When spectators fill the stands to watch athletes compete in a professional sport, it’s expected to see the best of the best out on the playing field. Since the Open Cutting Horse Challenge was added to the docket in 2023 at The Run For A Million, four riders’ names have consistently graced the draw each and every year among the field of 15.
And it’s no surprise who they are — in 2026, Adan Banuelos, Kenny Platt, defending TRFAM Cutting Horse Challenge champion Michael Cooper and 2024 TRFAM Cutting Horse Challenge champion Austin Shepard will each be competing in the Challenge for the fourth time as the only riders to do so.
The quartet represents some of the highest money-earners in the National Cutting Horse Association. Shepard has won more than $12.6 million; Banuelos’ lifetime earnings top $9.2 million; Cooper’s over $6.7 million and Platt has more than $5.8 million.
“It’s super special. It’s hard anywhere, no matter what you look at. Even when you look at all these young guys coming up, there’s so much talent. No matter what you’re doing, to be in a crowd of these kinds of guys and especially to be this consistent, it’s very special,” Cooper said.
TRFAM added $250,000 to the Open Cutting Horse Challenge this year, up from $200,000 in 2025. All 15 contestants get a paycheck with the top three placings receiving $55,000, $40,000, and $32,000, respectively, down to 15th earning $8,000.
2026 also marks the first year of the $125,000 Non Pro Cutting Challenge, with the winner taking home $27,500, second place $20,000 and third place $16,000. All 15 competitors in the Non Pro also get paid, with the last hole paying $4,000.
The competing athletes appreciate how TRFAM continues to expand its payout and roster of classes and the ways the event contributes to the horse industry across the reining, cutting and cow horse disciplines.
“To be able to come back and be a part of what Taylor’s doing for the industry, not just for cutting, but for the entire equine and cowboy world, it’s huge,” Banuelos said. “Thank God for horses, because no horses, no me, no life. I do believe God put me on this earth to do this, so the fact I’m here means the world, and I just feel blessed. We can’t go down there on two legs, so the fact Taylor gives these horses the opportunity, we’re lucky to be here on them.”
Cutters secured a spot in Vegas at TRFAM by finishing in the top 15 at the 2025 Brazos Bash in Weatherford, Texas. Qualification is based on the rider, not the horse, and each trainer knows the importance of choosing a heavyweight horse for the fight in Vegas.
“It takes an extreme amount of grit and a soldier, because it’s a lot put to them with the crowd, lights, the action and stuff. It takes a real soldier that wants to be committed and have the focus,” Cooper said.
The horsemen place a high emphasis on the opportunity to showcase their equine athletes to an audience beyond those who typically follow the sport of cutting.
“It takes a horse that can perform on a big stage. It’s not like any other cutting you go to. Big crowd, lights on, everything has to fit. It takes a horse that can take the pressure,” Shepard said. “It’s a yearly goal for me [to qualify]. It promotes the horse so well. I consider it more of an event for the horse than us. So many people, reiners, cow horse guys, will come up and are impressed by your horse. It’s a really neat way to honor a really great horse.”
TRFAM stands apart from other horse shows in that it unites the most elite riders across three Western performance horse disciplines, something that competitors don’t get to experience at their typical shows.
“It brings together a lot of different disciplines, you see a lot of people you don’t normally get to see, and you get to be around a lot that you don’t normally get to be around. For somebody who really loves horses, this is a neat deal,” Platt said. “Riding around people like [NRHA $10 Million Rider] Andrea Fappani who are great, it’s neat. It’s a cool event to be a part of.”
Ultimately, the honor of being able to show a horse on a grand stage to a diverse audience and spend time alongside the revered horses and horsemen in other disciplines makes qualifying for TRFAM once, much less four times, a treasured accomplishment in any rider’s career.
“I enjoy it, because you always want the best of the best. You want to watch the best,” Cooper said. “I was down there today loping my horse around and watching those top reiners, going and talking with those guys and how they break everything down. Those top guys are competing against themselves every day, no matter what. That’s what’s special to me is you never go to another spot in our cutting career that all of us are in one building. I just love to watch the best of the best.”
Who They’re Riding
Austin Shepard & Rollz Eh
2021 mare, Rollz Royce x This Cats Smilen x WR This Cats Smart, owned by Billy Wolf, bred by Todd Nelson.
Lifetime earnings over $732,000
“It’s the first year I’ve shown her here. She was NCHA Horse of the Year last year and is just a really good little mare. I was lucky enough to have trained her, and she’s only 5, so she’s halfway through her career.”
–Austin Shepard
Adan Banuelos & Reyzin The Limit
2021 stallion, Reyzin The Cash x Metallistic x Metallic Cat, owned and bred by Katie Gaughan Banuelos
Lifetime earnings over $559,000
“Last year I rode Reyzin The Limit here, and I’m going to ride him again this year. Confidence is the main thing. It doesn’t always have to do with which horse is the best this year. It happens that he’s my best horse, and his confidence is high. But sometimes we’re looking for a horse that’s not threatened, that owns the arena he’s in. This year I just happen to have the package.”
–Adan Banuelos
Kenny Platt & LBR Hangem
2020 stallion, Dual Reyish x Hangem High Pep x Hickorys Indian Pep, owned by Shotty Syndicate, bred by Charles Burger
Lifetime earnings over $444,000
“I’ve shown him since he was 3, [and have] been able to win a lot of cuttings on him. He’s an unbelievable horse, probably one of the best ones I’ve gotten to have.”
–Kenny Platt
Michael Cooper & Vitanni
2021 mare, Rollz Royce x Cool As A Cat x Smooth As A Cat, owned by Theorem Performance Horses LLC, bred by G. Randal Carter
Lifetime earnings over $230,000
“She’s the most fragile horse I’ve brought here, in a good way. They feel the energy, so you don’t ever know exactly [how they’ll respond]. I think her focus to want to cut that cow, her willingness to want to hold that cow like a winner does, will override whatever [else is going on around her].”
–Michael Cooper
