Back-to-back
2 in a row
editions of this contest
UNDER THE RADAR won here last time out too — 2 straight editions of this contest.
- 2021
- 2022
Almost Heaven BBQ Bash 2022
Jun 17–18, 2022 · 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 17, 2022 in Roanoke, WV at Stonewall Resort, scoring 704.5600 in a field of 20 teams. WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 699.9772. Category winners: Chicken — WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ (177.1544); Pork Ribs — CHUNKY BBQ (178.8572); Pork — D’Qued Barbeque (177.7372); Brisket — UNDER THE RADAR (179.4400). The Backyard Series standings were won by Little E's Que with 343.3828. This is the 7th of 10 editions of this contest on record; the 2021 edition was won by UNDER THE RADAR; the next was held in 2023.
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.
590
median 670.20
704.56 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Master Series — Chicken 177.15
- Master Series — Pork Ribs 178.86
- Master Series — Pork 177.74
- Master Series — Brisket 179.44
- Backyard Series — Chicken 176
- Backyard Series — Pork Ribs 172.57
124.42
179.44
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2015 to 2025 — this edition picked out.
Entries
20
6 judged meats · 1 ancillary
Top score
704.5600
Winning margin
4.5828
GC over RC
Field average
667.44
590704.56
median 670.20 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Brisket
3.4400 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
670.7884
590704.56
10th place overall
Field spread
114.5600
winner to last place
Prize money
$13,000
on the line
Double threats
8
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 15%
beats 85% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
37%
15 of 41 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.69 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,577
avg power rating going in · stronger than 61% 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 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
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 9 calls decided inside half a point
Master Series — Chicken places 7–8: UNDER THE RADAR and smokey anderson bbq tied on 171.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Master Series — Pork places 4–5: OFF THE RACK BBQ and HIGH ON THE HOG OHIO tied on 174.2744 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Master Series — Brisket places 3–4: WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ and D’Qued Barbeque tied on 176.5600 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Master Series — Chicken 7–8 · tie
- Master Series — Pork 4–5 · tie
- Master Series — Brisket 3–4 · tie
- Backyard Series — Pork Ribs 2–3 · tie
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
UNDER THE RADAR took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was chicken at 7th.
- Chicken 7th
- Pork Ribs 2nd
- Pork 2nd
- Brisket 1st
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: UNDER THE RADAR (won 2021).
- UNDER THE RADAR · 2021
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 | Roanoke, WV | Stonewall Resort | 28 | 705.1428 | UNDER THE RADAR | WHO CARES BBQ |
| Jun 17, 2022 ← this one | 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 | 177.1544 | 172.5600 | 170.2512 |
| Master Series — Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 174.2744 | 169.6916 |
| Master Series — Pork | 177.7372 | 174.2744 | 169.6800 |
| Master Series — Brisket | 179.4400 | 176 | 166.8344 |
| Backyard Series — Chicken | 176 | 169.7256 | 132.3656 |
| Backyard Series — Pork Ribs | 172.5716 | 167.3828 | 138.8228 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
20 entries · top 704.5600 · median 670.1998
Chicken
20 entries · top 177.1544 · median 169.3884
Pork Ribs
20 entries · top 178.8572 · median 169.6800
Pork
20 entries · top 177.7372 · median 169.4000
Brisket
20 entries · top 179.4400 · median 164.2858
Backyard Series
Overall
10 entries · top 343.3828 · median 335.6458
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Little E's Que | |
| 2 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 3 | Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | |
| 4 | Dogpatch Q | |
| 5 | Better Half Barbecue | |
| 6 | T & S BBQ | |
| 7 | Ham Squad | |
| 8 | POOR BOYS BBQ | |
| 9 | Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ | |
| 10 | Sweet Rick's BBQ |
Chicken
10 entries · top 176 · median 169.7028
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Little E's Que | |
| 2 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 3 | Dogpatch Q | |
| 4 | T & S BBQ | |
| 5 | Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ | |
| 6 | Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | |
| 7 | Better Half Barbecue | |
| 8 | Ham Squad | |
| 9 | POOR BOYS BBQ | |
| 10 | Sweet Rick's BBQ |
Pork Ribs
10 entries · top 172.5716 · median 166.2514
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gold-N-Blue Barbecue | |
| 2 | LEM'S MEAT VARNISH | |
| 3 | Better Half Barbecue | |
| 4 | Ham Squad | |
| 5 | Little E's Que | |
| 6 | POOR BOYS BBQ | |
| 7 | Dogpatch Q | |
| 8 | T & S BBQ | |
| 9 | Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ | |
| 10 | Sweet Rick's 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
24 entries · top 178.8572 · median 165.9886