LAS VEGAS — Haven Meged and Lisa Lockhart closed the 65th National Finals Rodeo with titles under their belts Saturday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Meged had a tie-down roping run of 8.7 seconds to finish out of the money in Round 10 but it was still good enough for him to win an average title for the second time since 2019. Meged's 10-day average was 7.74 seconds, which broke the NFR record.
Meged finished his season with $411,262. Afterward, he told The Cowboy Channel that it was a "dream come true."
Meged, who broke another NFR record in Round 7 Wednesday with a 6.4-second run, finished No. 2 in the world behind 20-year-old champion Riley Webb of Denton, Texas. Webb finished second in the average.
(Meged's wife, Shelby Boisjoli-Meged, won the breakway roping title last Thursday.)
Not to be outdone, Cirle-area native Lockhart also won the average title in barrel racing following a winning run of 13.54 seconds on her horse Levee in Round 10. Lockhart averaged 13.71 during this NFR.
In her 17th NFR appearance, Lockhart won a round for the second time and captured her third average title following wins in 2014 and 2016.
"I couldn't be happier," Lockhart, who claimed a $30,706 check for her Round 10 win, told The Cowboy Channel.
Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi of Lampasas, Texas, won the world barrel racing championship for the third time. Lockhart finished No. 2 in the world with $343,688.
Meanwhile, Sage Newman did all he could do Saturday in pursuit of his first world title. But Newman's effort wasn't quite enough to catch Canadian star Zeke Thurston.
Melstone's Newman won Round 10 in saddle bronc with a 91-point ride atop Andrews Rodeo's All Or Nothin to claim $30,706. It was Thurston, though, who won the world title after scoring 86.5 points. Thurston also won the average title.
With $397,836, Newman finished No. 2 in the world and ended at No. 5 in the average.
Due to a hamstring injury, Chase Brooks of Deer Lodge did not compete in saddle bronc in Round 10. Brooks finished the NFR 12th in the world and 13th in the average.
Elsewhere, Helena bulldogger Ty Erickson was timed in 5.5 seconds in the final round of steer wrestling. The 2019 world champion finished out of the money and closed the NFR ranked 11th in the world and 10th in the average.
Ex-Montana State University cowboy Jesse Brown of Baker City, Ore., placed in a three-way tie for fifth at 4.2 seconds to claim $4,292. Brown ended third in the world and second in the average, one place behind winner Don Payne of Stephenville, Texas.
Tyelr Waguespack of Gonzales, La., won the steer wrestling world title following a 3.8-second run Saturday, which tied him for the go-round win with Will Lummus of Byhalia, Miss.
In bareback, Richmond Champion of Stevensville had an 85-point ride on Calgary Stampede's Ypiee Kibitz to finish out of the money in Round 10. Champion closed with the No. 15 world ranking and ended ninth in the average.
PRCA rookie Keenan Hayes, a 20-year-old from Hayden, Colo., won the round with 90 points to seal both the world title and the average title in bareback.
The team roping world championships were won by header Tyler Wade of Terrell, Texas, and heeler Wesley Thorp of Throckmorton, Texas. Header Derek Begay of Seba Dalkai, Ariz., and heeler Colter Todd of Wilcox, Ariz., were the average champions.
The Round 10 team roping winners were the team of Nelson Wyatt (Clanton, Ala.) and Jonathan Torres (Ocala, Fla.) with a 3.7-second effort.
In bull riding, Australian Ky Hamilton already locked up his first world title in Round 9 on Friday. Hamilton had been injured with a concussion, a broken rib and a bruised lung earlier in the NFR but persevered through the 10-day marathon.
The Round 10 bull riding winner Saturday was Hayes Weight of GOshen, Utah, with a 91-point ride on Stace Smith Pro Rodeos' Polar Express.
Though he was injured, Stetson Wright of Beaver, Utah, claimed his fifth consecutive all-around title.
