Mar 23–24, 2018 · Arcadia, CA · 📍 285 W Huntington Dr
BIG POPPA SMOKERS won Grand Champion at the 7th Annual Santa Anita Winners Circle BBQ Championship on March 23, 2018 in Arcadia, CA at 285 W Huntington Dr, scoring 691.3828 in a field of 78 teams. Sharpe's Woodshed took Reserve Grand Champion with 690.2288. Category winners: Chicken — SON OF SMOKE (178.2972); Pork Ribs — UTAH BBQ COMPANY (176.5600); Pork — BIG POPPA SMOKERS (180.0000); Brisket — BIG B'S DOWN-N-DIRTY BBQ (177.7144).
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
Closer than 80% of the 4,714 championships in the data
The Grand Championship was decided by 1.1540 points — closer than 80% of every championship in the data.
First to fifth in the overall standings covered just 2.8456 points.
Chicken places 1–2: SON OF SMOKE and JET COATINGS - MONKEY STYLE tied on 178.2972 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 4–5: MONSOON BBQ and 7-8-9 BBQ tied on 176.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 8–9: THE PIT CREW BBQ OF AZ and WILD WILLY'S SMOKIN HOT BBQ tied on 174.8456 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
BIG POPPA SMOKERS took the title on 2 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was chicken at 30th.
Bigger than 97% of the 5,469 contests in the data
78 teams — bigger than 97% of the 5,469 contests in the data.
1 perfect 180 was scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.2972 | 176 | 173.7144 |
| Pork Ribs | 176.5600 | 174.8572 | 172 |
| Pork | 180 | 173.1772 | 171.4056 |
| Brisket | 177.7144 | 175.4400 | 174.2628 |
78 entries · top 691.3828 · median 664.4516
78 entries · top 178.2972 · median 167.9714
78 entries · top 176.5600 · median 166.2686
78 entries · top 180 · median 165.6858 · 🔥 perfect 180
78 entries · top 177.7144 · median 163.9828
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.
17 entries · top 176 · median 166.8228
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BLUES ROCK BBQ | |
| 2 | HOLY SMOKERS | |
| 3 | WILD WILLY'S SMOKIN HOT BBQ | |
| 4 | Sharpe's Woodshed | |
| 5 | THE BRISKET BROTHERS | |
| 6 | LADY OF Q | |
| 7 | LICK DA BONE BBQ | |
| 8 | SMOKIN' HART'S | |
| 9 | CHUBBY AND TUBBY'S | |
| 10 | BURNT OFFERINGS | |
| 11 | SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ | |
| 12 | BLUE EYED BBQ | |
| 13 | RBQ | |
| 14 | BEAR'S-B-Q | |
| 15 | Woody's Bar-b-Que | |
| 16 | GIT-R-SMOKED | |
| 17 | TWISTED BRISKET BBQ |