National circuit champions will be crowned July 14-18, with the 2026 NFR Open kicking off in Colorado Springs.
The most prestigious rodeo under the PRCA circuit system, the NFR Open powered by RAM will feature some of the best in ProRodeo starting Tuesday, July 14. Two teams from each of the PRCA circuit, plus the national champions from Mexico, will take on the Norris Penrose Event Center in Colorado Springs over seven performances.
Here’s everything team roping fans need to know about the 2026 NFR Open.
Guide to the 2026 NFR Open
NFR Open 2026 Payout
The 2026 NFR Open has a pure of $170,600 in the team roping, or $85,300 on both ends. Each long round performance and the Finals will pay, however the average will not.
Long Rounds Payout (Each of the six long round performances will pay out $7,500):
- 1st: $3,000.00
- 2nd: $2,250.00
- 3rd: $1,500.00
- 4th: $750.00
Finals Payout:
- 1st: $13,00
- 2nd: $10,000
- 3rd: $7,000
- 4th: $3,500
- 5th: $1,500
- 6th: $1,500
- 7th: $1,500
- 8th: $1,500
- 9th: $1,500
NFR Open 2026 team roping roster
Set 1 (Tuesday and Wednesday)
| Place | Header | Heeler |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Derrick Begay | Colter Todd |
| 2 | Bubba Buckaloo | Joseph Harrison |
| 3 | Cole Eiguren | Breck Ward |
| 4 | T.J. Smith | Scot Brown |
| 5 | Ty Vaile | Riley Wilson |
| 6 | Logan Olson | Jade Nelson |
| 7 | Blake Hirdes | Jake Edwards |
| 8 | Garrett Tonozzi | Trey Yates |
| 9 | Dillon Johnson | Colten Fisher |
Set 2 (Thursday and Friday matinee)
| Place | Header | Heeler |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jesse Boos | Reed Boos |
| 2 | Cutter Machado | Dalton Pearce |
| 3 | Braxton Culpepper | Levi Pettigrew |
| 4 | Clayton Van Aken | Cullen Teller |
| 5 | Eric Fabian | Derek Carey |
| 6 | Jake Smith | Nicky Northcott |
| 7 | Kavis Drake | Denim Ross |
| 8 | Clay Tryan | Ty Arnold |
| 9 | Riley Minor | Brady Minor |
Set 3 (Friday night and Saturday matinee)
| Place | Header | Heeler |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guy Howell | Logan Schliinz |
| 2 | Keven Daniel | Parker Carbajal |
| 3 | Brady Tryan | Calgary Smith |
| 4 | Cody Carter | Blake Bentley |
| 5 | Jhett Trenary | L.J. Yeahquo |
| 6 | Travis Whitlow | Tyler Whitlow |
| 7 | Corey Whinnery | Robert Murphy |
| 8 | Luis Baeza | Alvaro De La Torre |
| 9 | Mitchell Barney | Butch Levell |
NFR Open format
All 27 qualifiers from 13 circuits plus Mexico are split into three sets and will compete in two back-to-back rounds with nine teams in each performance. The top three in the average in each set will advance to the clean-slate finals, featuring nine teams. The finals determines the national champion.
If there is a tie for first in the finals, the tiebreaker will go to the contestant with the most money won from the long rounds. If still tied, the tiebreaker goes to the contestant with the fastest time in the average coming into the finals. If still tied, then go to the fastest time in any round will win.
NFR Open 2026 schedule
- Tuesday, July 14, 7:30 p.m. — Go-Round 1 (Set 1)
- Wednesday, July 15, 7:30 p.m. — Go-Round 2 (Set 1)
- Thursday, July 16, 7:30 p.m. — Go-Round 1 (Set 2)
- Friday, July 17, 12:30 p.m. — Go-Round 2 (Set 2)
- Friday, July 17, 7:30 p.m. — Go-Round 1 (Set 3)
- Saturday, July 18, 12:30 p.m. — Go-Round 2 (Set 3)
- Saturday, July 18, 7:30 p.m. — Top 9 Finals
Who were the 2025 NFR Open team roping winners?
Dustin Egusquiza and Levi Lord teamed up to pick up one of the most significant titles and paychecks of the summer, winning the 2025 NFR Open for $15,250 a man July 12, 2025. Egusquiza and Lord capitalized on a quieter short round with a 4.8-second run to win the sudden-death finals.
Playoff Series implications
While the NFR Open will not count toward the 2026 Playoff Series standings, the winners of the NFR Open will automatically qualify to the 2026 NFR Playoff Series Finale in Puyallup, Washington, in September.