She’s a Cool Mom: Carlee Otero Wins Round Three of the Wrangler NFR

LAS VEGAS — DECEMBER 6, 2025 — It’s the year of palominos and six yellow horses ran down the Thomas and Mack alley in Round Three. Awarded the Scoti Flit Bar Rising Star Award earlier in the week, which recognizes a first-time NFR qualifying horse voted on by the top 15 barrel racers, 2018 mare AM Regina George posted a 13.54 to win Round Three. It’s no doubt that “Regina’s” jockey is one of the toughest barrel racers to run at the NFR. After finishing the last few rounds of the 2024 NFR with a cracked pelvis, five-time NFR qualifier Carlee Otero returned in 2025 and claimed her first round win since running Rare Dillon in 2012.

After tough luck in the first two rounds hitting the first barrel, Otero and Regina made a clean run to win the mares first ever NFR check worth $36,668.

“Tonight I sent Regina in there. I didn’t try to let her walk in flat footed and my goal was to get by the first,” Otero explained. “She got a little bit further than I wanted to, but she came back so strong that it worked and I knew after that, if I just rode her correctly, we would be fine.”

Otero bought Regina from friend and bull riding legend Gary Leffew after her main mount Blingolena, better known as “Sly” was injured, and has had an incredible late summer and fall, both at major pro rodeos and divisional barrel races. The pair was a Utah Days of ‘47 Rodeo gold medalist and won a round at the Calgary Stampede. In October, they won The Texan barrel race in Abilene, Texas worth $100,000.

“I think it was God humbling me a little bit,” Otero said of the first two NFR rounds. “I was maybe overconfident coming into the finals, because I do feel like I have one of the greatest horses. I think he was testing me to see if I was going to get mad or angry or how I was going to react. So I kind of made a mean [social media] post to myself last night to remind myself, ‘hey, do your job.’ And then I prayed about it and and literally, I talked to Gary today, and he said, ‘Imagine the run you want to make like to the every spot.’ I did that and it worked and I’m just so thankful.”

While the pair has found success in the arena at the highest level of pro rodeo, Otero didn’t know Regina was capable of excelling this well inside the Thomas and Mack Center.

“I had no idea and it’s one of those things where we prayed about it,” Otero said. “After Sly got hurt, we were just going to go to the rodeos I qualified for and see how it went. I just prayed and prayed. I mean, it’s a true testimony too, if you stay faithful, God does have a big plan, bigger than we can imagine.”

First-time NFR qualifiers Megan McLeod-Sprague and Hayle Gibson-Stillwell won their first NFR checks after tying for 5/6th place with a 13.72, each earning $7,688.

Reigning world champion Kassie Mowry claimed a third place check to regain the No. 1 position in the world standings. Hailey Kinsel and DM Sissy Hayday barely drug over the first barrel to now move from No. 1 in the average race to No. 6, and is now $17,719 behind Mowry in the world standings.

Notable Horse Change and $2 Million Rider

Emily Beisel started her seventh NFR with 2016 mare Ivory On Fire (Ivory James x Lil Miss Firewater x Fire Water Flit) and won $7,688 in Round Two after splitting 5/6th place with Kassie Mowry. After placing in Round Two, Beisel switched horses to 4M Equine’s 2016 mare Teasin Dat Guy (Frenchmans Guy x Teasin Jetolena x Blazin Jetolena) in Round Three. “Chewy” made her NFR debut with 2021 with trainer Molly Otto, and ended as the reserve average champion. Beisel started running Chewy in 2024 and has only ran her in one round, Round Four of the 2024 NFR before tonight where she placed second behind Otero.

After placing second in Round Three, Beisel crossed the the $2 million mark in EquiStat reported lifetime earnings. Beisel is a seven-time NFR qualifier and the No. 5 highest NFR-only money earner with $727,259.

• Hailey Kinsel wins Round Two
• Kassie Mowry Wins Round One

2025 NFR Barrel Racing Round Three Results 

Place, Name, Time, Money Won

1. Carlee Otero / AM Regina George / 13.54 / $36,667.95
2. Emily Beisel / Teasin Dat Guy / 13.56 / $28,979.51
3. Kassie Mowry / CP He Will Be Epic / 13.63 / $21,882.48
4. Katelyn Scott / Justa DTF Frenchman / 13.71 / $15,376.88
5. tie-Megan McLeod-Sprague / Seis Corona / 13.72 / $7,688.44
6. tie-Hayle Gibson-Stillwell / Buncha Dinero / 13.72 / $7,688.44
7. Tricia Aldridge / Adios Pantalones / 13.82
8. tie-Andrea Busby / Hanksnthefastlane / 13.88
9. tie-Halyn Lide / Smooth As Rico Suave / 13.88
10. Julie Plourde / Wateverocks RC / 13.91
11. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi / Sir Epic / 15.01
12. Lisa Lockhart / Blazin Ta Betty / 18.44*
13. Hailey Kinsel / DM Sissy Hayday / 18.69*
14. Wenda Johnson / Steal Money / 19.01*
15. Tayla Moeykens / DDD Streaknfirewater / NT

*indicates penalty

2025 NFR Barrel Racing Aggregate Standings 

1. Kassie Mowry / 41.06 on three runs
2. Katelyn Scott / 41.23
3. Tricia Aldridge / 41.66
4. Julie Plourde / 42.34
5. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi / 42.71
6. Hailey Kinsel / 45.92
7. Emily Beisel / 46.18
8. Megan McLeod-Sprague / 46.40
9. Hayle Gibson-Stillwell / 46.42
10. Andrea Busby / 47.03
11. Lisa Lockhart / 32.32
12. Carlee Otero / 50.99
13. Wenda Johnson / 42.44
14. Halyn Lide / 52.97
15. Tayla Moeykens / 29.69 on two runs

2025 WPRA World Standings (after Round Three) 

1. Kassie Mowry / Dublin, Texas / $279,683
2. Hailey Kinsel / Cotulla, Texas / $261,964
3. Brittany Pozzi Tonozzi / Lampasas, Texas / $239,609
4. Emily Beisel / Weatherford, Oklahoma / $235,673
5. Carlee Otero / Perrin, Texas / $215,161
6. Lisa Lockhart / Oelrichs, South Dakota / $201,349
7. Katelyn Scott / Odessa, Texas / $193,400
8. Megan McLeod-Sprague / Marsing, Idaho / $192,663
9. Tricia Aldridge / Sanger, Texas / $176,021
10. Hayle Gibson-Stillwell / Redcrest, California / $157,720
11. Anita Ellis / Blackfoot, Idaho / $156,991
12. Halyn Lide / China Spring, Texas / $154,614
13. Tayla Moeykens / Three Forks, Montana / $152,560
14. Wenda Johnson / Pawhuska, Oklahoma / $148,428
15. Andrea Busby / Millsap, Texas / $143,098
16. Julie Plourde / Krum, Texas / $128,276