A first Grand Championship
1
title in the data
This was KC SMOKIN' SPORTS's first Grand Championship in the data.
UMB Smokin' Vault (Competitors Invitational Series) 2016
May 6–7, 2016 · Kansas City, MO · 📍 American Royal Complex
KC SMOKIN' SPORTS won Grand Champion at the UMB Smokin' Vault (Competitors Invitational Series) on May 6, 2016 in Kansas City, MO at American Royal Complex, scoring 669.6116 in a field of 24 teams. SMOKER BANDITS took Reserve Grand Champion with 655.9768. Category winners: Chicken — KC SMOKIN' SPORTS (168.5372); Pork Ribs — Meat Rushmore (168.0116); Pork — KC SMOKIN' SPORTS (171.4172); Brisket — LOS GATOS GORDOS (172.5944). This is the 2nd of 4 editions of this contest on record; the 2015 edition was won by Bone Daddy's Mystic BBQ Crewe; 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.
408.70
median 607.10
669.61 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 168.54
- Pork Ribs 168.01
- Pork 171.42
- Brisket 172.59
124.05
172.59
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2015 to 2018 — this edition picked out.
Entries
24
4 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
669.6116
Winning margin
13.6348
GC over RC
Field average
597.56
408.70669.61
median 607.10 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
2.8916 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
611.9996
408.70669.61
10th place overall
Field spread
260.9148
winner to last place
Double threats
7
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 97%
beats 3% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
35%
8 of 23 teams from the previous edition returned
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
13.6348
points clear of the field
Wider than 94% of the 4,714 championships in the data
The champion won by 13.6348 points — a wider margin than 94% of championships in the data.
Photo finishes
0.0112
closest of 4 calls decided inside half a point
Pork places 8–9: Meat Me in St. Louie edged 2 B SMOKIN by 0.0112. Chicken places 4–5: PARK AVENUE PORK edged PERFECT VILLAGE BBQ by 0.0116. Pork Ribs places 8–9: SMOKER BANDITS edged Men of Erin by 0.0228.
- Pork 8–9 · 0.0112
- Chicken 4–5 · 0.0116
- Pork Ribs 8–9 · 0.0228
- Pork Ribs 1–2 · 0.0460
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
KC SMOKIN' SPORTS won Chicken, Pork — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork 1st
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
KC SMOKIN' SPORTS took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 2 outright wins — their weakest board was brisket at 6th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 2nd
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 6th
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
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 1, 2015 | Kansas City, MO | Kansas City, MO 64102 | 23 | 682.8572 | Bone Daddy's Mystic BBQ Crewe | ParBQue |
| May 6, 2016 ← this one | Kansas City, MO | American Royal Complex | 24 | 669.6116 | KC SMOKIN' SPORTS | SMOKER BANDITS |
| May 5, 2017 | Kansas City, MO | 1701 American Royal Ct | 17 | 666.8116 | SMOKER BANDITS | PARK AVENUE PORK |
| May 4, 2018 | Kansas City, MO | 1701 American Royal Ct | 14 | 685.1084 | DRUM DADDY BBQ | PARK AVENUE PORK |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 168.5372 | 165.1428 | 158.8344 |
| Pork Ribs | 168.0116 | 165.1200 | 157.7828 |
| Pork | 171.4172 | 167.4516 | 152.5828 |
| Brisket | 172.5944 | 162.3200 | 153.1540 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
24 entries · top 669.6116 · median 607.1028
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | KC SMOKIN' SPORTS | |
| 2 | SMOKER BANDITS | |
| 3 | DRUM DADDY BBQ | |
| 4 | SMOK-A-HOLICS | |
| 5 | Meat Rushmore | |
| 6 | LOS GATOS GORDOS | |
| 7 | PARK AVENUE PORK | |
| 8 | Men of Erin | |
| 9 | GRILLE BILLIES | |
| 10 | VEAL TEAM 6 | |
| 11 | RACK ATTACK | |
| 12 | Meat Me in St. Louie | |
| 13 | Still BBQ'N | |
| 14 | PERFECT VILLAGE BBQ | |
