Cheyanne McCartney's Championship Season Has Her Chasing a Breakaway World Title

Breakaway roper Cheyanne McCartney pushed her way to the top of the world standings and is inching closer to securing her first world champion title.

Cheyanne McCartney's 4.3-second run in the Cheyenne Frontier Days short go | CFD photo by Laura Storey

The ladies of breakaway roping are making their mark on the sport of rodeo as the event continues to grow. Cheyanne McCartney is making waves as she recently took hold of the No. 1 spot in the world standings with $158,727, more than $40,000 ahead of her competitors. 

On A Winning Streak

Since joining the WPRA in 2020, this cowgirl has worked hard to get her name up in lights. She took home the average title at the National Finals Breakaway Rodeo in 2023, and has qualified a total of four times. Despite that, she’s still itching to secure the world championship title and this year might be the year she finally takes it. 

McCartney has pulled in some massive wins this season, as she came with something to prove in July. During that month alone she scored a $50,000 check at the Calgary Stampede with a quick 2.7-second run in the final round. She kept that momentum rolling as she headed to Cheyenne Frontier Days as she claimed the championship title with a lightning-fast 4.3-second run under pressure as the final roper.

This cowgirl has slowly but surely been making her way to the top over the course of her career. Her first trip to the NFBR finished with her at No. 11, and she’s only been climbing since. Last season, she finished at No. 9 in the world for the second time in her career, and is now looking to break that pattern and land at No. 1.

McCartney won three rodeo titles over the course of the season last year, and has already surpassed that number with two months left to go in the regular season. She tied for first at the Spanish Fork Fiesta Days and two massive round wins at the Ogden Pioneer Days & Days of '47 Rodeo, just marking what a huge month July was for the cowgirl.

Massive Horse Power

McCartney has some solid horsepower underneath her, The cowgirl out of Kingston, Oklahoma trains horses with her husband Cody and they make a formidable pair as they have created some of the best for her to compete on. Her main mount, Lexus, carried her to wins at Rodeo Corpus Christi, the Hondo Rodeo Fest, and pushed her through all five intense rounds to take home that $69,500 at Calgary Stampede. 

The cowgirl also took her time with her other gelding she rides as the seven-year-old Teddy has also led her to some amazing wins this season. The duo entered the arena together at Cheyenne Frontier Days and he won over $73,000 at the Gold Buckle Futurity.

As the rest of the season continues, she’ll have to keep her momentum rolling. While the gap between her and her peers in season earnings may be a massive one, McCartney shouldn’t take that as a reason to slow down yet. She has 45 rodeos under her belt this season, more than almost any of her competitors, proving just how bad she wants to take home that world title later this year.