Decided by a tiebreaker
Tie
identical totals at the top
The top two teams finished on identical totals — the Grand Championship came down to the KCBS tiebreaker rules.
Dinuba's BBQ & Brew Fest 2024
Mar 15–16, 2024 · Dinuba, CA · 📍 855 E El Monte Way · State championship
Reps: Ian Schmidt, Julie Poe · Prize money: $6,000
OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ won Grand Champion at the Dinuba's BBQ & Brew Fest on March 15, 2024 in Dinuba, CA at 855 E El Monte Way, scoring 698.2744 in a field of 27 teams. Bad Bears BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 698.2744. Category winners: Chicken — BONE RUBBIN BBQ (180.0000); Pork Ribs — Meat Candy Q (179.4400); Pork — B' MACKIN BBQ (179.4400); Brisket — OM BBQ COMPANY (177.1428). This is the 1st of 5 editions of this contest on record; the next was held in 2025.
The contest at a glance (read off the scored boards)
How the field scored
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
623.20
median 675.34
698.27 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 180 🔥
- Pork Ribs 179.44
- Pork 179.44
- Brisket 177.14
134.79
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2024 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
27
4 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
698.2744
Winning margin
Tie
identical totals — KCBS tiebreaker
Field average
671.17
623.20698.27
median 675.34 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Brisket
2.2512 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
681.6232
623.20698.27
10th place overall
Field spread
75.0744
winner to last place
Prize money
$6,000
on the line
Double threats
5
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 40%
beats 60% of 4714 Master Series wins in the data
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.59 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,575
avg power rating going in · stronger than 60% of contests
Storylines (5 found in this contest's numbers)
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
An upset on the books
27-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 73 times in 100
Old Town Franklin BBQ came in rated below the field's top team, Meat Candy Q, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 27-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1660
- top seed 1833
Won without a category win
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 4 calls from 4 boards, best of them 3rd. Consistency beat fireworks.
- Chicken 7th
- Pork Ribs 5th
- Pork 3rd
- Brisket 6th
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 9 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 4–5: Bad Bears BBQ and OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ tied on 175.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 7–8: SMOKIN' BLISS BBQ and SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ tied on 173.7028 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 5–6: Bad Bears BBQ edged OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ by 0.0116.
- Pork Ribs 4–5 · tie
- Pork 7–8 · tie
- Brisket 5–6 · 0.0116
- Brisket 7–8 · 0.0228
A perfect score on the table
1
perfect 180s
1 perfect 180 was scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- BONE RUBBIN BBQ · Chicken
Score curves (score by finishing position — steep cliffs mean a spread field, flat lines a knife fight)
Category showdown (top / average / median score per meat)
Score distribution
Biggest rating movers (power-rating points won and lost at this contest)
Did form hold? (pre-contest rating vs overall finish — ratings called it if the dots climb to the right)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 15, 2024 ← this one | Dinuba, CA | 855 E El Monte Way | 27 | 698.2744 | Old Town Franklin BBQ | Bad Bears BBQ |
| Mar 14, 2025 | Dinuba, CA | 855 E El Monte Way | 26 | 699.4400 | Meat Candy Q | Big Boys BBQ |
| Mar 20, 2026 | Dinuba, CA | Rose Ann Vuich Park | 27 | 705.1200 | Cynical BBQ | Big Cat BBQ |
| Apr 2, 2027 | Dinuba, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Apr 2, 2027 | Dinuba, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 180 | 171.4056 | 169.6684 |
| Pork Ribs | 179.4400 | 175.4172 | 171.4172 |
| Pork | 179.4400 | 175.4172 | 171.9772 |
| Brisket | 177.1428 | 174.8916 | 172.5600 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
27 entries · top 698.2744 · median 675.3368
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ | |
| 2 | Bad Bears BBQ | |
| 3 | OM BBQ COMPANY | |
| 4 | B' MACKIN BBQ | |
