A new contest record
701.7028
highest overall ever cooked here
701.7028 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 696.4912 FIRE DANCER BBQ set in 2016.
- old record 696.4912
- set 2016 by FIRE DANCER BBQ
Go Hog Wild Arkansas BBQ Championship 2018
Oct 5–6, 2018 · Sheridan, AR · 📍 Oak Street
FIRE DANCER BBQ won Grand Champion at the Go Hog Wild Arkansas BBQ Championship on October 5, 2018 in Sheridan, AR at Oak Street, scoring 701.7028 in a field of 26 teams. 501 BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 697.6912. Category winners: Chicken — FIRE DANCER BBQ (179.4400); Pork Ribs — FIRE DANCER BBQ (176.5600); Pork — 501 BBQ (173.7028); Brisket — FIRE DANCER BBQ (176.5828). This is the 5th of 6 editions of this contest on record; the 2017 edition was won by Fergolicious BBQ; 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.
481.66
median 649.30
701.70 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 179.44
- Pork Ribs 176.56
- Pork 173.70
- Brisket 176.58
133.05
179.44
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2014 to 2019 — this edition picked out.
Entries
26
4 judged meats
Top score
701.7028
Winning margin
4.0116
GC over RC
Field average
634.73
481.66701.70
median 649.30 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Brisket
3.4628 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
660.9824
481.66701.70
10th place overall
Field spread
220.0456
winner to last place
Double threats
5
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 25%
beats 75% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
28%
7 of 25 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.82 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,575
avg power rating going in · stronger than 59% of contests
Storylines (7 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 hat-trick of category wins
3
category wins in a day
FIRE DANCER BBQ won Chicken, Pork Ribs, Brisket — a hat-trick, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Brisket 1st
A dynasty in the making
3×
wins at this contest
3 of 6 tracked editions
FIRE DANCER BBQ has won this contest 3 times across its 6 tracked editions.
- 2015
- 2016
- 2018
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 7 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 7–8: GINDER'S FLIPPIN GOOD BBQ and COCHON 225 tied on 168.5256 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 2–3: BBQR'S DELIGHT and THE BLUE BLOODS tied on 171.9656 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 4–5: FIRE DANCER BBQ and COCHON 225 tied on 169.1200 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Pork Ribs 7–8 · tie
- Pork 2–3 · tie
- Pork 4–5 · tie
- Brisket 7–8 · tie
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
FIRE DANCER BBQ took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 3 outright wins — their weakest board was pork at 4th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 4th
- Brisket 1st
A contest record in chicken
179.4400
best chicken ever cooked here
FIRE DANCER BBQ turned in 179.4400 in chicken — past the 178.2972 that had stood across 4 earlier editions.
- old best 178.2972
- across 4 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: FIRE DANCER BBQ (won 2015, 2016).
- FIRE DANCER BBQ · 2015, 2016
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 3, 2014 | Sheridan, AR | Sheridan, AR 72150 | 25 | 689.0972 | EPIC BBQ CRU | SOOIE Q |
| Oct 2, 2015 | Sheridan, AR | Sheridan, AR 72150 | 25 | 695.9540 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | RAZORRACKS |
| Oct 7, 2016 | Sheridan, AR | Sheridan, AR 72150 | 27 | 696.4912 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | EPIC BBQ CRU |
| Oct 6, 2017 | Sheridan, AR | Oak Street | 25 | 691.3368 | Fergolicious BBQ | GETTIN' BASTED |
| Oct 5, 2018 ← this one | Sheridan, AR | Oak Street | 26 | 701.7028 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | 501 BBQ |
| Oct 4, 2019 | Sheridan, AR | 204 North Oak | 26 | 687.3712 | Dad's Grillin Crew | THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 179.4400 | 173.7372 | 167.4056 |
