WCRA CONCLUDES SEMI-FINALS AND PAYS OUT MORE THAN $500,000 TO ATHLETES IN FIVE DAYS

-- $315,000 in Athlete Earnings During Finals Round--

More than $315,000 was paid out to rodeo athletes today as the World Champions Rodeo Alliance (WCRA) concluded their semi-finals rounds in Guthrie, Oklahoma at the Lazy E Arena. The five-day event paid out more than $500,000 to cowboys and cowgirls from around the globe and out of more than 600, 81 athletes advanced to the $1 Million Major Rodeo (Windy City Roundup) on January 11 at Allstate Arena in Chicago.

During the semi-finals, eight athletes in each discipline with the highest scores or fastest times along with the winners of the Days of ‘47 rodeo advanced to the Windy City Roundup. The one-night, $1 million rodeo will be held in conjunction with the Professional Bulls Riders (PBR) January 12-13 Elite-Tour event, creating a full weekend of western lifestyle sports in one of the world’s largest mainstream markets.

This evening, Cheyenne Wimberly walked away with a $7,000 paycheck after running the best overall time in barrels with a 16.196 while Tyler Pearson earned the number one spot in steer wrestling and a $7,000 payday after finishing with a 3.77. The team roping duo Clay Smith and Paul Eaves cleared $7,000 after a 4.49 catch, good for the best overall time in the pools. JJ Hampton moved to the number one spot in breakaway roping with a 2.27 time earning $7,200 in the final round. Timber Moore closed out the timed event after winning $7,000 in the tie-down roping with a 6.72 time.

During the rough stock, Jake Vold received a 91-point score in the bareback and netted $7,000 in earnings during the performance as Jake Finlay had an 89.5 point ride in saddle bronc and $7,000 payout. ClaudioMontanha Junior will go into Chicago with the number one seed after scoring 85.5 in bull riding, making it a $9,625 pay day.   ~ WCRA Media