No. 11 | $125,025.29
- Age: 40
- Hometown: Ellensburg, Washington
- Career earnings: $2,569,109
- NFR Qualifications: 14 (2006, 2008-09, 2011, 2013-19, 2021-22, 2025)
- RNCFR Titles: 1 (2012)
- Major ropings: USTRC Cinch NFTR US Open; WSTR Open Gold Buckle Beer Mega qualifier;
- Major rodeos: The American Rodeo; RAM National Circuit Finals Rodeo; Red Bluff Round-Up (California); Greeley Stampede (Colorado); World’s Oldest Rodeo (Prescott, Arizona); National Western Stock Show & Rodeo (Denver, Colorado); St. Paul Rodeo (Oregon); Ponoka Stampede (Alberta); Ellensburg Rodeo (Washington)
- Star Horsepower: Dugout (CDS Quixote, 2011 PRCA Heel Horse of the Year), Rey (Reyshines On Top, 2014 & 2015 PRCA Heel Horse of the Year), Sug (Leos Highbrow, 2020 PRCA Heel Horse of the Year)
- Rope Choice: Classic Powerline Lite HM or M
Brady Minor made his NFR debut in 2006, but it wasn’t until two years later that one of team roping’s most prolific and long-standing brother partnerships was born.
Brady and younger brother Riley hail from one of the Northwest’s most prominent rodeo families, which was inducted into the Ellensburg Rodeo Hall of Fame in 2007 for their contributions to the sport through seven decades. Brady now has 14 NFR qualifications on the heel side, but before he became one of team roping’s household names, a win in 2004 changed the trajectory of his career.
Just kids from Washington, 16-year-old Riley and 19-year-old Brady showed up at the Cinch USTRC National Finals of Team Roping in Oklahoma City won the US Open for a $70,000 payday, beating out the best of the best.
In 2006, Brady appeared inside the Thomas & Mack for the first time, heeling for Garrett Tonozzi. Together they placed in four of 10 rounds at the NFR, highlighted by the win in Round 6.
Brady then heeled for now 26-time World Champ Trevor Brazile at the winter rodeos in 2008 before Patrick Smith made the move from Clay Tryan to Brazile.
“I was still a young buck back then, and Trevor and I had won a few checks, but hadn’t lit them on fire,” Brady told The Team Roping Journal’s Kendra Santos in 2025. “Austin was my last rodeo with Trevor. I needed a partner, so Riley and I decided to rope together. As kids growing up, we figured we’d rope together one day. That was just the timing of it, early on in 2008.”
Their brotherly dreams came true as they punched their tickets to the NFR together that year where they placed in five rounds at the NFR and finished fifth in the average. Since then, they’ve made 12 trips to the Super Bowl of Rodeo together.
“We’ve been successful together, whether we’re brothers or not,” Brady added. “I’ve roped with Riley every day since we were kids. The best part is we like to go to the same rodeos, and we want to be home at the same time. We’ve traveled together a lot, and it’s been good. I think it’s easier to discuss things with your brother, and we get to rope together all the time, because we’re neighbors in Washington and Arizona.”
There isn’t much they haven’t won together since then, other than Brady’s 2012 RAM National Circuit Finals Rodeo (now the NFR Open) win with Spencer Mitchell. One of their career highlights came in 2017 when they pocketed $100k a man at The American Rodeo.
In 2021, tragedy struck for the Minors, and Riley broke his leg when his horse fell at the Pendleton Round-Up. He barely missed the heading cut at 16th, so Brady paired up with Derrick Begay at that year’s NFR. Brady added another $128,356 that year to his now $2.5 million in ProRodeo earnings, having placed in four rounds at the 2021 NFR.
Now, in 2025, it’s been two years since Brady last roped on rodeo’s biggest stage, with his last NFR appearance in 2022. In 2024 he narrowly missed the Finals at No. 19 with one run stinging a little extra at the 2024 fall finish line.
“I heeled a steer by two feet in the short round at Pendleton last year, and he jumped out of it,” Brady said. “That was devastating, and probably cost us the NFR. That one bad break changed everything. But that’s how it goes out here sometimes.”
His 2025 comeback left no doubt for his NFR return. Brady will return to Cowboy Town No. 11 in the world with $125,025.29 won on the regular season, highlighted by wins at the Othello PRCA Rodeo (Washington); Strathmore Stampede (Alberta); and the Red Bluff Round-Up (California).
“I’ll never take the NFR for granted, especially now after missing it a couple times and knowing how hard it is to make it these days,” Brady said. “For me, the two sweetest ones would have to be my first one and this one.
“That first Finals is amazing for everyone, and with me being older and having kids in school now, this one feels different because life’s different now. It’s nice to prove to ourselves that we can still do it. To come back on our old horses, and with me being on the older end of the ropers now has been good for our confidence.”
Brady’s career longevity has also been the product of some of team roping’s best heel horses. Brady has had three PRCA Heel Horses of the Year in his career with CDS Quixote (better known as Dugout) in 2011, Reyshines On Top (Rey) in 2014 and 2015, and Leos Highbrow (Sug) in 2020. Brady rode Sug all through this year’s Fourth of July run until he felt a little off. Brady gave him a break and was ready the first week of August, and he’ll be making his return to the Thomas & Mack as well.
“Sug is so tough,” Brady said. “He’s getting older, and I never know how long he’ll last. But he feels great. I just keep him in shape now, and make a few slow practice runs on him. He’s just so honest and solid, scores good, and is good in any setup. Sug might not be as fancy as some of the others, but he’s easy. My yellow did great, and stepped up to some big shoes. But Sug’s who I plan to ride at the Finals.”
“Rodeoing and winning are great. And everybody who can’t do it anymore says to do it while you can. They don’t bring the NFR to you. You’ve got to go get it. But you have to be gone to get there, and I like waking up in my own bed. I’ll rodeo as long as I’m competitive. And there’s a lot to look forward to on the other side, too.”
Brady Minor, 2025
More with Brady Minor
- Minor Brothers Make Major NFR Comeback
- The Minors’ Big Break
- Minor Brothers Honor Grandpa Jerry Anderson’s Memory
- Brotherly Bonds: Navigating Sibling Partnerships Ain’t for the Faint
- The Never-Ending Horse Hunt with Brady Minor
- 2020 Horses of the Year Are Easy Keepers
- Brady Minor’s Personal and Professional 2020 Roller Coaster Ride
- No Mistakes: Minor’s Sug Makes It Easy
