2025 CFD Rodeo champions crowned
The Cheyenne Frontier Days (CFD) Rodeo has crowned its 2025 champions. The rodeo featured several performances across a nine-day period, starting with qualifying rounds on July 19 and culminating in Championship Sunday on July 27.
Known as the “Daddy of ‘Em All,” Cheyenne demands a lot of rodeo athletes, but contestants know what they sign up for and deliver accordingly. The top 12 contestants in each event returned to Frontier Park for Sunday’s short-go to take their shot at earning a championship saddle, buckle and chunk of change.
History was made and big checks were paid this year, with a total payout amounting to $1,123,706. Money earned in each event boosted winners in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) standings, which are crucial for qualifying for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo (NFR) in December.
Records set
Hillsdale Cowboy Brody Cress won the saddle bronc riding in front of a hometown crowd on Championship Sunday with a 91-point ride aboard Sankey Pro Rodeo and Phenom Genetics’ The Black Tie. The powerhouse bronc has a reputation for excellence, having carried riders to championship titles in Cheyenne for three years and counting.
Cress became the first saddle bronc rider to win four CFD titles with his ride.
“It’s amazing to be here in front of this crowd, in this arena, with all of this history,” Cress said in a post-win interview. “To get to make some of my own is pretty special.”
“There’s no rodeo more special than this to me,” Cress continued. “Ever since I was a little kid I was sneaking in behind the bucking chutes to watch, so to get to come out here and have success in front of people who helped me get to this point is very important.”
Cress wasn’t the only rough stock rider to make history at this year’s Daddy of ‘Em All.
Weatherford, Texas Cowboy Kade Berry lit up Frontier Park with a record-breaking bareback ride aboard Brookman Rodeo’s Lunatic Heaven. Berry’s ride was good for 93.5 points and a new arena record, clearing the previous record – which had not been touched for half a century – by half a point.
The 22-year-old cowboy is in hot pursuit of his first NFR qualification.
Bareback, saddle bronc and bull riding
The top three bareback riders all recorded marks in the 90-point range.
Berry took top honors with his record-breaking 93.5-point ride – a full two points higher than the second-place finisher. Jess Pope of Waverly, Kan. scored 91.5 points for a second-place finish, and Wacey Schalla of Arapaho, Okla. took third place in the bareback with a 90-point ride.
The saddle bronc competition was also top notch.
Cress’s 91-point win was followed closely by Big Valley, Alberta, Canada Cowboy Zeke Thurston, whose 90-point finish was good enough for second place.
The remaining top places were shared between Ordway, Colorado Cowboy Waitley Sharon and Kade Bruno of Challis, Idaho, who split third and fourth with 89.5-point rides.
Another Wyoming Cowboy, Brody Wells of Powell, landed just outside of the top three in the saddle bronc riding, splitting fifth place with Eagle Butte, S.D. Cowboy Shorty Garrett with an 88.5-point ride.
Australian Cowboy Qynn Andersen took home the championship buckle in the bull riding. Andersen closed out his CFD campaign with a 90-point ride aboard Smith Pro Rodeo’s Hunter to clinch the 2025 title and just over $10,000.
Andersen’s first-place finish was followed by Coltan Fritzlan of Rifle, Colo. and Jessi Petri of Dublin, Texas who finished in second and third with rides worth 87.5 and 86.5 points, respectively.
Tie-down and team roping
Tyson Durfey announced his return to professional rodeo in a big way at CFD, taking the 2025 tie-down title with a 10.9-second run.
At 41 years old, the former world champion from Brock, Texas announced his retirement in 2020 following a string of surgeries and health issues but has since stepped back into the saddle.
Jake Pratt of Ellensburg, Wash. was not far behind Durfey, securing second place with a time of 11.8 seconds. Malad, Idaho Cowboy Tom Simpson rounded out the top three tie-down ropers with a time of 12.3 seconds.
The team roping title was awarded to Aaron Tsinigine of Tuba City, Ariz. and his partner Jeremy Buhler of Arrowwood, Alberta, Canada. The duo turned their steer in 9.3 seconds.
There was a tie for second and third in the team roping, split between partners Luke Brown of Rock Hill, S.C. and Trey Yates of Pueblo, Colorado, respectively, and partners Tyler Wade of Terrell, Texas and Wesley Thorp of Stephenville, Texas.
Each duo stopped the clock at 9.5 seconds during the short-go, pocketing $9,250 apiece.
Steer wrestling
Tyke Kipp of Lordsburg, N.M. came out on top in the “big man’s event” with a time of 5.5 seconds on Championship Sunday.
Kipp was followed by Talon Roseland of Marshalltown, Iowa in second place with a time of 5.8 seconds. Third place was a draw between four-time NFR Qualifier Rowdy Parrott of Mamou, La. and young gun Trisyn Kalawaia, a 22-year-old cowboy hailing from Hilo, Hawaii.
Parrott and Kalawaia each recorded 6.1-second runs in the steer wrestling.
Breakaway roping and barrel racing
Competition was fierce across the women’s events.
In the breakaway roping, Danielle Lowman of Gilbert, Ariz. caught her calf in 4.3 seconds to take first prize.
Oakdale, California Cowgirl and 2025 College National Finals Rodeo Breakaway Roping Champion Rylee George took second place with a time of 4.9 seconds. Third place went to Bailey Bates of Tohatchi, N.M. with a time of 5.9 seconds.
The barrel racing buckle went to Lisa Lockhart, a Oelrichs, S.D. cowgirl who stopped the clock at 17.03 seconds on Championship Sunday. Lockhart’s victory was her second CFD title, having won her first in 2015.
Lockhart was followed by Three Forks, Montana Cowgirl Tayla Moeykens who landed in second place with a 17.19-second run. Fan favorite Cowgirl Hailey Kinsel of Cotulla, Texas took third in the barrel racing with a time of 17.23 seconds.
Steer roping and the wild horse race
Although not sanctioned by the PRCA, the wild horse race and steer roping are two iconic events held during the CFD Rodeo every year.
A fan-favorite CFD classic, the wild horse race features teams of three who compete to tame and ride an unbroke horse across the finish line. A team called Gotta Go took first prize this year, winning $960 on Sunday and a total of $6,000 across all of their races.
This year’s CFD steer roping champion was Scott Snedecor, a Fredericksburg, Texas cowboy who stopped the clock at 12.7 seconds on Championship Sunday. Brodie Poppino of Big Cabin, Okla. followed close behind with a time of 12.8 seconds, while Roger Noella of Redmond, Ore. stopped the clock at 15 seconds flat to round out the top three.
Money earned in the steer roping also contributed to All-Around standings. The 2025 All-Around title was awarded to Jake Clay of Sapulpa, Okla., who earned the buckle based on money collected in the team roping and steer roping.
The CFD Rodeo will return to Frontier Park one year from now, celebrating its 130th year in July of 2026.
Grace Skavdahl is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
