A first Grand Championship
1
title in the data
This was Dog Star's first Grand Championship in the data.
Hartford Rib Off (COMPETITOR'S SERIES)
Jun 15–16, 2018 · Hartford, CT · 📍 20 Lindbergh Dr
Dog Star won Grand Champion at the Hartford Rib Off (COMPETITOR'S SERIES) on June 15, 2018 in Hartford, CT at 20 Lindbergh Dr, scoring 671.4172 in a field of 16 teams. Pitts and Giggles took Reserve Grand Champion with 668.5256. Category winners: Chicken — Dog Star (170.2972); Pork Ribs — TWINNING BBQ (173.7488); Pork — Pitts and Giggles (177.7028); Brisket — TWINNING BBQ (169.1428).
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.
583.41
median 623.76
671.42 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 170.30
- Pork Ribs 173.75
- Pork 177.70
- Brisket 169.14
134.80
177.70
Entries
16
4 judged meats · 3 ancillary
Top score
671.4172
Winning margin
2.8916
GC over RC
Field average
624.99
583.41671.42
median 623.76 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Chicken
7.3828 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
620.4800
583.41671.42
10th place overall
Field spread
88.0116
winner to last place
Double threats
8
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 96%
beats 4% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Form held
Weak
ρ = 0.52 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,498
avg power rating going in · stronger than 0% 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 rookie on the podium
1st
at their first tracked contest
Dog Star finished 1st overall in the first contest the data has them cooking at all.
Photo finishes
0.0228
closest of 4 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 5–6: HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE edged Pitts and Giggles by 0.0228. Brisket places 3–4: Pitts and Giggles edged Little Mark's Big BBQ by 0.0344. Chicken places 8–9: Little Mark's Big BBQ edged WILE E. BBQ by 0.0344.
- Pork Ribs 5–6 · 0.0228
- Brisket 3–4 · 0.0344
- Chicken 8–9 · 0.0344
- Pork 5–6 · 0.0916
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
TWINNING BBQ won Pork Ribs, Brisket — a double.
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Brisket 1st
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
Dog Star took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork at 6th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 2nd
- Pork 6th
- Brisket 2nd
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)
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 170.2972 | 162.9144 | 157.7140 |
| Pork Ribs | 173.7488 | 164.5484 | 158.8916 |
| Pork | 177.7028 | 160.0688 | 154.2972 |
| Brisket | 169.1428 | 158.2856 | 147.4400 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
16 entries · top 671.4172 · median 623.7604
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dog Star | |
| 2 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 3 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 4 | Hog Tied | |
| 5 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 6 | Grill Sergeants | |
| 7 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 8 | Titans of BBQ | |
| 9 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 10 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 11 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 12 | PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 13 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 14 | Team Pig Bark | |
| 15 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue | |
| 16 | Big Poppa Pat's |
Chicken
16 entries · top 170.2972 · median 158.8744
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dog Star | |
| 2 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 3 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 4 | Grill Sergeants | |
| 5 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 6 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue | |
| 7 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 8 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 9 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 10 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 11 | Team Pig Bark | |
| 12 | Hog Tied | |
| 13 | PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 14 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 15 | Big Poppa Pat's | |
| 16 | Titans of BBQ |
Pork Ribs
16 entries · top 173.7488 · median 159.7430
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 2 | Dog Star | |
| 3 | Hog Tied | |
| 4 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 5 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 6 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 7 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 8 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 9 | Titans of BBQ | |
| 10 | Grill Sergeants | |
| 11 | Team Pig Bark | |
| 12 | Big Poppa Pat's | |
| 13 | PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 14 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 15 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 16 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue |
Pork
16 entries · top 177.7028 · median 156.2628
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 2 | Hog Tied | |
| 3 | Grill Sergeants | |
| 4 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 5 | Titans of BBQ | |
| 6 | Dog Star | |
| 7 | PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 8 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 9 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 10 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 11 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 12 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 13 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 14 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue | |
| 15 | Big Poppa Pat's | |
| 16 | Team Pig Bark |
Brisket
16 entries · top 169.1428 · median 151.1316
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 2 | Dog Star | |
| 3 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 4 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 5 | Titans of BBQ | |
| 6 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 7 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 8 | Hog Tied | |
| 9 | PIT CREW BBQ | |
| 10 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 11 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 12 | Grill Sergeants | |
| 13 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 14 | Big Poppa Pat's | |
| 15 | Team Pig Bark | |
| 16 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue |
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 — Grilling Contest
15 entries · top 331.4856 · median 310.8572
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 2 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 3 | Team Pig Bark | |
| 4 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue | |
| 5 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 6 | Hog Tied | |
| 7 | Titans of BBQ | |
| 8 | Big Poppa Pat's | |
| 9 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 10 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 11 | Grill Sergeants | |
| 12 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 13 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 14 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 15 | Dog Star |
Master Series — Shrimp
15 entries · top 167.4400 · median 153.7028
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 2 | Grill Sergeants | |
| 3 | Big Poppa Pat's | |
| 4 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 5 | Titans of BBQ | |
| 6 | Team Pig Bark | |
| 7 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 8 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 9 | Hog Tied | |
| 10 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 11 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue | |
| 12 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 13 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 14 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 15 | Dog Star |
Master Series — Steak
15 entries · top 173.1084 · median 158.2856
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TWINNING BBQ | |
| 2 | Little Mark's Big BBQ | |
| 3 | Mayor Mikes's Foundation BB Crue | |
| 4 | Team Pig Bark | |
| 5 | Brined With Fire BBQ | |
| 6 | Hog Tied | |
| 7 | Pitts and Giggles | |
| 8 | HOLLAND FAMILY TENNESSEE SMOKE | |
| 9 | CHARTER SMOKE | |
| 10 | Titans of BBQ | |
| 11 | Big Poppa Pat's | |
| 12 | HoBo BBQ | |
| 13 | WILE E. BBQ | |
| 14 | Dog Star | |
| 15 | Grill Sergeants |