- Previously, on "The Last Cowboy"...
- We got some things we need to work on,
especially when we go to Vegas.
That ground's faster.
I don't want my whole career to be overshadowed by my parent.
- You ready to try The Rock? - I'm read--I'm ready.
[dramatic music]
- Much better.
- I've given it a lot of thought.
I'm choosing Ace.
- We might have found a couple horses for you.
- I'm just worried
that there's not enough training time.
- I just don't know what is left in the excuse wagon.
- All right, fair enough.
riders, horses in Vegas.
- It's one go-around... - $ million.
- Everybody's gonna be going for it.
- It'll be a pressure cooker
and--and we'll see who steps up.
- It's gonna take a huge score to win it.
- It's just all or nothing that night.
- To win something like that is just--it's life-changing.
[dramatic country music]
♪
♪
- Oh, my gosh, wow.
- This is so cool. - Check that out.
- We're here. Can you believe it, Sanders?
[horn honking]
I'll bet there's not very many
horse trailers that come down here.
[both laugh] - Probably not.
- Driving down the Strip with the horse trailer,
it reassured me that this is actually happening.
- Can you believe that we're actually here, Abbs?
- It still hasn't sank in yet.
I put so much pressure on myself,
and this show especially, the money that's involved--
I've never felt this kind of pressure before.
- I wonder what-- I wonder what Ace is thinking?
"What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas."
♪
[engine rumbling]
[brakes hiss] [alarm beeping]
And, uh, still don't know the horse I'm gonna be showing,
so that's a little bit of a question mark.
So I've got one that I know everything he's gonna do
but I haven't showed in two or three years
and I've got one that I've only shown once,
so that's the tough part, you know?
I mean, I'm excited to go show,
but, oh, [bleep], I've been [bleep] the brick
the last week and a half.
[horse snorts]
[dramatic country music]
male narrator: The Run for a Million has arrived.
♪
Fans from all over the world have gathered in Las Vegas
for the biggest event in reining history.
- Hi, buddy! Doing all right?
- As the top riders prepare to compete
for the first-ever million-dollar purse.
♪
[slot machines chiming] [coins clinking]
♪
- ♪ Hey
♪
- That is awesome, man. Look at this.
- Wouldn't you like to have that?
- Rose gold on it,
"Run for a Million" etched into it.
- Beautiful. - It's hard to believe.
All the time and work and now we're actually running
for $ million on Saturday.
- It's--it's been a long road.
Many more.
[horse snorts]
- ♪ Hey, hey
- So, did you ever think the first time
that I spotted you in the-- in the hallway
in the third grade
where you were coming in with the principle
that you'd be brushing all my horses someday
and we'd be running at a million bucks?
- No, not at all.
both: It's crazy, huh?
- [laughs] - Unreal.
Hi. [both grunt]
Oh, boy. [girls giggling]
How was the flight? - Great!
- Did you have fun on the airplane?
- I did! - Tell me what's going on.
- So Rickashy was very uncomfortable.
His hock swole up like a cantaloupe.
- Oh, my goodness.
- You know, Ricky's my best horse
that I brought with me and I was counting on using him here
but he's gotta be %.
- We've gotta make the decision.
- And so the plan is to make sure
that Craig has no...
- Yes. - Stress about anything.
- Yeah.
- That all he needs to do is focus on the riding.
There's a lot on the line here this week...
- Oh, my God, yeah. [laughs]
- So I want, you know, as little...
- Yeah. - Uh, drama as possible.
[latch clicks]
- ♪ Tomorrow
♪ I got a hex on me
[funky rock music]
♪
- We just flew in.
We're excited to get to the arena.
Feel really good.
We've got a pool, now, at my house
and I work out every day.
I'm % healthy and ready to roll.
- There's definitely a different feel
walking in here.
- Yeah.
- You can feel the pressure already
and there's nobody in here yet.
It's not just another horse show,
but if you over-hype it then you'll--not gonna sleep,
the nerves are gonna get to you and it's not gonna work,
so you gotta try and keep a calm demeanor
and just act like it's another horse show.
It's gonna be fun when we run in here and this thing's--
- Oh, I can't wait.
