6 for $2,792 each. Altogether, the two rodeos added $11,991 to each man’s season earnings.
More important than the money, though, may have been what it did for their confidence.
For Egusquiza, an eight-time NFR qualifier and 2016 Resistol Rookie Header of the Year, a slow stretch in the summer is nothing new. He’s learned not to let one cold streak convince him something has to change.
“I feel like it’s more mental out here than it is talent,” Egusquiza said. “Everybody knows how to win and how to catch. Whether it’s going your way or not, I feel like you just got to have the mental strength to know that you’re out here doing this. It’s not by accident.
“I think just being positive and going to the next one with a good attitude is the most important thing.”
That approach has rubbed off on Flake, who is still chasing his first NFR qualification.
Flake admits he can be a little too aware of the numbers. He’ll start calculating what a rodeo pays, what they need to win there and how much ground it could make up in the standings. This summer, he’s been trying to stop doing exactly that.
“I’m too much of a numbers guy,” Flake said. “I try to project how much we need to win at each rodeo, and I need to quit doing that.”
Last week gave him the perfect example why.
“All of a sudden we win one rodeo and place at one other one, now we win $12,000 and we jump five spots,” Flake said. “It’s crazy how one rodeo can turn it around.”
With plenty of August left, neither man is treating the week like the job is finished. But after spending much of the summer trying to get something rolling, $11,991 was enough to remind them just how quickly a season can change.
“You just got to keep going to them,” Egusquiza said. “Hopefully last week turns it around.”