A new contest record
702.2284
highest overall ever cooked here
702.2284 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 694.2744 SAUCED! BBQ TEAM set in 2017.
- old record 694.2744
- set 2017 by SAUCED! BBQ TEAM
Lakeland Pig Festival 2018
Jan 26–27, 2018 · Lakeland, FL · 📍 4175 Medulla Rd
MIDNIGHT BURN won Grand Champion at the Lakeland Pig Festival on January 26, 2018 in Lakeland, FL at 4175 Medulla Rd, scoring 702.2284 in a field of 60 teams. SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 690.8000. Category winners: Chicken — HAULIN' BUTT BBQ (177.1428); Pork Ribs — Full of BULL BBQ (178.2972); Pork — RUB MY RACK (177.7144); Brisket — SAUCED! BBQ TEAM (180.0000). This is the 5th of 13 editions of this contest on record; the 2017 edition was won by SAUCED! BBQ TEAM; the next was held in 2019.
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.
275.41
median 660.72
702.23 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.14
- Pork Ribs 178.30
- Pork 177.71
- Brisket 180 🔥
70.46
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2013 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
60
4 judged meats · 8 ancillary
Top score
702.2284
Winning margin
11.4284
GC over RC
Field average
640.53
275.41702.23
median 660.72 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Chicken
1.7372 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
681.0972
275.41702.23
10th place overall
Field spread
426.8228
winner to last place
Double threats
3
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 25%
beats 75% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
42%
25 of 60 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.76 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,587
avg power rating going in · stronger than 68% of contests
Storylines (9 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
23-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 77 times in 100
MIDNIGHT BURN came in rated below the field's top team, SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 23-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1782
- top seed 1994
Won without a category win
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
MIDNIGHT BURN won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 4 calls from 4 boards, best of them 2nd. Consistency beat fireworks.
- Chicken 5th
- Pork Ribs 3rd
- Pork 2nd
- Brisket 7th
A statement win
11.4284
points clear of the field
Wider than 90% of the 4,710 championships in the data
The champion won by 11.4284 points — a wider margin than 90% of championships in the data.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 11 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 8–9: LEWIS BARBECUE and SWAMP BOYS tied on 172.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 5–6: SMOKE CENTRAL BBQ and Fergolicious BBQ tied on 175.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 9–10: CHUBBY'S BBQ and SWAMP BOYS tied on 172.5600 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Pork Ribs 8–9 · tie
- Brisket 5–6 · tie
- Brisket 9–10 · tie
- Pork Ribs 2–3 · 0.0116
A contest record in pork ribs
178.2972
best pork ribs ever cooked here
Full of BULL BBQ turned in 178.2972 in pork ribs — past the 177.1428 that had stood across 4 earlier editions.
- old best 177.1428
- across 4 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: SAUCED! BBQ TEAM (won 2017).
- SAUCED! BBQ TEAM · 2017
One of the big ones
60
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 92% of the 5,462 contests in the data
60 teams — bigger than 92% of the 5,462 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.
- SAUCED! BBQ TEAM · Brisket
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 25, 2013 | Lakeland, FL | Lakeland, FL | 70 | 682.8568 | 3 EYZ BBQ | WICKED QUE |
| Jan 30, 2015 | Lakeland, FL | Lakeland, FL 33813 | 62 | 691.9884 | JACK'S OLD SOUTH | SERIAL GRILLER |
| Jan 29, 2016 | Lakeland, FL | Lakeland , FL 33813 | 58 | 687.4172 | SWEET RACKS & SMOKIN' BUTTS BBQ | CHARQUETERIE |
| Jan 27, 2017 | Lakeland, FL | Sun'N Fun 4175 Medulla Road | 60 | 694.2744 | SAUCED! BBQ TEAM | SWINE AND SHINE BBQ |
| Jan 26, 2018 ← this one | Lakeland, FL | 4175 Medulla Rd | 60 | 702.2284 | MIDNIGHT BURN | SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ |
| Jan 25, 2019 | Lakeland, FL | 4175 Medulla Rd | 58 | 700.5028 | Accutech BBQ | SAUCED! BBQ TEAM |
| Jan 24, 2020 | Lakeland, FL | 4175 Medulla Rd | 53 | 700.5372 | Smoke Central BBQ | OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE |
| Jan 28, 2022 | Lakeland, FL | Lakeland, FL 33811 | 60 | 701.6800 | Who Cares BBQ | GETTIN' BASTED |
| Jan 27, 2023 | Lakeland, FL | 4175 Medulla Road | 51 | 706.8228 | UNCLE PIG'S BARBEQUE PIT | Kings BBQ Team |
| Jan 26, 2024 | Lakeland, FL | 4175 Medulla Road | 61 | 707.3828 | Rooters-N-Tooters | Ham Squad |
| Jan 24, 2025 | Lakeland, FL | 4175 Medulla Road | 40 | 714.2744 | Poppa Pig? | With a 180 |
| Jan 22, 2026 | Lakeland, FL | 4175 Medulla Road | 63 | 708.5600 | Fred Vegas Smokers | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ |
| Jan 21, 2027 | Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.1428 | 175.4056 | 172.5484 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.2972 | 173.7028 | 171.4172 |
| Pork | 177.7144 | 174.8456 | 171.9656 |
| Brisket | 180 | 175.4056 | 172.5600 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
60 entries · top 702.2284 · median 660.7198
Chicken
59 entries · top 177.1428 · median 166.2400
Pork Ribs
58 entries · top 178.2972 · median 165.3828
Pork
60 entries · top 177.7144 · median 165.6628
Brisket
60 entries · top 180 · median 163.3942 · 🔥 perfect 180
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 But
27 entries · top 176.5600 · median 165.0972
Master Series — Backyard Brisket
53 entries · top 175.4744 · median 156.5256
Master Series — Backyard Chicken
53 entries · top 178.2972 · median 162.2628
Master Series — Backyard Overall
54 entries · top 689.7716 · median 640.1198
Master Series — Backyard Pork
54 entries · top 177.7028 · median 161.0972
Master Series — Backyard Ribs
52 entries · top 175.4400 · median 160.5484
Master Series — Dessert
20 entries · top 179.4400 · median 171.6856
Master Series — Sauce
34 entries · top 176.5828 · median 163.6626