With less than a week remaining before Kid Rock’s Rock N Rodeo this Friday, May 16, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the 16-athlete roster for the WCRA Free Riders was announced today.
Kid Rock’s Rock N Rodeo is team-formatted rodeo infused with contemporary music. The reimagined rodeo features a team format with six teams competing in bracket-style competition featuring Kid Rock live in concert.
The Free Riders, under the leadership of four-time PRCA (Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association) world champion bareback rider Bobby Mote and Women’s Rodeo World Championship Commissioner Linsay Rosser-Sumpter, was the lone team formed independent of the Kid Rock’s Rock N Rodeo Draft held this past November.
The Free Riders were fielded based on the WCRA’s (World Champion Rodeo Alliance) rodeo in Corpus Christi, Texas, Rodeo Corpus Christi, which concluded on May 10. The Top 2 athletes in each discipline not already drafted to one of the other five teams earned a chance to ride for the Free Riders.
At the first-ever Kid Rock’s Rock N Rodeo last May, the Free Riders rode lights out, winning three gold medals in Round 1 before cementing their title as champions by winning four of the disciplines in the championship round.
WCRA Free Riders Roster
The talent-packed 16-athlete roster holds two National Finals Rodeo (NFR) aggregate wins, and 17 NFR qualifications, and has amassed more than $4.5 million in career earnings:
- Breakaway Roping: Kieley Walz (Ainsworth, Nebraska) and Taylor Raupe (Douglas, Kansas)
- Bareback Riding: Quintonn Lunsford (McCune, Kansas) and Roedy Farrell (Thermopolis, Wyoming)
- Barrel Racing: Jordan Driver (Garden City, Texas) and Kappie Bryant (Stephenville, Texas)
- Saddle Bronc Riding: Bailey Small (Fall River Mills, California) and Cole Elshere (Faith, South Dakota)
- Steer Wrestling: Chase Crane (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) and Levi Rudd (Chelsea, Oklahoma)
- Team Roping: Andrew Ward (Header | Edmond, Oklahoma)/Trey Johnson (Heeler | Weatherford, Texas) and Jeff Flenniken (Header | Caldwell, Idaho)/Buddy Hawkins (Stephenville, Texas)
- Tie Down Roping: Dalton Porch (Kadoka, South Dakota) and Jarvis Demery (Beggs, Oklahoma)
Driver (barrel racing), Elshere (saddle bronc), Crane (steer wrestling) and Ward (team roping header) are all ready to compete on May 16 inside the home of Dallas Cowboys in an exciting head-to-head “drag race”-style format fresh off being crowned Rodeo Corpus Christi event winners.
Walz (breakaway roping), Elshere (saddle bronc riding), Rudd (steer wrestling) and Demery (tie down roping) all return from the 2024 title winning Free Riders team. Walz notably won a gold medal for the Free Riders during their championship round showdown against Misty Mountain Hop.
In addition to the Free Riders team, three substitutes were announced for the other five competing teams.
– On the Jokers, Cole Franks replaces Tim O’Connell in the saddle bronc riding, and Paige Jones replaces Steely Steiner in the barrel racing.
– On the Sledge Hammers, Nick Pelke replaces Leighton Berry in the bareback riding.
Kid Rock’s Rock N Rodeo begins at 7 p.m. CT on Friday, May 16. Following the revolutionary team-based rodeo, the PBR World Finals concludes with the Championship when the 2025 PBR World Champion will be crowned and presented the coveted gold buckle and $1 million bonus. The 2025 PBR World Finals – Championship begins on Saturday, May 17 at 7:45 p.m. CT and concludes on Sunday, May 18 at 1:45 p.m. CT.
