California bulldogger Tucker Allen mustered some extra umpth in order to power through a 4.2-second run to finish second during Wednesday’s seventh round of the National Finals Rodeo.
(PHOTO BY GREG WESTFALL)

 

LAS VEGAS – It’s been that kind of a week for steer wrestler Tucker Allen.

He didn’t make the kind of run he wanted to Wednesday night, but he finished in 4.2 seconds to finish as the runner-up to the seventh-round winner and collect a $28,980 payday at the National Finals Rodeo.

“I should have been really, really fast, and I kind of over-rode my horse and just had to snag him up and tip him over,” said Tucker, a two-time NFR qualifier from Ventura, California. “This pen of steers is no day off on any of them.”

The animals made the steer wrestlers work for it. There are three sets of steers on which the bulldoggers compete. The winning time in Tuesday’s sixth round was 3.5; Rowdy Parrott was 4.0 to win Wednesday. This was the third time this particular group of cows was in the lineup, and the bunch will be run again during Saturday’s 10th round.

“I don’t mind a pen of steers like this where you’ve got to go bulldog,” Allen said, noting the extra effort it takes to wrestle the steers to the ground. “It’s damn sure a bulldogging contest, and the times show.

“I’m just happy to get a decent check. I could’ve gotten an even better start. I feel like I got a good roll off the corner, but I didn’t blow (the barrier) out.”

The start is vital. The barrier is a roped line in front of the timed-event box that releases when the steer is provided an adequate head start. It’s best to be right on that line when it springs free. Possibly the biggest advantage is that he’s riding Banker, the 2025 Steer Wrestling Horse of the Year owned by fellow bulldogger Justin Shaffer.

“That shows us the horsepower that even though I was a little off the barrier, Banker still caught up good,” he said.

Allen has grappled seven steers to the ground in a cumulative time of 32.7 seconds and leads the aggregate race. He has pocketed $111,428 so far. He is also second in the world standings with $262,796, about $29,000 behind the leader, Mississippian Will Lummus.

It’s going to be a race for the world championship over the final three nights of the 2025 ProRodeo season, and Allen is right in the thick of it all.

“I’m not keeping track of anything,” Allen said. “I’m just going one at a time and going to have fun. That’s all there is.”

That Montana Silversmiths gold buckle might be a nice addition to the party.