It's gonna be loud, it's gonna be packed with people,
it's gonna be fun.
Just come in and drop the hammer.
- Andrea's down there all by himself.
Getting every advantage he can. - Yeah, right.
- They can say anything they want about Andrea.
Nobody's outworked him.
Let's go get ready.
♪
- After the NRBC and not having such a great show,
the time I spent with my family,
it got me to where I need to be today,
so I think everybody stepped up their level.
The guy that I'm concerned-- uh, Craig--
I think it's gonna be just like every single other time
we go head-to-head.
He's--he's gonna be my strongest competitor.
♪
- Run for a Million is the horse show
we've all been waiting for for our whole careers.
It would be incredibly satisfying to b*at Andrea,
but more so it'd be incredibly satisfying
to win the million.
♪
- Matt has a horse that I won the NRBC on two years ago.
He got himself a good horse to be a contender,
so it should be interesting to--to watch.
♪
- The biggest thing coming in to Run for a Million,
I didn't get as much time with this horse
as I would have liked, but, you know, it is what it is.
Just gonna have to do the best that we can.
- Pretty good horse. Great horse.
- All right, so are you ready to go test his wheels?
[wolf whistles]
♪
both: That was fast. - A little fast there.
- The pressure I put on myself is already huge enough,
and then the opportunity to come to the Run for a Million,
I mean, that's a once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity for me.
- [whistles]
Oh, yeah.
- When I went out on my own,
there were a lot of comments from Casey
and a lot of people that were close to me
that made me doubt myself.
You know, Casey looked right at me and said,
"All you can do is ride
and I don't see how you're gonna be successful."
I will never forget those words.
I will never forget those.
That hurt a little bit.
[dramatic music]
- Whoa.
[horse neighing]
Whoa.
[horse neighing]
Whoa.
My good horse, Rickashy,
he's got some swelling on one hock.
My hope is that he's fine and I can use him to compete.
That horse was the one coming for the Run for a Million
that I was thinking had the strongest chance
and he certainly has added a little bit of pressure to me
on trying to get him ready.
- You happy with your decision?
- I'll tell you tomorrow.
♪
[horse huffing]
♪
- [laughs] There was a lot of stuff in there
that needed worked over.
One little bobble can take you from first place
to th place with the group of horses that are in here,
so perfection is what we are, uh--
are all striving for.
Didn't feel very good.
- Well, that's why you do this, so...
- Yeah, but I want it ready right now.
- I know. - Yeah.
- Really, the best scenario for me
for--for what we've put into this...
we need to win.
♪
[rousing rock music]
narrator: Competition day.
Each rider makes time for last-minute preparations.
- He's all business.
- ♪ Through it all
♪ Through it all
♪
♪ Through it all
♪ We're lighting up the sky
narrator: Reining's biggest day ever,
the Run for a Million in Las Vegas,
has finally arrived.
- Well, ladies and gentlemen,
we are giving away $ million tonight.
- There's a lot of people here.
Did you see it? - No, I heard about it, though.
- Oh, my God, all the way back to the casino
as far as I could see was full.
narrator: Thousands of fans have gathered
to see of the world's top riders compete
for the largest purse in reining history,
and here at the Run for a Million,
each rider has just one horse and one sh*t
to take home the top prize.
- That first place check's gonna take home $/ million,
the reserve champion, $,,
that bottom hole $,.
It's gonna be a great night.
- Before we get started, ladies and gentlemen,
if you could please rise and remove cover.
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you,
Sienna Riley.
- ♪ Oh, say, can you see
♪ By the dawn's early light
♪ For the land
♪ Of the free
♪ And the home
♪ Of the brave
[cheers and applause]
- Welcome, everyone, to the first annual Run for a Million.
Here we go.
- Ladies and gentlemen, let's go to our first horse:
Shawn Flarida.
- Spooks Gotta Spark. This is one heck of a horse.
- Oh, yeah.
Here we go, man.
[dramatic music]
[cheers and applause]
♪
Now, that's how you're supposed to start this off.
For you guys out there, they judge this
from plus / to minus / on every maneuver.
That's a / turn right there.
- Pretty good.
- Cool.
[cheers and applause]
Look at the ground. Look at it.
