LAS VEGAS — Ty Erickson continued his hot start Friday at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo at the Thomas & Mack Center.
One night after finishing in a three-way tie for second, third and fourth, the Helena bulldogger grabbed a solo second-place finish during Round 2. Erickson broke the 4-second barrier and marked a time of 3.9 seconds to claim a $28,980 check.
Erickson now leads the average alongside Round 1 winner Tyler Waguespack and sits sixth in the world standings.
World No. 2 steer wrestler Tucker Allen of Ventura, Calif., took the Round 2 win, getting his steer down in 3.6 seconds. Allen pocketed $36,668.
Former Montana State University cowboy Jesse Brown, an Oregon native, tied for fifth in Round 2 with Waguespack. Both guys had 4.1-second times to win $7,688 each.
Another Helena product, Sam Peterson, finished in the money in the bareback. The 22-year-old Peterson is making his first NFR appearance and cashed his first check Friday, finishing in a three-way tie for fifth. Peterson, Waylon Bourgeois and Kade Sonnier each marked 83.75-point rides and won $5,126.
Rocker Steiner, the World No. 1 bareback rider, won Round 2 with an 88 atop Silver Beaver of Bridwell Pro Rodeos. The Texan got a $36,668 payout for the win.
Miles City tie-down roper Haven Meged won his first check of the 2025 NFR with a 7.9-second run in Round 2. Meged, who won a world title in 2019, earned $15,377 with the performance and just missed a bigger payout.
Marty Yates, Dylan Hancock and Shad Mayfield split first, second and third with matching 7.8s. Each took home $29,177. Mayfield, from New Mexico, won Thursday's first go, leads the average and is less than $2,000 from taking over the top spot in the world standings. Riley Webb, who was 10th Friday, currently leads the world.
In the saddle bronc, Melstone's Sage Newman rode to a 12th-place finish with an 81.5. Wyoming cowboys Brody Wells of Powell and Brody Cress of Hillsdale placed seventh and 14th, respectively. Wells had an 85-point ride, while Cress had a 74.
World No. 1 saddle bronc rider Damian Brennan marked a 90-point ride on R. Watson's Prairie Fire of The Cervi Brothers to win Round 2 and the $36,668 payout.
Tayla Moeykens and Lisa Lockhart finished outside the money in the barrel racing. Moeykens, a Three Forks native competing in her first NFR, clocked a 14.73-second time to finish 11th. Lockhart, a Circle-area native who now lives in South Dakota, had an 18.53-second time to place 12th.
Hailey Kinsel, of Cotulla, Texas, won Round 2 in 13.53 seconds.
Also Friday, Stetson Wright of Utah won the bull riding for the second consecutive night, and Jake Smith of Oklahoma and Douglas Rich of Illinois won the team roping with a 3.9-second run.
The NFR continues Saturday with the third performance.
