Enjoy a look at the 2023 NFR barrel racing horses connections, stats and fun facts.
Read full profiles HERE on each of the 2023 NFR barrel racing horses here in an industry exclusive, never-before-seen breakdown using EquiStat records of the horses that carried the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association top 15 to their National Finals Rodeo qualifications.
Jeff and Andrea’s Busby Quarter Horses is responsible for breeding three of this years National Finals Rodeo horses: Jordon Briggs’ 2021 world champion Famous Lil Jet (“Rollo”), Brittany Tonozzi’s Calgary Stampede champion Jets Top Gun (“Benny”) and Kassie Mowry’s Famous Ladies Man (“Emmitt”). All three geldings share the blood of all-time leading barrel horse sire Dash Ta Fame and Canadian champion barrel horse Lady Perks, by Dash For Perks. Emmitt is by Dash Ta Fame and out of Lady Perks. Emmitt’s full sister GL Famous First Lady is the dam of Benny, who is by the Busbys’ late stallion Blazin Jetolena. Rollo claims all the greats as he is by Dash Ta Fame and out of Blazin Black Betty, a daughter of Blazin Jetolena and Lady Perks.
Youree Ward Barrel Horses has two NFR horses from its famed program. Emily Beisel’s Biddin On Fame (“Beau”) and Paige Jones’ Famous Hayday (“Bazinga”) are both out of Jaxsons Olympic Fame, the late Dale Youree’s last futurity money earner by the Dash Ta Fame son Poco Lijerito. Beau is by PC Frosty Bid and Bazinga is by multiple Women’s Professional Rodeo Association world champion sire PC Frenchmans Hayday. The Youree Ward program, largely Kylie Weast, was also responsible for the training of Beisel’s Namgis D 33 (“Chongo”) and Namgis D 35 (“Pipewrench”).
Sue Smith qualified on Dashs Centerfold and the mare’s son Diamond Center (“Heff”). Bred by Smith and Kyle Edwards, Heff, by the late A Smooth Guy, was born via embryo transfer during “Centerfold’s” futurity year.
Brittany Tonozzi’s Babe On The Chase (“Birdie”) and Beisel’s Ivory On Fire (“Liza”) share the blood of one of Vickie Adams’ greatest crosses. Birdie is by Chasin Firewater, a son of Adams’ great Fire Water Flit out of her aged-event champion Bugs Alive In 75 mare, Has The Touch. Liza, by Ivory James, is out of Chasin Firewater’s full sister Lil Miss Firewater.
Summer Kosel’s Firewaterfrenchfame (“Apollo”) is the second NFR horse bred and raised by Carol Warren out of her great Fire Water Flit-Magnolia Bar mare Fire Water Flyer. Apollo, who is the second NFR qualifier for Aint Seen Nothin Yet, is a half-brother to Shu Fire, the Dash Of Royal Gold mare who helped Jessie Telford qualify for the NFR.
SR Industry Titan, by Firewaterontherocks, is Mulberry Canyon Moon’s second NFR qualifier. The first for the two-time NFR-qualifying Marthas Six Moons mare was MCM Imasharpguy, who’s by A Sharp Frenchman. Titan was the product of an egg purchased by Schiller Ranch, thus bearing their initials.
Mistys Money Blurr, by The Money Depot, is the third NFR qualifier for leading producer Mistys Dash Of Fame, by Dash Ta Fame. “Misty” also produced NFR champion KN Fabs Gift of Fame and NFR qualifier KN Fabs Mist Of Fame, both by Frenchmans Fabulous.
Rosas Cantina CC, by Corona Cartel, is out of NFR qualifier Dash Ta Vanila, who is out of NFR qualifier SX Frenchmans Vanila (“Vanila”).
Heavenly Firewater is a double-bred NFR qualifier. He is by JL Dash Ta Heaven out of Firewater Fanny, by Fire Water Flit. “Fanny” and Vanila both contributed to Amanda Clayman’s 2004 NFR qualification.
RV Brijett is also a double-bred NFR qualifier. Her sire Blazin Jetolena ran at the NFR with Melanie Southard, while his dam DTF Mellowdoc ran with Stevi Hillman.
All-time leading rider Kassie Mowry trained her two mounts Emmit and CP He Will Be Epic (“Will”), as well as Sand In My Socks (“Sandi”), ridden by Stevi Hillman, and Mistys Money Blurr, ridden by Ilyssa Riley. Mowry also rode Wenda Johnson’s Steal Money (“Mo”) to his first futurity earnings following Luis Hernandez’s training.
Janna Beam Brown trained both Benny, ridden by Tonozzi, and Fame Fire Rocks (“Poprocks”), ridden by Taycie Matthews. In addition to winning many aged-event titles on both horses, she also rode them to their first pro rodeo checks.
Shelby Ridling, who trained Liza, can also take credit for training Chewingthehotwire (“Chewy”), who helped contribute to Sissy Winn’s second qualification. Incidentally, Ridling’s stepmother Kenna Squires claims breeding rights to Chewy as well as Six Moons Flaming (“Rowdy”), who contributed to Ilyssa Riley’s first qualification. Both Chewy and Rowdy are by Flaming Fire Water.
Of the 30 main NFR mounts, 20 carry the blood of the great Dash Ta Fame. Five horses were by the stallion and nine were out of his daughters.
By The Numbers
NFR Horses Ranked By Season Earnings
- Famous Lil Jet, $160,824
- Jets Top Gun, $123,072
- Fiery Miss West, $117,900
- Fame Fire Rocks, $117,854
- Firewaterfrenchfame, $115,414
Geldings made up the majority, while the remainder were nine mares and two stallions. The average age was 10. Cuatro Fame was the oldest at 16. The youngest four were 6-year-olds. The median age was 9, meaning half of the horses were either older or younger. The most common age was 7 (five head).
Of the 30 listed rodeo horses, 12 were ranked amongst EquiStat’s Top 25 during their futurity year, six won a futurity championship but weren’t ranked, and three never won a dime of futurity money. The majority of futurity earners ran as 4-year-olds, with seven of the 16 earning money at age 3, while 10 ran as 5-year-olds.
Fiery Miss West has fi ve straight NFR qualifications on her own. Although this year Jessica Routier did win $1,700 on another horse, “Missy” won enough on her own to qualify. DM Sissy Hayday had six of her seven qualifi cations where she won enough to qualify alone. Famous Lil Jet has qualified for three straight NFRs on his own as well. Firewaterfrenchfame was the solo money earner for Summer Kosel’s first qualification. Jets Top Gun won enough for Tonozzi to qualify for the NFR had she not ridden another horse.
The average age for the first WPRA-sanctioned rodeo check was 6. It should be noted that Taycie Matthews’ Heavenly Firewater and Paige Jones’ Famous Hayday had to wait for their jockeys to turn 18 before competing at their first WPRA rodeo.
