C5 Rodeo’s Star Bucking Horse, Virgil, Retiring After 2025 National Finals Rodeo
on Dec 05, 2025
The 2025 National Finals Rodeo started Thursday (December 4) and will run through the 13 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The 10-day event will showcase the top 15 professional rodeo competitors in each of the seven events as they compete for world championships.
Top competitors showcase their talent in events like bull riding, barrel racing, roping, bronc riding, steer wrestling, and more.
Cowboys and barrel racers can take home earnings by placing first through sixth in any round, with even more prize money available for those who finish first through eighth in the average.
The rewards are substantial, as $17.5 million is on the table for the 2025 event. Once the day’s competition winds down, visitors can continue the fun with live music and nighttime entertainment inside the Cowboy Corral.
The event also draws a prominent music crowd, as many of country’s hottest stars perform across different venues in Vegas throughout the week.
RELATED: National Finals Rodeo In Las Vegas Faces Uncertainty Amid Equine Virus Outbreak
The End Of An Era For One Legend Horse
Known as the “Super Bowl of rodeo,” NFR is one of the most eagerly awaited events for rodeo athletes and fans. So it comes as no surprise that some of the best competing horses in the world are in attendance.
And one of the most notable legends of the arena, Virgil, is officially retiring.
Virgil is one of the rare and exceptional bucking horses in rodeo history, known for competing at the highest level in both bareback and saddle bronc riding, a feat very few horses achieve.
Owned by C5 Rodeo, he has been honored three times as the Canadian Professional Rodeo Association Bareback Horse of the Year in 2017, 2018, and 2023.
Virgil has also earned back-to-back PRCA Bareback Horse of the Year titles in 2017 and 2018, and now, he has added the 2025 Saddle Bronc Horse of the Year title to his remarkable legacy.
Virgil is one of the few bucking horses to ever earn World Champion Bucking Horse honors in both bareback and saddle bronc.
A remarkable legend, indeed.
