LAS VEGAS — There's no place like home.
That's how contestants feel about Las Vegas, where the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo has been planted for almost four decades and will remain for the foreseeable future.
“I just want to keep coming back. I remember saying that the first time I was ever here. We were leaving the city and I looked at the city behind me, looked at my husband and said, ‘I want to come back.’ You know, the energy here … it’s exhausting but it’s so exciting,” said three-time NFR average champion Lisa Lockhart.
Lockhart, a Circle-area native, is making her 18th straight appearance here and has over $1.6 million in career earnings at the event.
With world champions set to be crowned Saturday night, contestants are thrilled that Las Vegas Events and the NFR agreed on a new 12-year extension in June to remain at the Thomas & Mack Center through 2035.
“Yeah, it’s awesome," said 2019 steer wrestling world champion Ty Erickson of Helena. "To me this is probably the only place you could have the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.
"As far as atmosphere for all the people coming in, it’s just a perfect place with all the entertainment here. And with all the money going up, it’s great for the cowboys to try and start making a real living.”
The contract is a financial explosion with more than a quarter of a billion dollars committed to contestants and stock contractors. The world’s richest rodeo has sold out nearly 370 straight performances.
Hillsdale, Wyo., saddle bronc rider Brody Cress is a seven-time NFR qualifier who's won three average titles.
“There’s no rodeo like this. You get to show up here, you take it all in, it gets you excited, you’re ready to rock and roll. You know, I couldn’t imagine getting to do this in any other place than Las Vegas,” Cress said.
