A razor-thin finish
0.5716
points between champion and reserve
Closer than 90% of the 4,714 championships in the data
The Grand Championship was decided by 0.5716 points — closer than 90% of every championship in the data.
- MEAT MITCH
- SLAPS BBQ
VFW Post 846 6th Annual BBQ Challenge (10 TEAM SPOTS STILL AVAILABLE)
Apr 25–26, 2014 · Overland Park, KS
MEAT MITCH won Grand Champion at the VFW Post 846 6th Annual BBQ Challenge (10 TEAM SPOTS STILL AVAILABLE) on April 25, 2014 in Overland Park, KS, scoring 688.5488 in a field of 65 teams. SLAPS BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 687.9772. Category winners: Chicken — SLAPS BBQ (177.1544); Pork Ribs — THIS IS HOW WE QUE IT (177.7372); Pork — WHIMPY'S BBQ (176.5600); Brisket — SLAPS BBQ (175.4056).
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.
552.40
median 647.36
688.55 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.15
- Pork Ribs 177.74
- Pork 176.56
- Brisket 175.41
107.91
177.74
Entries
65
4 judged meats · 2 ancillary
Top score
688.5488
Winning margin
0.5716
GC over RC
Field average
644.88
552.40688.55
median 647.36 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
2.3316 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
674.7768
552.40688.55
10th place overall
Field spread
136.1492
winner to last place
Double threats
4
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 75%
beats 25% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.54 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,522
avg power rating going in · stronger than 15% of contests
Storylines (7 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
25-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 75 times in 100
MEAT MITCH came in rated below the field's top team, BUTCHER BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 25-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1515
- top seed 1708
Won without a category win
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
MEAT MITCH won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 3 calls from 4 boards, best of them 2nd. Consistency beat fireworks.
- Chicken 3rd
- Pork Ribs 2nd
- Pork 10th
- Brisket 17th
A first Grand Championship
4
tracked contests to get there
This was MEAT MITCH's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 4th tracked contest.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 9 calls decided inside half a point
Pork places 1–2: WHIMPY'S BBQ and JAESTAR BBQ tied on 176.5600 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 1–2: SLAPS BBQ edged GETTIN' SAUCED by 0.0116. Pork Ribs places 1–2: THIS IS HOW WE QUE IT edged MEAT MITCH by 0.0228.
- Pork 1–2 · tie
- Chicken 1–2 · 0.0116
- Pork Ribs 1–2 · 0.0228
- Brisket 6–7 · 0.0228
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
SLAPS BBQ won Chicken, Brisket — a double.
- Chicken 1st
- Brisket 1st
One of the big ones
65
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 94% of the 5,469 contests in the data
65 teams — bigger than 94% of the 5,469 contests in the data.
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)
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.1544 | 173.7144 | 170.3200 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.7372 | 175.4056 | 171.4056 |
| Pork | 176.5600 | 172.5944 | 170.8572 |
| Brisket | 175.4056 | 171.4172 | 168.6172 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
65 entries · top 688.5488 · median 647.3600
Chicken
65 entries · top 177.1544 · median 163.9888
Pork Ribs
65 entries · top 177.7372 · median 161.1200
Pork
65 entries · top 176.5600 · median 163.9772
Brisket
65 entries · top 175.4056 · median 159.9656
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.
Master Series — Dessert
12 entries · top 180 · median 174.2628 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | B & C SMOKERS | |
| 2 | Hog Lov'n | |
| 3 | WANNA B'S | |
| 4 | WHIMPY'S BBQ | |
| 5 | SMOKIN SUZY | |
| 6 | STICKS-N-CHICKS BBQ | |
| 7 | LADIES R SMOKIN | |
| 8 | JOUSTING PIGS BBQ 2.0 | |
| 9 | Fully Blown BBQ | |
| 10 | F.O.M.S.B. | |
| 11 | HALL OF FLAME | |
| 12 | LOVE 2 Q |
Master Series — Sausage
26 entries · top 174.2628 · median 167.9770
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | IRWIN'S PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 2 | JACKS OR BETTER | |
| 3 | HOGGY STYLE | |
| 4 | J. ADAMS RIB | |
| 5 | SMOKIN BAD HABIT | |
| 6 | FOUR MEN AND A PIG | |
| 7 | SMOKIN' R'S 2.0 | |
| 8 | SMOKIN SUZY | |
| 9 | PORKERSTARS | |
| 10 | SKUNK RIVER BBQ | |
| 11 | NO CLUE BARBQ OLATHE KS | |
| 12 | B & C SMOKERS | |
| 13 | SQUEAL OF APPROVAL | |
| 14 | LOVE 2 Q | |
| 15 | LOSING EFFORT | |
| 16 | BLUE BUCKET BBQ | |
| 17 | BROWNIES BBQ | |
| 18 | LADIES R SMOKIN | |
| 19 | MIDNIGHT STOKERS | |
| 20 | High I Que | |
| 21 | MAXIMUM LOIN | |
| 22 | HALL OF FLAME | |
| 23 | JOUSTING PIGS BBQ 2.0 | |
| 24 | Glazed & Confused | |
| 25 | F.O.M.S.B. | |
| 26 | SMOKIN IN THE BOARDROOM |