Oh, my gosh.
- Now, that's how you ride in on the first run
to set the tone.
- Score for our first horse out,
Spooks Gotta Spark and Shawn Flarida:
.
- Yeah!
[cheers and applause]
- When I hear the score -- oh, man.
- Wow. I mean, that was really good.
- It's gonna be tough to b*at.
- Shawn put down a really big score.
- Oh, man. [cheers and applause]
[rousing rock music]
- At the Run for a Million, Shawn Flarida--
the number one rider in the sport--
has set a high bar with a huge score of .
- Oh, my gosh!
- The riders that remain
have their work cut out for them.
- Do what you do. Ice in the veins.
- It's not any different than any other reining.
Be good but be smart.
[suspenseful music]
- I'm pretty nervous at the moment.
There's a lot of people out here.
- Now our next young man, draw two,
resides in Aubrey, Texas.
Ladies and gentlemen, Cade McCutcheon.
[cheers and applause]
- Here comes a -year-old boy...
- Go on, get 'em!
- And he's on a bitching horse.
- He is bred to do this.
♪
- Big stop, wow. - Yeah-hoo!
- This kid is a showman. Listen to the crowd.
[cheers and applause]
Here he comes.
Wow.
[cheers and applause]
- Wow.
- Nice.
[cheers and whistling]
♪
- Oh, that-a boy.
Easy.
[dramatic music]
♪
- That's a / turn right there.
- [cheering]
- You know it's a night there
when you can't hear Mandy McCutcheon whistle.
Wow, no holding back.
- Come on, Cade!
Whoo! - Here we go.
- [cheering]
♪
- Yeah!
- Whoo!
- Standing ovation!
- Whoo!
- Looked like a pretty good run.
It was a big stop.
- Look at that.
Oh, man.
- Score for draw two and Cade McCutcheon...
/.
- Whoo!
[rousing rock music]
- Ooh, what a way to start this thing.
[cheers and applause]
- Cade was just unbelievable.
I'm super proud. I'm super proud.
♪
- Whoo! - Yeah!
Yeah, baby!
- My horse was there for me every step of the way.
To take the lead is good
and--and hopefully it holds as long as it can.
- Perfect.
- But I'm not relaxing for even a second.
[muffled cheering]
[suspenseful music]
- I'm starting to get a little nervous,
I'm not gonna lie.
I, uh--just trying to hold it together
and act like I'm not for Matt.
- I won a gold medal for Team USA in ',
but I have not won a major event since.
♪
- Ladies and gentlemen, Matt Mills.
♪
- Here he comes.
[cheers and applause] - Whoa.
- Whoo! - Yes.
- He just stopped that horse all the way to Arizona.
- [sucking teeth]
- Yeah! - Whoo-whoo!
- Wow.
- [sucking teeth]
- Whoo!
- Oh, that's-- - Oh, no.
- Oh, break of gait.
♪
[cheers and applause]
♪
He's playing it a little safe through here
'cause you don't want to build those penalties.
- Come on! - [sucking teeth]
- You're good, Matt! Go!
♪
- Oh, he stepped out of that a little.
[cheers and applause]
Score for Matt Mills and Gin Drinking: .
[melancholy music]
♪
- [bleep]!
Did not see that coming.
That's a huge bobble in the last stop.
- He turned awesome.
[indistinct announcement over PA]
♪
Right? - Mm-hmm.
♪
- Oh, sorry. I just feel so bad for him.
But, you know, that's horse showing.
Yeah.
- Ladies and gentlemen,
let's go to our next young man:
Franco Bertolani.
[cheers and applause]
- Here we go.
[dramatic music]
Whoo!
Uh-oh.
One penalty in this game and you're not winning.
- Yes. - You gotta keep showing.
[cheers and applause]
Unfortunately, the penalty is gonna incur there.
- Yeah.
- Score for draw four, Done It For Whiskey
and Franco Bertolani: .
[cheers and applause]
♪
- When you start putting your show shirt on
it starts feeling like game time and...
you start getting ramped up a little bit.
You have to control your emotions
to keep from transferring that over to your horse.
- Sure he's feeling the nerves a little bit,
but he'll be good
when it's time to run through the gate.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Jason Vanlandingham.
