Rodeo Daily

Keenan Hayes To Sit Out 2025 Season Due To Injury, Eyes 2026 Return

Due to an injury in 2024 and an attempt to return to the arena in 2025, Keenan Harris decides to sit out the rest of the season after surgery to recover. He plans to return in 2026.
Kate Robinson|
Keenan Hayes rides Night Crawler during the San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo finals at the Foster Communications Coliseum on Friday, April 15, 2022. Rodeo Finals Keenan Hayes Bareback Champ
Keenan Hayes rides Night Crawler during the San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo finals at the Foster Communications Coliseum on Friday, April 15, 2022. Rodeo Finals Keenan Hayes Bareback Champ | Charles Bryce/San Angelo Standard-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

The future of bareback rider Keenan Hayes has been a mystery for many during this rodeo season. After placing third in the world for bareback riding last year, the cowboy ended the season with an injury, one he spent a lot of time trying to rehab all season long.

While trying to get back on that horse, Hayes knew something wasn’t right. After a call with his doctor, a plane ride to Philadelphia, and a consultation at the Vincera Institute, Hayes learned both sides of his groin were going to need repair, with the hernia on his right side.

The sport of rodeo does not go easy on injuries, and if not cared for properly, can impact a rider for the rest of their life. Hayes felt he had to take the rest of the season to repair these injuries.

After a surgery where doctors realized that both sides had a hernia, they finished repairing the plate between his abdominal wall and groin that was also injured. Hayes has gone through a lengthy recovery time, with hours of physical therapy.

He now plans to continue recovery through physical therapy and prepare for next year to get back in the arena.

Hayes’ injury was a blow to the world of bareback riding. In 2023, he was the first rookie to win a PRCA Bareback Riding World Championship. In 2022, Hayes earned a PRCA single-season Permit record of $108,568.

Despite his injuries at the beginning of the 2025 season, Hayes won the Mountain States Circuit Finals in Loveland, Colorado. In 2024, he placed third in the world standings with $372,797 after placing in six rounds at the 2024 NFR, and held the third spot in an average race with 851.5 points on 10 head.

Hayes plans to return to bareback riding for the 2026 season.

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Kate Robinson
KATE ROBINSON

Kate Robinson is no stranger to the world of rodeo. Growing up in Colorado and now living in South Dakota, she has always been surrounded by the sport. As a former barrel racer, Kate spends her free time attending rodeos throughout South Dakota and the Midwest. She has a passion for journalism and previously wrote and did broadcast news in Rapid City, South Dakota, covering rodeos (and all other news) in the area. She graduated with a bachelor's in Media Studies from the University of Colorado and loves to ride horses in her free time.

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