| Pork Ribs | 176.5600 | 172 | 166.8688 |
| Pork | 173.7028 | 169.1200 | 165.7028 |
| Brisket | 176.5828 | 173.1200 | 165.1200 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
26 entries · top 701.7028 · median 649.3026
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | |
| 2 | 501 BBQ | |
| 3 | LA PASADITA | |
| 4 | SURVIVOR-QUE | |
| 5 | THE BLUE BLOODS | |
| 6 | RAZORRACKS | |
| 7 | COCHON 225 | |
| 8 | BLIND HOG BBQ | |
| 9 | LOTTA BULL BBQ | |
| 10 | TWERKIN HOGS BBQ | |
| 11 | SMOKED OUT BBQ | |
| 12 | GINDER'S FLIPPIN GOOD BBQ | |
| 13 | HOT AND FAST BBQ | |
| 14 | BBQR'S DELIGHT | |
| 15 | 3 RIVERS BBQ | |
| 16 | SOUTHERN KRUNK BBQ SOCIETY | |
| 17 | THE Q-TEAM | |
| 18 | The Burnouts | |
| 19 | Holy Smoke of Arkadelphia | |
| 20 | Albert Einswine | |
| 21 | Celebrate Recovery | |
| 22 | Smoke My Meat | |
| 23 | West Fraser Miling and Grilling | |
| 24 | BUTT NAKED BBQ | |
| 25 | Rolling Smoke BBQ | |
| 26 | Ozark BBQ |
Chicken
26 entries · top 179.4400 · median 163.3942
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | |
| 2 | 501 BBQ | |
| 3 | RAZORRACKS | |
| 4 | THE BLUE BLOODS | |
| 5 | LOTTA BULL BBQ | |
| 6 | LA PASADITA | |
| 7 | SMOKED OUT BBQ | |
| 8 | BLIND HOG BBQ | |
| 9 | TWERKIN HOGS BBQ | |
| 10 | SURVIVOR-QUE | |
| 11 | The Burnouts | |
| 12 | Celebrate Recovery | |
| 13 | HOT AND FAST BBQ | |
| 14 | COCHON 225 | |
| 15 | West Fraser Miling and Grilling | |
| 16 | GINDER'S FLIPPIN GOOD BBQ | |
| 17 | 3 RIVERS BBQ | |
| 18 | BBQR'S DELIGHT | |
| 19 | SOUTHERN KRUNK BBQ SOCIETY | |
| 20 | THE Q-TEAM | |
| 21 | Holy Smoke of Arkadelphia | |
| 22 | Ozark BBQ | |
| 23 | BUTT NAKED BBQ | |
| 24 | Smoke My Meat | |
| 25 | Albert Einswine | |
| 26 | Rolling Smoke BBQ |
Pork Ribs
26 entries · top 176.5600 · median 163.3886
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | |
| 2 | 501 BBQ | |
| 3 | TWERKIN HOGS BBQ | |
| 4 | SMOKED OUT BBQ | |
| 5 | BLIND HOG BBQ | |
| 6 | SURVIVOR-QUE | |
| 7 | GINDER'S FLIPPIN GOOD BBQ | |
| 8 | COCHON 225 | |
| 9 | LA PASADITA | |
| 10 | 3 RIVERS BBQ | |
| 11 | Ozark BBQ | |
| 12 | RAZORRACKS | |
| 13 | THE BLUE BLOODS | |
| 14 | LOTTA BULL BBQ | |
| 15 | HOT AND FAST BBQ | |
| 16 | BBQR'S DELIGHT | |
| 17 | BUTT NAKED BBQ | |
| 18 | Celebrate Recovery | |
| 19 | West Fraser Miling and Grilling | |
| 20 | SOUTHERN KRUNK BBQ SOCIETY | |
| 21 | THE Q-TEAM | |
| 22 | Holy Smoke of Arkadelphia | |
| 23 | Smoke My Meat | |
| 24 | Rolling Smoke BBQ | |
| 25 | The Burnouts | |
| 26 | Albert Einswine |
Pork
26 entries · top 173.7028 · median 160.5314
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 501 BBQ | |
| 2 | BBQR'S DELIGHT | |
| 3 | THE BLUE BLOODS | |
| 4 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | |
| 5 | COCHON 225 | |
| 6 | LOTTA BULL BBQ | |
| 7 | LA PASADITA | |
| 8 | SURVIVOR-QUE | |
| 9 | RAZORRACKS | |
| 10 | SOUTHERN KRUNK BBQ SOCIETY | |
| 11 | SMOKED OUT BBQ | |
| 12 | The Burnouts | |
| 13 | Holy Smoke of Arkadelphia | |
| 14 | TWERKIN HOGS BBQ | |
| 15 | BLIND HOG BBQ | |
| 16 | GINDER'S FLIPPIN GOOD BBQ | |
| 17 | HOT AND FAST BBQ | |
| 18 | 3 RIVERS BBQ | |
| 19 | Ozark BBQ | |
| 20 | Smoke My Meat | |
| 21 | Albert Einswine | |
| 22 | THE Q-TEAM | |
| 23 | Celebrate Recovery | |
| 24 | BUTT NAKED BBQ | |
| 25 | Rolling Smoke BBQ | |
| 26 | West Fraser Miling and Grilling |
Brisket
25 entries · top 176.5828 · median 161.0856
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FIRE DANCER BBQ | |
| 2 | LA PASADITA | |
| 3 | SURVIVOR-QUE | |
| 4 | BLIND HOG BBQ | |
| 5 | COCHON 225 | |
| 6 | 501 BBQ | |
| 7 | HOT AND FAST BBQ | |
| 8 | THE BLUE BLOODS | |
| 9 | RAZORRACKS | |
| 10 | GINDER'S FLIPPIN GOOD BBQ | |
| 11 | SOUTHERN KRUNK BBQ SOCIETY | |
| 12 | BBQR'S DELIGHT | |
| 13 | 3 RIVERS BBQ | |
| 14 | TWERKIN HOGS BBQ | |
| 15 | THE Q-TEAM | |
| 16 | LOTTA BULL BBQ | |
| 17 | Albert Einswine | |
| 18 | Rolling Smoke BBQ | |
| 19 | SMOKED OUT BBQ | |
| 20 | Holy Smoke of Arkadelphia | |
| 21 | The Burnouts | |
| 22 | Smoke My Meat | |
| 23 | West Fraser Miling and Grilling | |
| 24 | Celebrate Recovery | |
| 25 | BUTT NAKED BBQ |