And an Iowa cowgirl and two Arkansas team ropers did something no one has ever done before at the International Finals Rodeo.
The youngest contestant in the rodeo, 12-year-old Mesa Leavitt of Bluegrass, Iowa, defended her barrel racing world title and became the first person to win all four go-rounds in the IFR.
Jake Weddle and Josh Canant of Perryville, Ark., set an IFR record with a time of 3.7 seconds in the team roping Saturday night, which carried them to the world championship.
The duo beat the old record of 3.8 seconds, set two years ago by Kyle and A.J. Horton of Stigler, who led the world standings coming into the weekend but had a disappointing IFR.
Kyle Horton finished as reserve champion in heeling, and A.J. Horton placed third in heading.
In bull riding, Nathan Tull of Shawnee capped off a career season with his first world title.
Tull, 28, led the other riders by $5,000 entering the IFR, but he held off a late charge by Michigan's Troy Carnes and Hulbert rookie Ryan Dirteater, who is Tull's traveling partner.
"This is really big for me,” Tull said. "It's something I have really worked hard for this year.”
Tull led the world standings from start to finish this season, but Carnes had tightened the race entering the IFR.
"I had a big lead all year, but they really closed the gap going into the finals,” Tull said. "I knew they (Carnes and Dirteater) would ride their bulls and that I would have to ride mine also.
Tull rode two of his four bulls at the IFR, but it was enough to seal the world title. Now he is setting a goal this year of qualifying for the Professional Bull Riders, Inc. finals.
"The ultimate goal of every bull rider is to make it to Las Vegas and the PBR finals,” he said.
Dirteater, 18, won the IFR average, riding three of four bulls in the rodeo.
Justin Wiseman of McAlester rallied from a near $6,000 deficit entering the IFR to win the steer wrestling crown, totaling 16.5 seconds on four steers at the IFR.
Wiseman's father, Jack Wiseman, won three straight IPRA titles in bulldogging from 1978-80 and another in 1982. Justin Wiseman's brother, Colby Stufflebean of Krebs, was the IPRA steer wresting champ last year.
Justin Wiseman said he needed to win a world title "so he could sit at the table at Thanksgiving and Christmas.”
Wiseman said he hadn't give up hope of winning a world title entering this weekend's rodeo.
"I knew how much money could be won here (at the IFR),” he said. "With my dad being a world champion and my brother winning the world championship last year, I had a lot of encouragement, you might say, to make sure I was thinking positive that I could get it done.”
Steve Brickey of Tahlequah also came from far back in the world standings to win the tie-down roping. He trailed Georgia's Justin Thigpen by $7,000 but claimed his first world title by winning the IFR average.
Shawn Minor, 32, of Camden, Ohio, won the all-around championship for the second straight season. It was the former Southwestern Oklahoma State University cowboy's third all-around title in the last four years.
Minor finished second in bareback bronc riding but won his first world championship in saddle bronc riding.
Billy Griffin of Lee's Summit, Mo., ended Minor's streak of four consecutive IPRA titles in bareback broncs, as the 2005 rookie of the year captured his first world championship.
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