- This is a cool horse.
- Whoa, whoa.
- Yeah! - Now that's pretty.
- Whoo!
- Wow, wow.
Wow! - Yeah!
- All of these guys can b*at me.
- Focus on your job right now.
- That's about this run.
He's gotta run clear the whole way.
Bang, go.
[cheers and applause]
♪
Oh, he came out a little bit.
It's hard to stop when you're going that fast.
- Score for Jason Vanlandingham
and A Vintage Smoke: /.
[inaudible dialogue]
- Oh, my God! - [laughs]
- A score of puts Jason in third place
and leaves Cade in the lead.
- That last stop, it was just--
- Pushed him too hard.
- Yeah, I know.
♪
- Whoa.
The ground's real fast and he is pulling a leg.
- It's too fast.
He didn't change his shoes, did he?
- No. - Okay.
- Ace is acting a little-- little unsettled and anxious.
Just feels so... [goofy vocalizing]
He's just slipping all around.
We should take him back to the stalls
and see if we can figure out what's wrong with him.
Every horse has a bad day.
You can have the best horse, but I'm worried
after a trip that long, I mean--
horses get stomach aches or anything can happen.
- Thank you.
I don't know what it was from.
I mean, I've never had that before,
but he's not acting like himself.
[sighs] I mean, it's just--
this is seriously bad timing.
Definitely feeling the pressure.
[cheers and applause]
male narrator: The Run for a Million's heating up...
with big scores from big riders...
but no one has been able to catch up
with -year-old Cade McCutcheon
and his score of /.
And while Abby Lengel frets over her horse, Ace...
- He's getting a drink.
- Good, I'm glad he's peeing.
- He had to go, too.
- Just a little worried about having enough time.
- Up next is $ million rider Duane Latimer on The Rock
hoping to take the lead.
- This is really hard to watch.
- Ladies and gentlemen, let's go to Duane Latimer
and Rough Little Magnum.
- Duane Latimer is showing The Rock here.
I have no doubt he'll have a great run on that horse.
- Wow, that's a start.
- But for me, there is-- there's no doubt
that I made the right decision.
- Ooh, a little over-spin.
- Get him stopped.
[dramatic music]
- Stopped him short... - Yep.
- And the judges will know that.
- Yep.
- Until then it was really good.
That stop I did not like.
- He missed both his right-lead stops.
- And your score for Duane Latimer
and Rough Little Magnum: /.
/.
narrator: Duane's bobble took him out of the run,
but Cade's top spot is far from guaranteed.
Two of the industry's top reiners are up next.
- Right now I'm thinking that this walk right here--
the next time I do it, it's either gonna be
the walk of fame or walk of shame.
[cheers and applause]
- I got the lead right now on Andreas
but he's a very heavy hitter.
He can definitely b*at me.
- Already close to a , so it's gonna be big scores.
Big scores tonight.
- Dude, I am still nervous.
- Hell, yeah, dude. - I cannot stand still.
- [smooches]
[suspenseful music]
- Good luck, Dad.
♪
- Well, wouldn't you know?
Right after the drag, Andrea Fappani's coming in.
♪
$ million rider right here.
He's gonna sh**t after that /
of Cade McCutcheon.
- Ladies and gentlemen, from Scottsdale, Arizona,
Andrea Fappani.
[cheers and applause]
- Here he comes.
♪
- Come on! - Whoo!
- Here we go.
[cheers and applause]
- Oh.
- Oh. - Whoo!
- Can't do it much better than that.
- Oh.
♪
[cheers and applause]
Wow. - Whoo!
- There's not a rider in our industry
as focused as this young man right here.
- Get it, Dad!
- [kissing]
[cheers and applause]
♪
- I honestly believe
this is the best horseman I've ever seen.
- Whoo!
- Let's go.
♪
Oh, a little rough right there.
He ran in and he had a little slippy in the stop.
- Minus half. - [laughs]
♪
[cheers and applause]
♪
- Come on. - Oh.
[both exclaim]
- Yeah! - Whoo!
[cheers and applause]
- Here they go. They're gonna stand up again.
- Here we go, back at the rock concert standing up.
