With the 2026 rodeo season wrapped up, athletes are now working hard to earn cash for next year and prepare for the National Finals Rodeo (NFR) in December. Bull rider Colten Fritzlan hasn’t earned a qualification since 2020 but he’s back in the Thomas & Mack Arena this year to prove he’s not a one hit wonder.
Big Season Bounceback
With $174,285 earned in the 2026 season, this cowboy finds himself at No. 11 in the world standings. It was a hard-fought season, but he landed right where he needed to be. Since earning the 2020 NFR average title, Fritzlan has had to fight his way back to the top and this year he did just that, pulling in four rodeo titles.
Throughout the season, Fritzlan found success at the Missoula Stampede, the Roughy Top Gun Invitational presented by the City of Fallon, the Silver State Stampede and the Duel at the Dunes. While these may be smaller rodeos, the money is all the same to him when it was all said and done.
Out of all four wins, his performance at the Duel at the Dunes is where he really found his stride. He secured a massive check for $13,075, (his biggest of the season) thanks to an 81-point ride. This wasn’t his first success-story of the season either.
Just days prior, he earned $9,000 total at The Governor’s Cup, fresh off his momentum he gained while at the iconic Puyallup Stampede where he landed at second overall. He secured $10,550 thanks to an 85.5-point ride during the finals, bringing his total there to over $12,000.
2020 Avergae Title Winner
It’s clear that Fritzlan gained speed towards the end of the season, picking up check after check after a slower start to the year. It wasn’t until July that the cowboy pulled in his first (and only) 89-point ride of the season at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Extreme Bulls. Hopefully he can take some time in the off-season to pull up those scores to match his competitors heading to Las Vegas with him.
The 26-year-old out of Colorado may have a big feat ahead if he wants to close the gap between him and that No. 1 spot, but his last trip to the NFR was one for the record books and he’s looking to do that again.
Not only did he earn the average title, but he secured the Resistol Rookie of the Year title and earned $183,038 at the NFR alone. He landed at third in the world overall, the best of his career, and is now looking to surpass that come December.
Despite being what some might consider an underdog, Fritzlan has found himself at the top of the leaderboard once before, and he’s ready to prove he can do it again.
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