A new contest record
691.3484
highest overall ever cooked here
691.3484 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 689.6684 BIG JT'S SMOKIN BBQ set in 2014.
- old record 689.6684
- set 2014 by BIG JT'S SMOKIN BBQ
Madison Ribberfest BBQ & Blues Festival 2015
Aug 21–22, 2015 · Madison, IN
BARK BROTHERS BBQ won Grand Champion at the Madison Ribberfest BBQ & Blues Festival on August 21, 2015 in Madison, IN, scoring 691.3484 in a field of 64 teams. EAT MOR BUTT BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 686.9028. Category winners: Chicken — FOWL BUTT BBQ (177.7028); Pork Ribs — HUG HOGS (175.4172); Pork — YELLOW RIVER BBQ (180.0000); Brisket — MAKING MEAT BBQ (179.4400). This is the 2nd of 7 editions of this contest on record; the 2014 edition was won by BIG JT'S SMOKIN BBQ; the next was held in 2017.
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.
582.71
median 661.58
691.35 🏆
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 175.42
- Pork 180 🔥
- Brisket 179.44
125.66
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2014 to 2022 — this edition picked out.
Entries
64
4 judged meats · 2 ancillary
Top score
691.3484
Winning margin
4.4456
GC over RC
Field average
653.62
582.71691.35
median 661.58 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
1.7144 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
681.0744
582.71691.35
10th place overall
Field spread
108.6396
winner to last place
Double threats
2
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 67%
beats 33% of 4714 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
57%
34 of 60 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.71 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,568
avg power rating going in · stronger than 52% of contests
Storylines (10 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
7-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 93 times in 100
BARK BROTHERS BBQ came in rated below the field's top team, IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 7-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1512
- top seed 1959
Won without a category win
2 of 4
meats called to the stage
BARK BROTHERS BBQ won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 2 calls from 4 boards, best of them 7th. Consistency beat fireworks.
- Chicken 7th
- Pork Ribs 10th
- Pork 14th
- Brisket 11th
A first Grand Championship
13
tracked contests to get there
This was BARK BROTHERS BBQ's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 13th tracked contest.
A dynasty in the making
2×
wins at this contest
2 of 7 tracked editions
GREY STREET BBQ has won this contest 2 times across its 7 tracked editions.
- 2017
- 2019
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 15 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 2–3: Organizer Portal and VELVET SMOKE tied on 176.5828 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 9–10: GREY STREET BBQ and DOLF'S BBQ tied on 173.1200 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 9–10: IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ and BARK BROTHERS BBQ tied on 171.9772 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 2–3 · tie
- Chicken 9–10 · tie
- Pork Ribs 9–10 · tie
- Pork 3–4 · tie
A contest record in brisket
179.4400
best brisket ever cooked here
MAKING MEAT BBQ turned in 179.4400 in brisket — past the 176.5600 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 176.5600
- across 1 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: BIG JT'S SMOKIN BBQ (won 2014).
- BIG JT'S SMOKIN BBQ · 2014
One of the big ones
64
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 93% of the 5,468 contests in the data
64 teams — bigger than 93% of the 5,468 contests in the data.
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.
- YELLOW RIVER BBQ · Pork
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 15, 2014 | Madison, IN | Madison, IN 47250 | 60 | 689.6684 | BIG JT'S SMOKIN BBQ | ONE2BBQ |
| Aug 21, 2015 ← this one | Madison, IN | Madison, IN 47250 | 64 | 691.3484 | BARK BROTHERS BBQ | EAT MOR BUTT BBQ |
| Aug 18, 2017 | Madison, IN | Madison, IN | 55 | 701.6456 | GREY STREET BBQ | EXTRA MILE BBQ |
| Aug 17, 2018 | Madison, IN | Broadway and Vaughn St | 54 | 701.6456 | THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ | GREY STREET BBQ |
| Aug 16, 2019 | Madsion, IN | Broadway and Vaughn St | 47 | 702.8228 | Grey Street BBQ | BLUE CHIP BBQ |
| Aug 20, 2021 | Madison, IN | 601 W First St. | 43 | 698.2400 | Bleacher Bums BBQ | SMOKE-N-PEPPERS |
| Aug 19, 2022 | Madison, IN | 100 Broadway Street | 45 | 703.3944 | Blue Chip BBQ | CONTINENTAL BARBEQUE CO. |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7028 | 175.4172 | 173.1200 |
| Pork Ribs | 175.4172 | 173.7028 | 171.9772 |
| Pork | 180 | 174.8800 | 173.1200 |
| Brisket | 179.4400 | 173.7028 | 172.5600 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
64 entries · top 691.3484 · median 661.5828
Chicken
64 entries · top 177.7028 · median 166.2628
Pork Ribs
64 entries · top 175.4172 · median 164.2572
Pork
64 entries · top 180 · median 165.4228 · 🔥 perfect 180
Brisket
64 entries · top 179.4400 · median 163.1258
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 — Anything Butt
20 entries · top 177.7028 · median 165.9942
Master Series — Dessert
19 entries · top 180 · median 173.7028 · 🔥 perfect 180