A new contest record
714.2744
highest overall ever cooked here
714.2744 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 704.5716 Razzoracks set in 2021.
- old record 704.5716
- set 2021 by Razzoracks
Southaven Springfest 2023
Apr 21–22, 2023 · Southaven, MS · 📍 Snowden Grove Park · State championship
Reps: Debra Gage, William Gage · Prize money: $14,500
RAZORRACKS won Grand Champion at the Southaven Springfest on April 21, 2023 in Southaven, MS at Snowden Grove Park, scoring 714.2744 in a field of 34 teams. MEMPHIS ORIGINAL BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 701.6684. Category winners: Chicken — RAZORRACKS (178.8572); Pork Ribs — HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ (178.8572); Pork — ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN (180.0000); Brisket — RAZORRACKS (180.0000). This is the 7th of 11 editions of this contest on record; the 2022 edition was won by Razorracks; the next was held in 2024.
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.
476.40
median 678.15
714.27 🏆
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 178.86
- Pork 180 🔥
- Brisket 180 🔥
143.41
180
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2016 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Entries
34
4 judged meats
Top score
714.2744
Winning margin
12.6060
GC over RC
Field average
667.90
476.40714.27
median 678.15 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
2.2972 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
689.0400
476.40714.27
10th place overall
Field spread
237.8744
winner to last place
Prize money
$14,500
on the line
Double threats
7
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 0%
beats 100% of 4714 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
42%
15 of 36 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.74 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,601
avg power rating going in · stronger than 78% of contests
Storylines (9 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.
Back-to-back
2 in a row
editions of this contest
Razorracks won here last time out too — 2 straight editions of this contest.
- 2022
- 2023
A statement win
12.6060
points clear of the field
Wider than 93% of the 4,713 championships in the data
The champion won by 12.6060 points — a wider margin than 93% of championships in the data.
A day of perfect scores
3
perfect 180s
3 perfect 180s were scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- RAZORRACKS · Brisket
- Que-N-Da 662 · Brisket
- ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN · Pork
A dynasty in the making
4×
wins at this contest
4 of 10 tracked editions
Razorracks has won this contest 4 times across its 10 tracked editions.
- 2019
- 2022
- 2023
- 2026
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 19 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 5–6: Kith n' Kin and PIGGIN' WHISKEY tied on 175.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 6–7: PIGGIN' WHISKEY and WEQ4U tied on 175.4056 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Chicken places 8–9: PIGLITICALLY INCORRECT BBQ and FIRE DANCER BBQ tied on 174.2628 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 5–6 · tie
- Chicken 6–7 · tie
- Chicken 8–9 · tie
- Chicken 9–10 · tie
A double category winner
2
category wins in a day
RAZORRACKS won Chicken, Brisket — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
- Chicken 1st
- Brisket 1st
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
RAZORRACKS took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 2 outright wins — their weakest board was pork ribs at 3rd.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 3rd
- Pork 3rd
- Brisket 1st
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: Razorracks (won 2019, 2022).
- Razorracks · 2019, 2022
This contest's own records (1 in the KCBS record book)
Records held by every edition of this contest put together, not just this one afternoon.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 22, 2016 | Southaven, MS | Southaven, MS | 41 | 704.5256 | VICTORY LANE BBQ | SOUTH PORK |
| Apr 28, 2017 | Southaven, MS | 6275 Snowden Lane | 33 | 694.2400 | VICTORY LANE BBQ | Q-BONES BBQ |
| Apr 27, 2018 | Southaven, MS | 6275 Snowden Lane | 34 | 700.5604 | Q-BONES BBQ | NU BETA GAMMA |
| Apr 26, 2019 | Southaven, MS | 6275 Snowden Lane | 31 | 704.5256 | Razorracks | FIRE DANCER BBQ |
| Oct 29, 2021 | Southaven, MS | 6205 Snowdenlane | 36 | 704.5716 | Razzoracks | HOT COLE'S BBQ |
| Apr 22, 2022 | Southaven, MS | 8710 Northwest Drive | 36 | 702.8000 | Razorracks | Rankin County BBQ Company |
| Apr 21, 2023 ← this one | Southaven, MS | Snowden Grove Park | 34 | 714.2744 | Razorracks | MEMPHIS ORIGINAL BBQ |
| Apr 26, 2024 | Southaven, MS | 6275 Snowden Lane | 44 | 699.9428 | Optimus Swine | HOT COLE'S BBQ |
| Apr 25, 2025 | Southaven, MS | 6275 Snowden Lane | 34 | 699.9428 | Hold Your Horses BBQ | Mad Dog BBQ |
| Apr 24, 2026 | Southaven, MS | 6275 Snowden Lane | 33 | 713.1316 | RAZORRACKS | Electro-Que-ted |
| Apr 23, 2027 | Southaven, MS | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.8572 | 175.4056 | 174.2628 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 176.5600 | 173.1200 |
| Pork | 180 | 176.5600 | 174.2628 |
| Brisket | 180 | 175.4172 | 173.7028 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
34 entries · top 714.2744 · median 678.1486
Chicken
34 entries · top 178.8572 · median 170.5370
Pork Ribs
33 entries · top 178.8572 · median 169.6800
Pork
34 entries · top 180 · median 169.4000 · 🔥 perfect 180
Brisket
34 entries · top 180 · median 167.3886 · 🔥 perfect 180