| 15 | Tailgate Warriors | |
| 16 | mPOWER'd SMOKE BBQ | |
| 17 | 2 B SMOKIN | |
| 18 | NOTORIOUS P.I.G. | |
| 19 | MAD SMOKERS | |
| 20 | buBByQ | |
| 21 | SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM | |
| 22 | MILWAUKEE BREW CREW | |
| 23 | FATTYSHACK BBQ | |
| 24 | Glazed and Confused |
Chicken
24 entries · top 168.5372 · median 156.2514
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | KC SMOKIN' SPORTS | |
| 2 | VEAL TEAM 6 | |
| 3 | SMOK-A-HOLICS | |
| 4 | PARK AVENUE PORK | |
| 5 | PERFECT VILLAGE BBQ | |
| 6 | SMOKER BANDITS | |
| 7 | DRUM DADDY BBQ | |
| 8 | Tailgate Warriors | |
| 9 | Glazed and Confused | |
| 10 | RACK ATTACK | |
| 11 | 2 B SMOKIN | |
| 12 | FATTYSHACK BBQ | |
| 13 | MAD SMOKERS | |
| 14 | Meat Me in St. Louie | |
| 15 | mPOWER'd SMOKE BBQ | |
| 16 | GRILLE BILLIES | |
| 17 | Still BBQ'N | |
| 18 | Men of Erin | |
| 19 | Meat Rushmore | |
| 20 | NOTORIOUS P.I.G. | |
| 21 | LOS GATOS GORDOS | |
| 22 | SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM | |
| 23 | buBByQ | |
| 24 | MILWAUKEE BREW CREW |
Pork Ribs
23 entries · top 168.0116 · median 154.8800
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meat Rushmore | |
| 2 | KC SMOKIN' SPORTS | |
| 3 | PARK AVENUE PORK | |
| 4 | DRUM DADDY BBQ | |
| 5 | LOS GATOS GORDOS | |
| 6 | Still BBQ'N | |
| 7 | RACK ATTACK | |
| 8 | SMOKER BANDITS | |
| 9 | Men of Erin | |
| 10 | SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM | |
| 11 | mPOWER'd SMOKE BBQ | |
| 12 | FATTYSHACK BBQ | |
| 13 | Meat Me in St. Louie | |
| 14 | PERFECT VILLAGE BBQ | |
| 15 | Tailgate Warriors | |
| 16 | GRILLE BILLIES | |
| 17 | buBByQ | |
| 18 | VEAL TEAM 6 | |
| 19 | NOTORIOUS P.I.G. | |
| 20 | 2 B SMOKIN | |
| 21 | SMOK-A-HOLICS | |
| 22 | MAD SMOKERS | |
| 23 | MILWAUKEE BREW CREW |
Pork
23 entries · top 171.4172 · median 150.8800
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | KC SMOKIN' SPORTS | |
| 2 | SMOKER BANDITS | |
| 3 | DRUM DADDY BBQ | |
| 4 | RACK ATTACK | |
| 5 | GRILLE BILLIES | |
| 6 | SMOK-A-HOLICS | |
| 7 | PARK AVENUE PORK | |
| 8 | Meat Me in St. Louie | |
| 9 | 2 B SMOKIN | |
| 10 | NOTORIOUS P.I.G. | |
| 11 | Men of Erin | |
| 12 | buBByQ | |
| 13 | Still BBQ'N | |
| 14 | Meat Rushmore | |
| 15 | LOS GATOS GORDOS | |
| 16 | PERFECT VILLAGE BBQ | |
| 17 | mPOWER'd SMOKE BBQ | |
| 18 | SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM | |
| 19 | VEAL TEAM 6 | |
| 20 | MAD SMOKERS | |
| 21 | MILWAUKEE BREW CREW | |
| 22 | Tailgate Warriors | |
| 23 | Glazed and Confused |
Brisket
24 entries · top 172.5944 · median 149.1430
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LOS GATOS GORDOS | |
| 2 | Meat Rushmore | |
| 3 | SMOK-A-HOLICS | |
| 4 | MILWAUKEE BREW CREW | |
| 5 | SMOKER BANDITS | |
| 6 | KC SMOKIN' SPORTS | |
| 7 | Tailgate Warriors | |
| 8 | Men of Erin | |
| 9 | MAD SMOKERS | |
| 10 | VEAL TEAM 6 | |
| 11 | DRUM DADDY BBQ | |
| 12 | Meat Me in St. Louie | |
| 13 | GRILLE BILLIES | |
| 14 | NOTORIOUS P.I.G. | |
| 15 | buBByQ | |
| 16 | PERFECT VILLAGE BBQ | |
| 17 | 2 B SMOKIN | |
| 18 | Still BBQ'N | |
| 19 | FATTYSHACK BBQ | |
| 20 | mPOWER'd SMOKE BBQ | |
| 21 | PARK AVENUE PORK | |
| 22 | SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM | |
| 23 | RACK ATTACK | |
| 24 | Glazed and Confused |
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 — Sauce
19 entries · top 166.8572 · median 155.3712
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PERFECT VILLAGE BBQ | |
| 2 | MAD SMOKERS | |
| 3 | PARK AVENUE PORK | |
| 4 | RACK ATTACK | |
| 5 | Tailgate Warriors | |
| 6 | 2 B SMOKIN | |
| 7 | KC SMOKIN' SPORTS | |
| 8 | Meat Rushmore | |
| 9 | Still BBQ'N | |
| 10 | SMOKE 'EM IF YOU GOT 'EM | |
| 11 | Meat Me in St. Louie | |
| 12 | MILWAUKEE BREW CREW | |
| 13 | Men of Erin | |
| 14 | Glazed and Confused | |
| 15 | VEAL TEAM 6 | |
| 16 | mPOWER'd SMOKE BBQ | |
| 17 | NOTORIOUS P.I.G. | |
| 18 | DRUM DADDY BBQ | |
| 19 | LOS GATOS GORDOS |