A new contest record
698.8000
highest overall ever cooked here
698.8000 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 690.2284 EXTRA MILE BBQ set in 2017.
- old record 690.2284
- set 2017 by EXTRA MILE BBQ
Fire on the Mountain 2019
Jul 26–27, 2019 · Leburn, KY · 📍 Knott County Sportsplex · State championship
Prize money: $5,000
CONTINENTAL BARBEQUE CO. won Grand Champion at the Fire on the Mountain on July 26, 2019 in Leburn, KY at Knott County Sportsplex, scoring 698.8000 in a field of 25 teams. SMOKE ON THIS took Reserve Grand Champion with 693.6228. Category winners: Chicken — BLUE CHIP BBQ (178.8572); Pork Ribs — HOGTOWN BARBECUE (177.7144); Pork — FARMER'S RETREAT SMOKIN BARBEQUE (180.0000); Brisket — CONTINENTAL BARBEQUE CO. (177.7028). This is the 4th of 5 editions of this contest on record; the 2018 edition was won by THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW; the next was held in 2020.
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.
629.58
median 664.41
698.80 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 178.86
- Pork Ribs 177.71
- Pork 180 🔥
- Brisket 177.70
146.79
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2016 to 2020 — this edition picked out.
Entries
25
4 judged meats
Top score
698.8000
Winning margin
5.1772
GC over RC
Field average
666.78
629.58698.80
median 664.41 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork
4.5600 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
676.4572
629.58698.80
10th place overall
Field spread
69.2228
winner to last place
Prize money
$5,000
on the line
Double threats
3
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 39%
beats 61% of 4723 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
62%
8 of 13 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.62 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,609
avg power rating going in · stronger than 83% of contests
Storylines (8 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
29-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 71 times in 100
CONTINENTAL BARBEQUE CO. came in rated below the field's top team, Under the Radar, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 29-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1741
- top seed 1897
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 9 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 5–6: HOGTOWN BARBECUE and SMOKE ON THIS tied on 173.1200 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 3–4: UNDER THE RADAR and ELKHAWG SMOKERS tied on 176.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 6–7: SMOKE ON THIS and THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW tied on 175.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 5–6 · tie
- Pork 3–4 · tie
- Pork 6–7 · tie
- Brisket 2–3 · tie
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
CONTINENTAL BARBEQUE CO. took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork at 9th.
- Chicken 3rd
- Pork Ribs 7th
- Pork 9th
- Brisket 1st
A contest record in pork
180.0000
best pork ever cooked here
FARMER'S RETREAT SMOKIN BARBEQUE turned in 180.0000 in pork — past the 179.4400 that had stood across 3 earlier editions.
- old best 179.4400
- across 3 past editions
Back to defend
3
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: K-TOWN DADDY'S BBQ (won 2016), EXTRA MILE BBQ (won 2017), THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW (won 2018).
- K-TOWN DADDY'S BBQ · 2016
- EXTRA MILE BBQ · 2017
- THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW · 2018
The biggest field yet
25
teams — a contest high
This contest usually draws about 14 teams
25 teams is the deepest field this contest has drawn in the data, against a typical 14.
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.
- FARMER'S RETREAT SMOKIN BARBEQUE · Pork
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 1, 2016 | Leburn, KY | Knott County Sportsplex | 15 | 687.9884 | K-TOWN DADDY'S BBQ | SOUTH PORK |
| Jul 28, 2017 | Leburn, KY | Knott County Sportsplex | 13 | 690.2284 | EXTRA MILE BBQ | THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW |
| Jul 27, 2018 | Leburn, KY | Knott County Sportsplex | 13 | 685.0168 | THE ALGOOD BAR-B-Q PIT CREW | SMOKE ON THIS |
| Jul 26, 2019 ← this one | Leburn, KY | Knott County Sportsplex | 25 | 698.8000 | CONTINENTAL BARBECUE CO. | SMOKE ON THIS |
| Jul 24, 2020 | Leburn, KY | Knott County Sportsplex | 30 | 691.4400 | Thunder Hog BBQ | CONTINENTAL BARBEQUE CO. |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.8572 | 173.1200 | 170.8572 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.7144 | 171.4056 | 169.6800 |
| Pork | 180 | 175.4400 | 171.9772 |
| Brisket | 177.7028 | 171.4400 | 168.5484 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
25 entries · top 698.8000 · median 664.4112
Chicken
25 entries · top 178.8572 · median 169.6800
Pork Ribs
25 entries · top 177.7144 · median 166.2744
Pork
25 entries · top 180 · median 168.5484 · 🔥 perfect 180
Brisket
25 entries · top 177.7028 · median 165.1200