A dynasty in the making
2×
wins at this contest
2 of 10 tracked editions
UNDER THE RADAR has won this contest 2 times across its 10 tracked editions.
- 2021
- 2022
Almost Heaven BBQ Bash 2021
Jun 18–19, 2021 · Roanoke, WV · 📍 Stonewall Resort · State championship
Reps: Julie Cook, Rusty Cook · Prize money: $13,000
UNDER THE RADAR won Grand Champion at the Almost Heaven BBQ Bash on June 18, 2021 in Roanoke, WV at Stonewall Resort, scoring 705.1428 in a field of 28 teams. WHO CARES BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 701.6916. Category winners: Chicken — WHO CARES BBQ (178.8572); Pork Ribs — TNT Explosive BBQ (178.3200); Pork — MUTTLEY CREW BBQ (177.7028); Brisket — UNDER THE RADAR (180.0000). The Backyard Series standings were won by D’Qued Barbeque with 341.6572. This is the 6th of 10 editions of this contest on record; the 2019 edition was won by ROCKY TOP BBQ; the next was held in 2022.
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.
566.21
median 673.08
705.14 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Master Series — Chicken 178.86
- Master Series — Pork Ribs 178.32
- Master Series — Pork 177.70
- Master Series — Brisket 180 🔥
- Backyard Series — Chicken 173.11
- Backyard Series — Pork Ribs 174.29
117.61
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2015 to 2025 — this edition picked out.
Entries
28
6 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
705.1428
Winning margin
3.4512
GC over RC
Field average
659.74
566.21705.14
median 673.08 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
1.7484 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
685.6112
566.21705.14
10th place overall
Field spread
138.9376
winner to last place
Prize money
$13,000
on the line
Double threats
10
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 13%
beats 87% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
50%
20 of 40 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.64 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,601
avg power rating going in · stronger than 78% of contests
Storylines (6 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.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 14 calls decided inside half a point
Master Series — Chicken places 1–2: WHO CARES BBQ and UNDER THE RADAR tied on 178.8572 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Master Series — Chicken places 3–4: FRED VEGAS SMOKERS and PEACE LOVE & SMOKINESS tied on 177.7028 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Master Series — Pork Ribs places 8–9: WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ and MUTTLEY CREW BBQ tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Master Series — Chicken 1–2 · tie
- Master Series — Chicken 3–4 · tie
- Master Series — Pork Ribs 8–9 · tie
- Master Series — Brisket 4–5 · tie
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
UNDER THE RADAR took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork ribs at 14th.
- Chicken 2nd
- Pork Ribs 14th
- Pork 2nd
- Brisket 1st
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE (won 2017).
- ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE · 2017
The contest returns
2 yrs
since the last edition
This contest was away for 2 years — the previous tracked edition ran on 2019-06-07.
- previous edition 2019-06-07
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.
- UNDER THE RADAR · 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 19, 2015 | Buckhannon, WV | Buckhannon, WV 26201 | 41 | 703.4172 | 3 EYZ BBQ | CHECKERED PIG |
| Jun 17, 2016 | Buckhannon, WV | Buckhannon, WV 26201 | 42 | 699.9544 | CHECKERED PIG | SMOKIN FOOLZ |
| Jun 16, 2017 | Weston, WV | Downtown Buckhannon | 57 | 706.2972 | ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE | WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ |
| Jun 15, 2018 | Weston, WV | Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum | 59 | 690.8000 | SPITTIN' FEATHERS BBQ | WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ |
| Jun 7, 2019 | Roanoke, WV | Stonewall Resort State Park | 31 | 691.3944 | ROCKY TOP BBQ | WHO CARES BBQ |
| Jun 18, 2021 ← this one | Roanoke, WV | Stonewall Resort | 28 | 705.1428 | UNDER THE RADAR | WHO CARES BBQ |
| Jun 17, 2022 | Roanoke, WV | Stonewall Resort | 20 | 704.5600 | UNDER THE RADAR | WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ |
| Jun 16, 2023 | Buckhannon, WV | 17 Friendly Way | 28 | 702.2284 | WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ | CHUNKY BBQ |
| Jun 14, 2024 | Buckhannon, WV | Jawbone Park | 30 | 698.8228 | CHUNKY BBQ | 3 EYZ BBQ |
| Jun 13, 2025 | Buckhannon, WV | Jawbone Park | 30 | 698.2516 | Chunky BBQ | BEER TIME BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master Series — Chicken | 178.8572 | 176.5828 | 169.6800 |
| Master Series — Pork Ribs | 178.3200 | 176.5716 | 173.1200 |
| Master Series — Pork | 177.7028 | 175.4172 | 173.1200 |
| Master Series — Brisket | 180 | 173.1084 | 168.5600 |
| Backyard Series — Chicken | 173.1084 | 168.5372 | 161.0972 |
| Backyard Series — Pork Ribs | 174.2860 | 168.5372 | 160.5256 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
28 entries · top 705.1428 · median 673.0800
Chicken
28 entries · top 178.8572 · median 165.7086
Pork Ribs
28 entries · top 178.3200 · median 167.7200
Pork
28 entries · top 177.7028 · median 167.1200
Brisket
28 entries · top 180 · median 167.9656 · 🔥 perfect 180
Backyard Series
Overall
13 entries · top 341.6572 · median 331.9316
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D’Qued Barbeque | |
| 2 | Ham Squad | |
| 3 | D'S BUTTS-N-BEERS BBQ | |
| 4 | Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | |
| 5 | Kane's BBQ | |
| 6 | Bowmans Butt & BBQ | |
| 7 | Full Throttle BBQ | |
| 8 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 9 | BIRD DAWG BBQ | |
| 10 | GRUMPY OL' SARGE BBQ | |
| 11 | TNT BBQ | |
| 12 | Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ | |
| 13 | BLUE CREEK BBQ |
Chicken
13 entries · top 173.1084 · median 165.0972
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ham Squad | |
| 2 | Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | |
| 3 | D’Qued Barbeque | |
| 4 | Bowmans Butt & BBQ | |
| 5 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 6 | D'S BUTTS-N-BEERS BBQ | |
| 7 | Kane's BBQ | |
| 8 | Full Throttle BBQ | |
| 9 | GRUMPY OL' SARGE BBQ | |
| 10 | BIRD DAWG BBQ | |
| 11 | TNT BBQ | |
| 12 | BLUE CREEK BBQ | |
| 13 | Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ |
Pork Ribs
13 entries · top 174.2860 · median 167.9772
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | D'S BUTTS-N-BEERS BBQ | |
| 2 | Kane's BBQ | |
| 3 | D’Qued Barbeque | |
| 4 | Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | |
| 5 | Bowmans Butt & BBQ | |
| 6 | Full Throttle BBQ | |
| 7 | Ham Squad | |
| 8 | TNT BBQ | |
| 9 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 10 | BIRD DAWG BBQ | |
| 11 | GRUMPY OL' SARGE BBQ | |
| 12 | Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ | |
| 13 | BLUE CREEK BBQ |
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.
Turkey Smoke Series — Turkey Smoke
27 entries · top 174.8572 · median 167.3828