Clayton Van Aken and Trey Yates swept the 2026 Mountain States Circuit Finals average and year-end titles in Loveland, Colorado, Oct. 23–24, roping three steers in 17.6 seconds to earn $5,621 apiece at the finals while securing Van Aken’s seventh year-end heading title and Yates’ third year-end heeling title.
Even with all that success and years in the Mountain States, this was this team’s first Circuit Finals roping together. Van Aken claimed his sixth year-end title in 2025, while Yates won his second year-end championship and the average behind Garrett Tonozzi in 17.9 seconds on three head.
- Read More: Tonozzi and Yates Dominate Mountain States Circuit Finals as Van Aken Reigns in Heading Year-End
Van Aken and Yates opened with a 5.2-second run worth $1,686 apiece for second in Round 1, followed by a 6.3 in Round 2 and a 6.1 in the final round worth another $562 each. Their 17.6-second time on three put them 9.6 seconds ahead of second-place Garrett Tonozzi and Cullen Teller, who finished in 27.2.
“The first run, the round was pretty soft, and so I just went to catch him and we had a pretty good cow and he threw fast,” Van Aken said. “Then after that, nobody was catching. It was a little difficult, but we just made sure to do our job and get them all caught.”
Yates agreed that the cattle dictated much of their game plan throughout the weekend, particularly in the final two rounds.
“The second go round got pretty tough and our steer was kind of tricky,” Yates said. “It wasn’t one of those scenarios where maybe placing in the go round was in the cards.”
Although they’d never entered together at a Circuit Finals, the team itself was familiar. The two have entered plenty of jackpots and rodeos together over the years, including a fall spent rodeoing in the Northwest.
“I like to rope with Trey,” Van Aken said. “He works at it and he does his job, and I like to think I worked at it and do my job. We’ve had a lot of luck together.”
Seven and Counting for Van Aken
Wyoming header Van Aken’s seventh Mountain States Circuit year-end heading championship came after a season spent largely roping with Jaydon Warner, balancing his circuit schedule with an effort to travel to more rodeos outside Colorado and Wyoming.
The two found success early enough that, by midsummer, Van Aken felt his lead in the circuit standings would be hard to beat. That allowed them to head to the Northwest in the middle of the summer, though managing his rodeo count while on the road proved to be an experience.
“I don’t want to say I had it won, but it was going to be hard for them to catch me after July,” Van Aken said. “So, we decided to take off. About middle of July, we’re like, ‘We’re going to go to the Northwest,’ which I love it up there.”
Despite claiming seven circuit titles, Van Aken admitted he hadn’t been keeping track of the number until someone mentioned it during the Finals.
“I didn’t realize it until they said it after we caught the first one,” Van Aken said. “I’m like, ‘I’m not counting.’ The only one that matters is the next one, because the rodeo has a very, very short memory.”
Another accomplishment stood out to Van Aken in Loveland: his third Mountain States Circuit Horse of the Year award.
He’s earned two of those honors on his older buckskin JB, registered at Jay Bad Ropn Ammo, and the third on a 7-year-old horse he purchased this past winter he calls “John”. Van Aken credited his newer horse with making a significant difference in his program.
“He’s been a game changer, for sure,” Van Aken said.
While the Mountain States lines on his resume continue to add up, his mentality hasn’t changed.
“I don’t want to count—I just want to catch,” Van Aken said.
Yates Adds All-Around Title to An Already-Big Season
For Yates, the 2026 Mountain States Circuit Finals brought another year-end heeling title, an average title and the circuit all-around championship, adding to a season that also includes qualification for his fifth National Finals Rodeo.
The Colorado man finished the regular season No. 13 in the PRCA world standings with $123,489, solidifying his return to Las Vegas after roping at the NFR in 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2025.
- Read More: Behind the Top 15: Trey Yates
Despite spending a majority of his time chasing that dream, Yates made his home circuit a priority, a commitment rooted in his family’s history in Colorado rodeo.
“I’m a proud member of the Mountain State Circuit—I grew up going to these rodeos,” Yates said.
He recalled an early Circuit Finals appearance with his father, 21-time NFR qualifier J.D. Yates, when J.D. won the heading championship and Trey missed the heeling title by $200.
“I didn’t ever want to have a chance to potentially win the circuit again and not have all my ducks in a row,” Yates said.
The effort required planning and a few extra miles traveled, but Yates said the opportunities available through the circuit system made it worthwhile. His previous circuit success qualified him for the 2026 NFR Open, which led to the Cinch Playoffs in Puyallup, Washington, and ultimately helped him and Garrett Tonozzi reach the Governor’s Cup in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Combined with his fifth NFR qualification, making every major Finals became one of Yates’ proudest accomplishments of the season.
“To make every major, I would call them major finals this year was… I don’t know that that happens every year,” Yates said. “It was a feat for me.”
Yates rode his longtime heel horse Dude, registered Romancing The Chics, in Loveland. Dude helped carry him to the 2018 NFR average title and, according to Yates, is feeling better than he has in a while.
With the circuit championships behind him, Yates is turning his attention toward preparing for the Thomas & Mack, where he’ll rope with Tanner Tomlinson. The pair plan to practice together in Texas and Arizona in the weeks leading up to December.
After a tough 2025 NFR, Yates said he’s focused on preparing in every way he can rather than dwelling on past performances or future expectations.
“The only thing I can say is I’ve been working on living in the present,” Yates said.
And when he backs into the box at the Thomas & Mack in December, Yates wants to know he’s done everything possible to be ready.
“I got the throttle down as far as that goes right now,” he said.