2018 NFR PREDICTIONS

THERE IS SIMPLY NOT ANOTHER event on the planet like the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. The electricity in the Thomas and Mack Center over 10 nights of competition can raise the hair on the back of your neck, will keep you on the edge of your seat and makes predicting who will come out on top nearly impossible.

There are the contestants—120 to be exact—who have spent countless hours driving, crisscrossing the country just for a sliver of a minute’s competition. Those miles are costly, on a bank account and a body, but a contestant’s dream of being a world champion starts with success at the PRCA- and WPRA-sanctioned rodeos during the regular season.

Then there are the animals—180 four-legged critters used for the competition each night. That doesn’t include pickup men, re-rides, flag horses or extra cattle. You can bet each one of those animals feels the electricity, too, and knows that this isn’t just another rodeo.

All of those factors, along with the money, make picking 2018 world champions challenging. We have studied their regular season, past history in Las Vegas and tried our best. But there is that money and it narrows the playing field in each event, making it possible for nearly any contestant to leave Vegas with gold.

Did we mention the money—$10 million to be exact. With nightly prizes of over $26,000 to the round winners in each event and $67,269 paid to the best contestant over 10 nights, anything can happen and probably will. And, those second through eighth place checks aren’t too shabby either.

So, with all of that being said, we have gone out on a limb and made some predictions. Whose star will shine brightest in Las Vegas? Who has momentum that