Turquoise Circuit Finals Rodeo: Second Performance Shakes Up Southwest Title Race

The race for Turquoise Circuit Finals honors heated up Friday as the Best in the Southwest returned for the second performance. Shared roughstock victories, quick runs and another barrel racing win for Jana Bean added to the competition, while the average standings took shape with two rounds complete.

Caelan Reynolds of Marana, Arizona, claimed the second-go bull-riding victory with an 82-point ride aboard Controlled Chaos. Reynolds earned the round win, while Cade Griego of Stanley, New Mexico, held the bull riding average lead after two performances.

The bareback riding ended in a tie between Garrett Blackwell of Sandy, Oregon, and Matthew Tuni of Dennehotso, Arizona. Both cowboys scored 77 points to share the second-go win. For Tuni, the round victory also helped put him atop the average standings heading into the next performance.

There was another split victory in saddle bronc riding, where Trey Shadlock of Torrington, Wyoming, and Leon Fountain of Lemitar, New Mexico, each earned 83 points. Their matching scores were the highest winning marks of the second performance. Fountain also emerged as the saddle bronc average leader, giving him more to build on as the finals continued.

In tie-down roping, Seth Hall of Albuquerque, New Mexico, stopped the clock in 7.7 seconds to secure the second-go victory. Hall’s time was 1.4 seconds faster than the opening-round winning mark. After two performances, Quint Bell of Paradise Valley, Nevada, led the average.

Rooster Yazzie of Coyote Canyon, New Mexico, took the steer wrestling round with a 4.7-second run, matching the winning time from Performance 1. Andrew Galloway of Albuquerque held the average lead as the event moved toward its next round.

New Mexico collected another timed-event victory through Kadin Jodie of Churchrock, who won the breakaway roping with a 2.4-second run. Macy Young of Wittmann, Arizona, remained atop the breakaway average standings after two performances.

In barrel racing, Jana Bean of Fort Hancock, Texas, made it two round wins in two appearances. Following her opening-round victory in 15.91 seconds, Bean returned Friday with a 16.01-second run to claim the second go. Those back-to-back victories also placed the West Texas barrel racer atop the average.

Wawa Ben Jr. and Brandon Ben, both of Peridot, Arizona, won the second round of team roping with a 4.4-second run. Their time lowered the round-winning mark from the opening performance by six-tenths of a second. First-go winners Derrick Begay and Colter Todd held the team roping average lead.

With two performances complete, the standings reflected both round-winning efforts and the consistency needed to lead the average. Tuni, Fountain and Bean finished Friday with a second-go victory and an average lead, while competitors across all eight events prepared for another chance to make their mark.