Rae Croteau Jr. – First Place In Every Category After 3 Nights In Calgary
Photo By Shellie Scott
Afternoon rains may have slowed the times on Night 3 of the 2026 Calgary Stampede Rangeland Derby presented by Play Alberta, but they did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of another capacity crowd. By the time the evening wrapped up, it was Rae Croteau Jr., driving the Bar L5 Ranch Ltd. outfit, who claimed the Kirk’s Trail Tire Wheels on Fire Fast Time of the Night for the second consecutive evening with a clean run of 1:14.46.
Coming off barrel number two in the eighth heat, Croteau Jr. pulled away from the field to win the heat and post the fastest time of the night by more than one second. Two-time Rangeland Derby Champion Jason Glass finished second on the evening, followed by Jamie Laboucane and Kurt Bensmiller, while Dayton Sutherland and rookie driver Layne Flad rounded out the top six with a tie for fifth.
Back-to-back nightly victories have moved Rae Croteau Jr. to the top of the overall aggregate standings with a three-day combined time of 3:39.02. He holds a 0.66-second advantage over 2025 finalist Jamie Laboucane, while defending champion Chanse Vigen sits third overall. 2019 Rangeland Derby Champion Logan Gorst now sits fourth, nearly two and a half seconds back of a top-three position, with Chad Fike rounding out the top five after three nights of racing.
The top three drivers in the aggregate standings following racing on Saturday, July 11, will advance to the Championship Final Heat. The winner of that heat will be crowned the 2026 Calgary Stampede Rangeland Derby presented by Play Alberta Champion.
Live coverage of Day 4 of the 2026 Calgary Stampede Rangeland Derby presented by Play Alberta can be heard Monday night, July 6, 2026 on WPCA Radio beginning at 7:15 p.m. MDT on 96.5 The Ranch. Fans can also listen via streaming through the WPCA website, the iHeartRadio app, or the Radioplayer Canada app. Television coverage begins at 8:30 p.m. local time on Sportsnet One. Check your local listings.
Billy Melville