| 5 | STEVO'S BBQ TEAM | |
| 6 | BONE RUBBIN BBQ | |
| 7 | Big Cat BBQ | |
| 8 | Rio Good BBQ | |
| 9 | SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ | |
| 10 | Big Boys BBQ | |
| 11 | Meat Candy Q | |
| 12 | BAR-B-CUDA BBQ | |
| 13 | SMOKIN' BLISS BBQ | |
| 14 | PORTERHOUSE BBQ | |
| 15 | BULL MARKET BBQ | |
| 16 | RBQ | |
| 17 | NUTIN2IT BUT2QIT | |
| 18 | PORKCHOP & BUBBAS | |
| 19 | Beards BBQ | |
| 20 | GRILLIN' THE SHED | |
| 21 | Mid Valley BBQ | |
| 22 | Sequoia Smoke | |
| 23 | PRISON BREAK BBQ | |
| 24 | Sweets N Meats BBQ | |
| 25 | AJ’S SMOKEHOUSE BBQ | |
| 26 | AK47 BBQ | |
| 27 | Don't Bite The Bone BBQ |
Chicken
27 entries · top 180 · median 166.8572 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BONE RUBBIN BBQ | |
| 2 | BAR-B-CUDA BBQ | |
| 3 | Rio Good BBQ | |
| 4 | SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ | |
| 5 | Bad Bears BBQ | |
| 6 | SMOKIN' BLISS BBQ | |
| 7 | OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ | |
| 8 | Sweets N Meats BBQ | |
| 9 | B' MACKIN BBQ | |
| 10 | Big Cat BBQ | |
| 11 | OM BBQ COMPANY | |
| 12 | NUTIN2IT BUT2QIT | |
| 13 | Meat Candy Q | |
| 14 | Sequoia Smoke | |
| 15 | RBQ | |
| 16 | PORTERHOUSE BBQ | |
| 17 | Big Boys BBQ | |
| 18 | GRILLIN' THE SHED | |
| 19 | BULL MARKET BBQ | |
| 20 | STEVO'S BBQ TEAM | |
| 21 | Beards BBQ | |
| 22 | PORKCHOP & BUBBAS | |
| 23 | Mid Valley BBQ | |
| 24 | PRISON BREAK BBQ | |
| 25 | AJ’S SMOKEHOUSE BBQ | |
| 26 | Don't Bite The Bone BBQ | |
| 27 | AK47 BBQ |
Pork Ribs
27 entries · top 179.4400 · median 168
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meat Candy Q | |
| 2 | STEVO'S BBQ TEAM | |
| 3 | OM BBQ COMPANY | |
| 4 | Bad Bears BBQ | |
| 5 | OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ | |
| 6 | PORTERHOUSE BBQ | |
| 7 | BAR-B-CUDA BBQ | |
| 8 | Big Boys BBQ | |
| 9 | Mid Valley BBQ | |
| 10 | Rio Good BBQ | |
| 11 | SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ | |
| 12 | Big Cat BBQ | |
| 13 | SMOKIN' BLISS BBQ | |
| 14 | NUTIN2IT BUT2QIT | |
| 15 | PORKCHOP & BUBBAS | |
| 16 | B' MACKIN BBQ | |
| 17 | BONE RUBBIN BBQ | |
| 18 | PRISON BREAK BBQ | |
| 19 | Don't Bite The Bone BBQ | |
| 20 | Beards BBQ | |
| 21 | RBQ | |
| 22 | BULL MARKET BBQ | |
| 23 | GRILLIN' THE SHED | |
| 24 | AJ’S SMOKEHOUSE BBQ | |
| 25 | Sweets N Meats BBQ | |
| 26 | AK47 BBQ | |
| 27 | Sequoia Smoke |
Pork
27 entries · top 179.4400 · median 169.1428
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | B' MACKIN BBQ | |
| 2 | Big Cat BBQ | |
| 3 | OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ | |
| 4 | Bad Bears BBQ | |
| 5 | STEVO'S BBQ TEAM | |
| 6 | PORKCHOP & BUBBAS | |
| 7 | SMOKIN' BLISS BBQ | |
| 8 | SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ | |
| 9 | AK47 BBQ | |
| 10 | OM BBQ COMPANY | |
| 11 | BULL MARKET BBQ | |
| 12 | BONE RUBBIN BBQ | |
| 13 | Sequoia Smoke | |
| 14 | Sweets N Meats BBQ | |
| 15 | Mid Valley BBQ | |
| 16 | RBQ | |
| 17 | Meat Candy Q | |
| 18 | BAR-B-CUDA BBQ | |
| 19 | Big Boys BBQ | |
| 20 | NUTIN2IT BUT2QIT | |
| 21 | GRILLIN' THE SHED | |
| 22 | Beards BBQ | |
| 23 | Rio Good BBQ | |
| 24 | PRISON BREAK BBQ | |
| 25 | PORTERHOUSE BBQ | |
| 26 | AJ’S SMOKEHOUSE BBQ | |
| 27 | Don't Bite The Bone BBQ |
Brisket
27 entries · top 177.1428 · median 168.5600
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | OM BBQ COMPANY | |
| 2 | B' MACKIN BBQ | |
| 3 | Big Boys BBQ | |
| 4 | RBQ | |
| 5 | Bad Bears BBQ | |
| 6 | OLD TOWN FRANKLIN BBQ | |
| 7 | BULL MARKET BBQ | |
| 8 | PORTERHOUSE BBQ | |
| 9 | Rio Good BBQ | |
| 10 | STEVO'S BBQ TEAM | |
| 11 | BONE RUBBIN BBQ | |
| 12 | NUTIN2IT BUT2QIT | |
| 13 | Big Cat BBQ | |
| 14 | Beards BBQ | |
| 15 | GRILLIN' THE SHED | |
| 16 | SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ | |
| 17 | Sequoia Smoke | |
| 18 | Meat Candy Q | |
| 19 | SMOKIN' BLISS BBQ | |
| 20 | PORKCHOP & BUBBAS | |
| 21 | PRISON BREAK BBQ | |
| 22 | AK47 BBQ | |
| 23 | BAR-B-CUDA BBQ | |
| 24 | Mid Valley BBQ | |
| 25 | Sweets N Meats BBQ | |
| 26 | AJ’S SMOKEHOUSE BBQ | |
| 27 | Don't Bite The Bone BBQ |
Ancillary categories
Run by the organizers alongside the sanctioned contest. These are judged on their own terms and do not count toward the overall score, so they're kept out of the meat stats above.
Ancillary — Dessert
6 entries · top 180 · median 175.4286 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BAR-B-CUDA BBQ | |
| 2 | OM BBQ COMPANY | |
| 3 | West Coast BBQ Shop | |
| 4 | Bad Bears BBQ | |
| 5 | Big Boys BBQ | |
| 6 | Sweets N Meats BBQ |