- How cool is that? To have that stallion?
Andrea, he's showing some personality out there.
I like it.
- Score for Platinum Vintage and Andrea Fappani:
.
[cheers and applause]
Thank you, Andrea Fappani of Scottsdale, Arizona,
and Platinum Vintage.
- Cade is still leading this.
[tense music]
♪
[muffled cheering]
♪
- All right, good luck when you're going up.
If I don't see you before you go,
we'll be back in a new minutes.
- Okay, I love you. - I love you too.
Good luck. - Love you.
You know, the horse-showing part,
it--it's all really important, but...
- Stay with me. - Yep, I love you.
Pretty awesome to see the support they give him.
You know, they don't care if he wins or doesn't win,
but it's just nice to know you're loved.
[laughs] - We've done all we can do.
We're ready.
We're gonna give 'em hell.
- And I'm gonna tell you something about Andrea:
if that's the Michael Jordan of the sport,
Kobe Bryant's coming in next.
- Yep, yep.
- Craig Schmersal is coming in next.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Craig Schmersal.
[cheers and applause]
[dramatic music]
♪
- Yow!
- Yeah.
- Can't do it much better than that.
- [bleep].
♪
- This is where you really start to separate
from the other competition.
♪
Look at that-- - Oh.
- Wow. - Yeah!
- Oh! - Whoo!
- That's a plus /.
- Let's go! - But watch what he does now.
He's gonna find another gear on this big show horse.
- Whoo!
[cheers and applause]
♪
- Come on!
- Come on, let's go. - Oh.
[cheers and applause]
- Yeah!
- You can't stop any better than that.
Now that's pretty. - Whoo, whoo!
[cheers and applause]
- You were better.
- It's not over. - Thank you, Craig.
Craig Schmersal of Scottsdale, Arizona
on No Smoking Required.
Wow!
- The crowd does like this one also.
[tense music]
♪
- [bleep].
[bleep]!
♪
[suspenseful music]
♪
male narrator: It's down to the wire
at the Run for a Million.
Cade McCutcheon clings to first place at /,
but after completing an epic run,
Craig Schmersal threatens to take the top spot.
- It was so good. I mean, no matter what.
So proud of you.
- Score for No Smoking Required
and Craig Schmersal...
/.
[cheers and applause]
[dramatic music]
[laughs]
- Craig's score of / ties Cade for first place.
- That-a boy.
- That's what we're talking about.
- If they hold their lead through the last four riders,
they will have the option to compete again in a run-on
or share the title of co-champions.
♪
- Good job. - Thanks, man.
- Let's do it again. - I'm ready.
♪
[funky country rock music]
- Okay, he got a drink and he peed.
He's ready.
- Good to go? - You're good to go.
♪
That looks good, Abbs.
both: Yeah. - Maybe he did have to pee.
- Maybe.
- That scarf's a good touch, Albert.
- Thank you. - I should have worn one too.
A pink one.
[dramatic music]
Whoa.
I'm getting nervous but, you know,
the vets are assuring me that the slight injury
that Rickashy had on the way out here--
that it's really a non-issue,
and I feel like he's gonna show up for me.
- From Weatherford, Texas, ladies and gentlemen...
- Whoa. - Casey Deary!
- Okay, here comes Casey Deary.
- He's coming from the parking lot, I think.
- Yes, yes!
Yes, yes, yes!
- Come on, Casey, crush it. - Yeah!
[cheers and applause]
- Whoa.
- Little walk down the roll-backs, right?
Take--that takes a big stop down to a half like that.
[indistinct cheering]
♪
- Two. - Three.
♪
- Oh, the shut-off was just a little soft.
He's playing it a little safe through here
'cause you don't want to build those penalties.
- [kissing] [cheers and applause]
♪
You're getting really close to being off-pattern there, sport.
- To me, he almost ran too far.
- The crowd liked that more
than the judges are gonna like that.
- Come on, finish strong!
♪
- Little front ending on the stop there.
One penalty in this game and you're not winning.
♪
- Score for Casey Deary and Gunnarickashy,
and /.
- What'd he mark?
- Man, I missed my right two leads bad.
Just loud and I should have just pulled him.
