Trayce Clayton skyrocketed to the top of the Resistol Jr. heading race as of Jan. 27, but the heel side remains the same with Brit Smith leading the pack.
The Leaders
No. 1 Header: Trayce Clayton
Canton, Texas, header Trayce Clayton took a commanding lead in the heading standings to welcome in the new year, sitting atop the leaderboard with 89 points. Clayton’s rise to the top started in December at the Northeast Texas Winter Classic in Sulphur Springs where he won fourth in the #12.5 for 7 points, first in the #10.5 and the #9.5 for 10 points and fourth in the #9.5 for another 7 points. He followed that up in January at the Winter Classic, winning first, third and fifth in the #11.5 for a total of 24 points and fifth in the #10.5 for another 6 points.
No. 1 Heeler: Brit Smith
Alabama’s Brit Smith steadily leads the Resistol Jr. heeling race with an unchanged 116 points. He remains 10 points over Georgia’s Houston Childers.
Top 5
Headers
Trayce Clayton isn’t the only header to move inside the Top 5 of the standings over the winter. Rance Winters of Lipan, Texas, is tied for fourth and fifth in the standings with 58 points. Winters won the #15.5 at the Winter Classic Jan. 11, for 10 points and fifth in the #13.5 for 6 points to make a 16-point leap since last reporting. New to the race is Campbell, Texas’ Waylon Ingle who is tied at fourth and fifth with Winters. Ingle climbed from outside the Top 10 this winter after winning second and third in the #13.5 at the Northeast Texas Winter Classic for a total of 17 points and third in the #11.5 for another 8 points.
Outside the Top 5, Hayden Hughes of Oxford, Florida, jumped to seventh with 49 points after winning third in the #12.5 for 8 points, fifth in the #9.5 for 6 points and eighth in the #9.5 for 3 points at the South Georgia Super Qualifier in Perry.
Heelers
While the Top 3 heelers remain the same with Brit Smith leading the way with 116 points, Houston Childers following closely behind at 106 points and Cole Shook still at No. 3 with 82 points, the heeling also has a tie for fourth and fifth. Callahan Taylor, a Canutillo, Texas, native, jumped to fourth and fifth with 52 points after winning the #10.5 for 10 points at the Lasso Del Sol in Queen Creek, Arizona, this January. Guymon, Oklahoma’s Kale Roark joins him at 52 points, thanks to a second-place finish in the #12.5 Slide at the Superbowl in Guthrie on Dec. 27, for 9 points.
Cade Ward and Wesson Parker made moves inside the Top 10, with Henderson, Texas’ Ward moving to sixth and seventh with 44 points. Ward won 35 points at the Northeast Texas Winter Classic between the #9.5 and the #8.5. Parker, of Marlow, Oklahoma, sits ninth with 40 points after winning the #11.5 at the Superbowl roping for 10 points.
2025 USTRC Resistol Jr. Champion Standings
(as of 1/28/25. Go to USTRC.com for current standings.)
USTRC Resistol Jr. Standings: Headers
| Name | Points | Hometown |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Trayce Clayton | 89 | Canton, Texas |
| 2. Lexi Andrews | 65 | Live Oak, Florida |
| 3. Tanner Banks | 63 | Opelika, Alabama |
| 4. Rance Winters | 58 | Lipan, Texas |
| 4. Waylon Ingle | 58 | Campbell, Texas |
| 6. Hayden Hines | 55 | Monroe, Georgia |
| 7. Hayden Hughes | 49 | Oxford, Florida |
| 8. Walker Guy | 43 | Stephenville, Texas |
| 9. Hayes Hartwick | 42 | Quitman, Arkansas |
| 10. Wyatt Walker | 40 | Diamond, Missouri |
| 10. Kasen Ammons | 40 | Ponce De Leon, Florida |
USTRC Resistol Jr. Standings: Heelers
| Name | Points | Hometown |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Brit Smith | 116 | Atmore, Alabama |
| 2. Houston Childers | 106 | Fairmount, Georgia |
| 3. Cole Shook | 82 | Leicester, North Carolina |
| 4. Callahan Taylor | 52 | Canutillo, Texas |
| 4. Kale Roark | 52 | Guymon, Oklahoma |
| 6. Jaytin Harrell | 44 | Choctaw, Oklahoma |
| 6. Cade Ward | 44 | Henderson, Texas |
| 8. Grady Wilson | 41 | Orchard, Colorado |
| 9. Wesson Parker | 40 | Marlow, Oklahoma |
| 10. Rudy Mendiola Jr | 37 | Silverthorne, Colorado |
Current USTRC or Key Card/Key Card Max membership is required to participate in the Resistol Jr. Champion Program. Earned points begin counting at time of membership purchase thru the NFTR’s last shootout event. The season begins the Monday after the last USTRC Cinch NFTR event and ends the last day of the next USTRC Cinch NFTR event.
Ropers must enter at least one Shootout division in the USTRC NFTR to be eligible. The award will be announced at the end of the USTRC Cinch National Finals of Team Roping event.
The points breakdown is as follows: Starting with At Home Challenge Events, ropers will earn 10 points if they win the Challenge. No other points will be awarded. At Signature Events, points will be awarded to those winning an aggregate check. It starts at First Place with 10 points, Second = 9 points, and so on as far down as the roping is paid. During the Cinch NFTR, the placing points are simply doubled. First Place is worth 20 points, second = 18, and so on. For complete rules, please visit USTRC.com.
—TRJ—
