BY BRETT NIERENGARTEN @PRORODEOBRETT
Brody Wells is a first-time NFR qualifier, but he went toe-to-toe with some of rodeo’s best several times and came out on top in 2024.
The 23-year-old had never finished in the Top 30 prior to this season, but that was before he started riding some of the baddest horses in ProRodeo for some of their biggest scores all season.
Thanks to a terrific final 10 days of the season, Wells enters his first National Finals as the No. 12 ranked saddle bronc rider with $135,803, more than he made in the first two years of his career combined.
MSU-Northern PRCA Extreme Broncs, $4,882
Brody Wells split the win in Havre, Montana with fellow 23-year-old bronc rider, Cash Wilson. It was Wells’ second win of the season and both to that point at the end of March had been standalone bronc ridings, he also won the Rodeo Rapid City Xtreme Broncs on Jan. 27.
Clark County Fair and Rodeo, $4,662
Wells had a nice trip west when he split second at the PRCA Playoff Series Rodeo in Logandale, Nevada in April. He and Isaac Diaz were 86.5 to finish a half-point better than Zeke Thurston and Statler Wright, while Riggin Smith won the rodeo with 89 points.
The same weekend, he also won over $3,000 for third place at the Rocky Mountain Challenge in West Valley, Utah.
Sisters Rodeo, $5,107
In Oregon, Wells shared the victory with four-time NFR qualifier Sage Newman to get his first career Playoff Series win.
Wells got it done on Flying 5 Rodeo’s Spring Tunes and with 86.5 points, he was the highest marked cowboy on that horse all season. He received a contestant score of 45 points on that ride.
Black Hills Roundup, $4,000
Wells almost got himself a Fourth of July victory by riding for 88 points in Belle Fourche, however, he was two points off Sage Newman’s 90-pointer on Smoke Wagon.
Over Cowboy Christmas, Wells won one other check, $2,771 for fourth at the Killdeer Mountain Roundup in North Dakota.
Utah Days of ’47 Rodeo, $15,000
Wells made his highest marked ride of the season and won his biggest check of the season in one fell swoop in Salt Lake City. He was a whopping 92 points on Sankey and Phenom Genetics’ The Black Tie to get a statement win.
In the Gold Medal Round, he bested fellow NFR qualifiers Kade Bruno and Dawson Hay.
United States Open Xtreme Broncs Match, $7,798
On Aug. 7, Wells packed his brooms when he returned to South Dakota for the first time since Cowboy Christmas and avenged his Black Hills Roundup runner-up finish with a pair of round wins.
He was marked 87.5 and 88 points on his two rides, which not only gave him a sweep, but also the two highest marked rides of the entire rodeo.
Sheriff’s PRCA Rodeo, $5,555
In the final week of the regular season, Wells was clinging to the No. 14 spot and did not have the luxury of competing in the Governor’s Cup. So, what did he do? He won a pair of California rodeos in San Bernardino and Poway to not only ensure he qualified for his first NFR, but to move up to No. 12 in the final PRCA Regular Season World Standings.
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