No, I'm not really happy with my score.
You know, I would have loved for that horse to have won it.
Well, we tried, WD.
That's how it goes.
But I had a few bobbles there that took it away from him.
- I still love you. - Well--
- No matter what. - I was worried about that.
- No matter what. - [laughs]
- I still love you.
♪
- That's dumb. - Why?
- Because.
Just think about it a little bit.
- That's fine, that's fine. - you don't have to decide
right now, there's three left. - It's over.
- Listen, I don't want to upset you--
- Just focus on showing. Don't worry about me.
- What do you think? - I think there's three left.
We gotta get through that,
but I think they shouldn't run.
- No. - Split--
- For sure, and I'm sure Ginger thinks the same.
- They need to get that horse walked
'cause if there's a run-off--
- Uh, he needs to get back out here and--
- He needs to get walked.
- My mom doesn't think I can b*at him.
She told me not to ride.
- Dude, you can b*at him.
- I know I can, but they're not gonna let me run.
[cheers and applause]
- Don't leave anything on the table.
Just go for it. - Okay.
- Okay?
- This next individual grew up in eastern Colorado.
She's won nearly $/ million.
Ladies and gentlemen, Abby Lengel.
[cheers and applause]
- She's riding the only horse in her barn.
[dramatic music]
Come on, Abby. Come in here and crush it.
Bam.
Do it like that!
- Whoo!
[cheers and applause]
♪
- [kissing]
♪
- They're loving the only female in here.
They're loving it.
[cheers and applause]
She's running now. - Big news here, yeah.
- Wow.
She ran so fast her-- her number came off, I think.
- It's like a NASCAR race.
She's just driving everything off of it.
- Come on, come on, come on.
[cheers and applause]
Come on. - [cheering]
- Now, there's no strategy in this.
This is run as hard and as fast as you can.
- Come on, Abby! Big finish!
- Come on, Abby.
That right there.
- Whoo!
- Nice.
[crowd roars]
- Yow!
- Thank you, Abby Lengel and Gotta Twist It Up.
[cheers and applause]
- Great job, Abby.
- Pretty good. - Good job.
[cheers and applause]
- You've gotta go out there and give it everything,
and she did.
[cheers and applause]
- Score for Gotta Twist It Up and Abby Lengel:
.
[crowd booing]
- Uh-oh.
Oh, they're growling now.
- Holy smokes.
- Now, now, now.
[mixed cheering, booing]
- You dream about being in the same room with these guys
and now I'm--you know, I'm here competing against them,
and then to have the crowd stand up and do that
is the most humbling experience I've ever had
in my entire life.
- People standing up when they announced your name--
jumping up and down--
you're making a headline for women.
You b*at Casey's score.
- Yes, I did. - That's awesome, Abby.
- Good boy.
narrator: Cade and Craig are still tied for first place.
The two final riders must top the score of .
to take the lead.
If they don't succeed,
Cade and Craig could compete in a run-off
to determine the ultimate winner.
♪
- Well, ladies and gentlemen, two horses remaining.
Wow, what a night.
[suspenseful music]
- I'm coming off of a little bit
of a slow start for me this year,
but when you run through the gate,
you've gotta be feeling like you can be the winner.
- What do you think the feeling is
showing against your son that's tied for the event?
- Well, I think he's trying to b*at him.
- Yeah.
- He's trying to b*at the heck out of him.
- If he beats me, I'll [bleep] my pants.
- I hope he does. - So do I.
I mean, if I'm gonna get b*at, let him do it.
- From Aubrey, Texas, ladies and gentlemen,
Tom McCutcheon.
[cheers and applause]
♪
- Ladies and gentlemen, from Aubrey, Texas,
Tom McCutcheon.
- Come on, come on, come on!
- Come on, Tom. - Come on, go on.
- Come on, Tom. - [whistling]
- Look at that stop!
- [whistling]
- That right roll looked pretty big.
- This is one talented, talented guy.
[dramatic music]
- [whistling]
- He had a little slow-down on the third for sure.
- [whistles]
- I tell you, after knee surgery
you have a lot to kick.
- [whistling]
- He's doing everything he can.
His son turned out to be hard to b*at.
