MARTHA ANGELONE WINS 2023 WOMEN’S RODEO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP ALL-AROUND COWGIRL
After an electric record-setting season, Martha Angelone (Cross Junction, Virgina) emerged the supreme competitor, delivering a clutch final day of the all-around race in Fort Worth, Texas, to be crowned the 2023 WRWC (Women’s Rodeo World Championship) All-Around World Champion, earning the accompanying $20,000 bonus and Coats saddle.
Angelone, who began earning points for the title in April 2022, finished the race with more than 14,300 points ahead of reigning all-around world champion, Hope Thomson’s (Abilene, Texas) 16,009 points.
The Virginia Cowgirl is competing in three separate disciplines, team roping heading, team roping heeling, and breakaway roping. Despite not earning a qualified time during the event in the breakaway, Angelone’s 22,307 points on her breakaway leaderboard standings coming into the event, was good to earn the $5,000 Pro World Championship Bonus. Harley Pryor (Moore Haven, Florida) earned the round win, notching a 8.09-second average. In the challenger division, Kinlie Brennise (Craig, Colorado) held onto the top spot to take the challenger round win, snagging a 7.97-second average time for the round.
At the end of the semi-finals round, the $5,000 world champion bonus was paid out to athletes in all disciplines from both the PRO Leaderboard and the Challenger Leaderboard. The award was based on total points earned from the combined Leaderboards. The Athletes who earned the $5,000 bonus in each discipline and division are:
| Team Roping | |
| Discipline | Name |
| Pro Header | Bev Robbins |
| Pro Heeler | Jessy Remsburg |
| Challenger Header | Sydney Ball |
| Challenger Heeler | Sally Ball |
| Barrel Racing | |
| Discipline | Name |
| Pro Barrel Racer | Laura Mote |
| Challenger Barrel Racer | Julie Plourde |
| Breakaway Roping | |
| Discipline | Name |
| Pro Breakaway Roper | Martha Angelone |
| Challenger Breakaway Roper | Rylie Romero |
Backed by a dominant showing, including the fastest time of the week, 18-year-old Barrel Racer Laura Mote (Llano, Texas) was on a mission and surged to the top of the semi-final round leaderboard after a dominant 12.907-second run to win the bonus. Mote set the arena record for the pattern while sitting atop Red Hot Redbull. Mote defeated WCRA barrel racing champion Cheyenne Wimberely’s 13.096-second time. Even though Wylie Jo Hodge’s 13.288-second run won the round, Julie Plourde earned the world championship cash bonus in the challenge division.
Team roping combo Kelsey Russey (Chandler, Arizina) and Tammy West-White (Los Osos, California) garnered a 21.22 average time, cracking into the No. 1 spot in the pro division ahead of Jackie Crawford (Stephenville, Texas) and Martha Angelone who ran a 22.14-second average. In the challenger division, 16-year old Kaitlyn Torres (Alice, Texas) and Kyla Stamps (Harwood, Texas) 29.65-second average catapulted them to the top ranks ahead sister Sydney and Sally Ball (Max Meadows, Virgina), who ended with an average 34.64-second time.
The top 12 athletes in each discipline will advance to Saturday’s Showdown Round, where the top three will advance to the Triple Crown of Rodeo Round to compete for the Event Champion and $60,000. For a complete list of advancement, results and all-around points, please view here.
The event will be broadcast daily on PBR RidePass on Pluto TV and Cowgirl Channel. The 2023 WRWC will also be featured on Cowboy Channel the week of May 22 at 8 p.m. ET each night.
Tickets are on sale now and start at $20. They can be purchased at the Cowtown Coliseum Box Office or cowtowncoliseum.com.
The 2023 event is part of the inaugural Women’s Rodeo World Championship Week, the richest women’s-only week of competition in Western sports, held during the 2023 PBR (Professional Bull Riders) World Finals: Unleash The Beast. The week-long schedule of events is slated to pay out $1.145 million in prize money, affording more than 800 women’s competitors the chance to compete for life-changing payouts. The Women’s Rodeo World Championship Week will feature three marquee events, including the 2023 Women’s Rodeo World Championship, an NBHA (National Barrel Horse) one-day event, and The Cowgirl Gathering.
Since launching in May 2020, the WRWC has awarded more than $2.25 million in new money to women’s rodeo athletes. For more information about the WRWC, visit wrwc.rodeo.
