A new contest record
699.9888
highest overall ever cooked here
699.9888 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 691.4286 LOTTA BULL BBQ set in 2013.
- old record 691.4286
- set 2013 by LOTTA BULL BBQ
Rock'n Freedom 2015
Jun 19–20, 2015 · Seymour, MO
BLAZIN' BLUES BBQ won Grand Champion at the Rock'n Freedom on June 19, 2015 in Seymour, MO, scoring 699.9888 in a field of 36 teams. THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 695.9428. Category winners: Chicken — COUNTY LINE SMOKERS (177.7028); Pork Ribs — SLAPS BBQ (178.8572); Pork — IN DEEP SAUCE (178.8572); Brisket — BURNT AT BOTH ENDZ (177.1428). This is the 3rd of 3 editions of this contest on record; the 2014 edition was won by CLARK KENT SUPER SMOKERS.
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.
568.38
median 668.24
699.99 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.70
- Pork Ribs 178.86
- Pork 178.86
- Brisket 177.14
135.39
178.86
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2015 — this edition picked out.
Entries
36
4 judged meats · 3 ancillary
Top score
699.9888
Winning margin
4.0460
GC over RC
Field average
662.83
568.38699.99
median 668.24 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Brisket
1.7256 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
679.3372
568.38699.99
10th place overall
Field spread
131.6116
winner to last place
Double threats
4
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 32%
beats 68% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
39%
13 of 33 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.82 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,589
avg power rating going in · stronger than 71% of contests
Storylines (6 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
BLAZIN' BLUES BBQ came in rated below the field's top team, THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 27-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1678
- top seed 1853
Won without a category win
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
BLAZIN' BLUES BBQ won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 4 calls from 4 boards, best of them 2nd. Consistency beat fireworks.
- Chicken 2nd
- Pork Ribs 8th
- Pork 5th
- Brisket 3rd
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 9 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 6–7: SMOOTH SMOKE and PORK N' CIDER tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 7–8: PORK N' CIDER and THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 4–5: HOG TIDE BAR-B-QUE and THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ tied on 176.5600 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 6–7 · tie
- Chicken 7–8 · tie
- Pork Ribs 4–5 · tie
- Pork Ribs 9–10 · tie
A contest record in chicken
177.7028
best chicken ever cooked here
COUNTY LINE SMOKERS turned in 177.7028 in chicken — past the 177.1428 that had stood across 2 earlier editions.
- old best 177.1428
- across 2 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: CLARK KENT SUPER SMOKERS (won 2014).
- CLARK KENT SUPER SMOKERS · 2014
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 20, 2013 | Seymour, MO | Seymour, MO | 50 | 691.4286 | LOTTA BULL BBQ | BURNT FINGER BBQ |
| Jun 20, 2014 | Seymour, MO | Seymour, MO 65746 | 33 | 690.2288 | CLARK KENT SUPER SMOKERS | COUNTY LINE SMOKERS |
| Jun 19, 2015 ← this one | Seymour, MO | Seymour, MO 65746 | 36 | 699.9888 | BLAZIN' BLUES BBQ | THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7028 | 174.2972 | 173.1200 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 176.5600 | 170.8344 |
| Pork | 178.8572 | 175.4056 | 170.2744 |
| Brisket | 177.1428 | 175.4172 | 171.9656 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
36 entries · top 699.9888 · median 668.2400
Chicken
36 entries · top 177.7028 · median 168.5486
Pork Ribs
36 entries · top 178.8572 · median 166.5428
Pork
36 entries · top 178.8572 · median 166.2400
Brisket
36 entries · top 177.1428 · median 163.9370
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
6 entries · top 179.4400 · median 171.9828
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Our Butts are Smokin | |
| 2 | BRICKHEAD BBQ | |
| 3 | Eli's Smokin' Pit Crew | |
| 4 | EPIC BBQ CRU | |
| 5 | Rusty Pig | |
| 6 | BLOWN AWAY BBQ |
Master Series — Kids 11-15
2 entries · top 176.5600 · median 175.1314
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Madelyn Kyle | |
| 2 | Even Rust |
Master Series — Kids 5-10
11 entries · top 179.4400 · median 173.1084
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sophie Rust | |
| 2 | Claire Rust | |
| 3 | Callie Matney | |
| 4 | Olivia Kyle | |
| 5 | Eli Muilenburg | |
| 6 | Hadley McNatt | |
| 7 | Keaton Essary | |
| 8 | Carson Essary | |
| 9 | Micah Sturdefant | |
| 10 | Noland | |
| 11 | Kade Sturdefant |