Come on, Tom McCutcheon, do it for the old guys.
- [cheering] Yeah!
[cheers and applause]
- Pick him up, pick him up. Come on, dude!
- This is a beautiful run. - Come on, come on!
- [whistling]
- Come on!
- Dang.
That's a plus-one stop if I've ever seen one.
- [cheering]
♪
- Dang. - Whoa!
- Look at that.
[cheers and applause]
- Yeah!
[cheering, whistling]
- That's a hit, all right.
[cheers and applause]
- You got everything there was to get.
- Score for Tom McCutcheon and Gunna Cash Ya:
.
- Wow, that hurts. That's tough.
[tense music]
- I mean, I was certainly disappointed
because my goal was to b*at those guys.
[sighs]
I wanted to be in the neighborhood, at least--
, , , whatever--
and that was a , which is a couple blocks away.
♪
- Well, ladies and gentlemen, we are getting closer
and closer to giving away $ million tonight.
- You're the best showman I've ever seen.
Go have fun. - Okay.
- Have fun. - Thank you.
- I love you. - I love you too.
[dramatic music]
♪
- Jordan Larson, he's a million-dollar rider for sure.
He'll bite you in the ass more times than he won't.
- Ladies and gentlemen, Jordan Larson.
- Jordan might b*at us.
[cheers and applause]
- Last horse. - Come on, Jordan.
- He's gonna pick up the pace here.
- He's not gonna play it safe.
- This is the fastest set of circles all night.
Oh, my God. - Wow.
Wow.
♪
- There he goes.
♪
- Uh-oh, that kind of came apart a little bit.
- That horse... - No.
- Did not stop right there.
Well, he left a little meat on the bone, you know?
- Thank you, Jordan.
Jordan Larson and ARC Gunnabeabigstar:
a /.
♪
Well, ladies and gentlemen, I will tell you
that there is a tie up at the top.
Just stay right where you're at.
We'll find out here shortly: run-off or not.
♪
- Taylor, let's walk... - Hey.
- Let's walk over here.
[suspenseful music]
♪
- So what you got?
♪
- It'd be a shame to go in there
and run those two horses
when they just threw their heart in the dirt for us.
♪
- My horse is tired. I couldn't even lead my horse.
- I'm happy to co-champion.
- No, I agree. Co-champ, that's good with me.
- So let's, uh...
[indistinct chatter]
- Congrats, Cade. [stammers]
[laughs] - Thank you, man.
- Hey, thank you. [overlapping chatter]
[upbeat music]
- How's everybody doing tonight?
Let me introduce you
to your Run for a Million co-champions:
Craig Schmersal and Cade McCutcheon.
[cheers and applause]
♪
- ♪ Oh-oh-oh
- Cade and Craig have agreed to be co-champions.
- You guys are not running it off for this whole thing?
You guys are-- you're not gonna run it off?
You are looking at the money.
Wow. - That's exactly right.
- Wow.
- Two great horses, two great runs.
We're end it-- end it on a good note.
[cheers and applause]
- I think that I took a big step
in getting out of the family's shadow
and making my own name tonight.
- It's so fantastic seeing him make those goals
and those dreams come-- you know, become reality.
If I'm gonna hang with him, I'm gonna have
to step up my game, it appears, so...
- Let's do another victory lap.
- Let's do--hell, yeah, we might as well!
- All right! - Let's ride, let's ride!
Let's ride!
- Cade's had an unbelievable rookie season.
That kid was bred to be in this moment.
- ♪ Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
[indistinct chatter]
♪ Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
[no audible dialogue]
- We saw some of the best horsemen and women
in the world tonight.
I hope you enjoyed it.
- ♪ Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
- Out of the greatest riders,
for Ace and I to come in sixth,
definitely a dream come true.
I really couldn't be any happier.
♪
- I definitely am the losing side tonight.
It's tough to swallow that, you know?
- Some days you make them, some days you miss them.
I mean, that's the way it goes, though.
I'm gonna start training now for next season,
I can tell you that.
- ♪ I came to claim my crown
[cheers and applause]
♪ Yeah, yeah
♪ Yeah
♪ I'm a champion
♪
[dramatic country music]
♪