A first Grand Championship
18
tracked contests to get there
This was WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 18th tracked contest.
Downtown BBQ Throwdown 2016
Apr 29–30, 2016 · Boca Raton, FL · 📍 100 NE Mizner Blvd
WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL won Grand Champion at the Downtown BBQ Throwdown on April 29, 2016 in Boca Raton, FL at 100 NE Mizner Blvd, scoring 695.9656 in a field of 16 teams. Uncle Kenny's Take-Away took Reserve Grand Champion with 686.1944. Category winners: Chicken — BLUE LINE BBQ OF FLORIDA (178.2972); Pork Ribs — WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL (178.8572); Pork — WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL (171.4056); Brisket — WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL (178.8800). This is the 1st of 4 editions of this contest on record; the next was held in 2016.
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.
397.14
median 617.57
695.97 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 178.30
- Pork Ribs 178.86
- Pork 171.41
- Brisket 178.88
20
178.88
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2016 to 2022 — this edition picked out.
Entries
16
4 judged meats
Top score
695.9656
Winning margin
9.7712
GC over RC
Field average
605.92
397.14695.97
median 617.57 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork
3.4400 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
611.7136
397.14695.97
10th place overall
Field spread
298.8232
winner to last place
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 50%
beats 50% of 4723 Master Series wins in the data
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.48 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,520
avg power rating going in · stronger than 14% 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.
A statement win
9.7712
points clear of the field
Wider than 87% of the 4,722 championships in the data
The champion won by 9.7712 points — a wider margin than 87% of championships in the data.
A hat-trick of category wins
3
category wins in a day
WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL won Pork Ribs, Pork, Brisket — a hat-trick, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 1st
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 5 calls decided inside half a point
Pork places 2–3: SMOKIN BLUE Q FL and Uncle Kenny's Take-Away tied on 169.6800 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 2–3: BLUE LINE BBQ OF FLORIDA edged Uncle Kenny's Take-Away by 0.0344. Pork places 7–8: R&R BBQUE OF MIAMI, FL edged THE Q by 0.0456.
- Pork 2–3 · tie
- Brisket 2–3 · 0.0344
- Pork 7–8 · 0.0456
- Pork 8–9 · 0.4572
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 3 outright wins — their weakest board was chicken at 5th.
- Chicken 5th
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 1st
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 29, 2016 ← this one | Boca Raton, FL | 100 NE Mizner Blvd | 16 | 695.9656 | WHISKEY BENT BBQ - FL | Uncle Kenny's Take-Away |
| Oct 7, 2016 | Hattiesburg, MS | 600 Walnut ST. | 26 | 694.7884 | BOOTYQUE | KILLER HOGS |
| Feb 17, 2017 | Boca Raton, FL | Mizner Park Ampetheater | 26 | 689.1084 | SMOKIN OFF THE GRID | Uncle Kenny's Take-Away |
| Apr 22, 2022 | Ripley, WV | 100 Court Street on the Town Square | 17 | 703.9544 | D'Qued Barbeque | Optimus Swine |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.2972 | 166.8228 | 157.7372 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 166.8228 | 156.5256 |
| Pork | 171.4056 | 167.9656 | 155.9772 |
| Brisket | 178.8800 | 165.1200 | 143.3372 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
16 entries · top 695.9656 · median 617.5712
Chicken
16 entries · top 178.2972 · median 159.0798
Pork Ribs
16 entries · top 178.8572 · median 161.0914
Pork
16 entries · top 171.4056 · median 158.5714
Brisket
16 entries · top 178.8800 · median 149.3770