In this edition
Every sanctioned contest scored in January 2018.
Covering KCBS-sanctioned contests
The Smoke Ring
Competition Barbecue’s Paper of Record
The Index
- Grand Champions A2
- The Month in Brief A3
- Perfect Scores A5
- Ratings Market A6
- New to the Circuit A8
- Box Scores B1
- Complete Results B4
- Back Issues C4
Score of the month
MIDNIGHT BURN Turns In the Month’s Best Card
702.2284 out of 720 at Lakeland Pig Festival — the highest Master overall scored in January 2018.
top 1% of every Master overall ever scored
LAKELAND, Fla. — MIDNIGHT BURN put up 702.2284 at Lakeland Pig Festival — the highest overall of the month.
Across January 2018, 4 sanctioned contests were scored, across 4 states and provinces, drawing 254 teams to the turn-in table. Judges made 160 top-ten calls and handed out 3 perfect 180s. 51 teams appear in the record for the first time. The full standings run on B1.
Every Grand Championship in this edition — 4 in all.
First one ever
GRILLER INSTINCT Wins Its First, on the 6th Try
A first Grand Championship at W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest, after 6 contests in the record.
6th contest — and their first GC
REIN IN TAUFERS, BZ — GRILLER INSTINCT won their first Grand Championship at W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest, in their 6th contest in the data.
Upset of the month
The Long Shot Comes In at W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest
The ratings gave GRILLER INSTINCT a 14% chance, with HOT WACHULA'S the team to beat.
14-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings
REIN IN TAUFERS, BZ — GRILLER INSTINCT won W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest over top-rated HOT WACHULA'S as the ratings underdog.
Perfect 180s
Judges Hand Out Three Perfect 180s
Six cards, every one a nine — 3 times in January 2018.
3 perfect scores handed out
Six judges, every card a 9: 3 perfect 180s were handed out in January 2018.
Also in Jan 2018
Decided by 0.5144 of a Point
GRILLER INSTINCT edged GECKO BBQ by 0.5144 at W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest.
GRILLER INSTINCT Climbs 19 Rating Points
GRILLER INSTINCT gained 19 rating points across 1 contest — the biggest climb of the month.
MIDNIGHT BURN Runs Away With Lakeland Pig Festival
MIDNIGHT BURN won Lakeland Pig Festival by 11.4284 points over SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ — the widest winning margin of the month.
70 Teams Roll Into Bullhead City
Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge drew 70 teams, and ROOFTOP BBQ won it.
4 LEGS UP BBQ Cooks Its 150th Contest
4 LEGS UP BBQ cooked their 150th contest on record at National Western BBQ Throwdown, with 5 Grand Championships along the way.
Nobody Hauled Further Than SHIG NINJA BBQ
SHIG NINJA BBQ cooked 3 contests in January 2018 — nobody hauled the rig further.
MIDNIGHT BURN Wins Lakeland Pig Festival Without Winning a Meat
MIDNIGHT BURN won Lakeland Pig Festival without winning a single meat — their best category finish was 2nd.
Perfect 180s
3 perfect scores — six judges, every card a nine.
- Brisket SAUCED! BBQ TEAM Lakeland Pig Festival · Jan. 26
- Pork Ribs HOT WACHULA'S W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest · Jan. 13
- Chicken BURNTOUT BBQ CO National Western BBQ Throwdown · Jan. 5
The Ratings Market Power rating and the move over Jan 2018; # is the team’s place in the power rankings
| Team | Rating | Chg. |
|---|---|---|
| GRILLER INSTINCT #2,824 | 1,510 | ▲ 19 |
| 7-8-9 BBQ #417 | 1,694 | ▲ 16 |
| GECKO BBQ #1,284 | 1,581 | ▲ 15 |
| BOOMERANG BBQ #9 | 1,922 | ▲ 14 |
| NOTHING COMPARES 2 Q #1,162 | 1,589 | ▲ 14 |
| SMOKIN BLUE Q FL #838 | 1,624 | ▲ 14 |
| Knockstone BBQ Team Austria #488 | 1,680 | ▲ 14 |
| JACK9 BBQ #1,395 | 1,572 | ▲ 13 |
| Team | Rating | Chg. |
|---|---|---|
| BURNIN BELLIES #1,076 | 1,597 | ▲ 12 |
| COW TIPPIN BBQ #562 | 1,667 | ▲ 11 |
| THE KAV'S | 1,488 | ▼ 12 |
| S & T BBQ | 1,493 | ▼ 13 |
| BBQ Freunde Südtirol | 1,470 | ▼ 13 |
| Südtiroler BBQ | 1,474 | ▼ 15 |
| RUB MY RACK #447 | 1,688 | ▼ 19 |
Full power rankings → · Ratings move only on rated contests; invitationals and non-points events are excluded.
New to the Circuit First appearance anywhere in the record — the figure is their best finish
- 18th TATTOO Q Lakeland Pig Festival
- 21st LEWIS BARBECUE Lakeland Pig Festival
- 26th Saucy Buns BBQ National Western BBQ Throwdown
- 27th Supreme BBQ W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest
- 30th PORTLY FELLAS BBQ Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge
- 30th Südtiroler BBQ W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest
- 31st Money Muscle feat. Special Sauce National Western BBQ Throwdown
- 33rd KRAZE-E'S BBQ National Western BBQ Throwdown
- 36th STANLEY SMOKERS National Western BBQ Throwdown
- 39th 121 East Lake BBQ National Western BBQ Throwdown
- 43rd QUIGLYS 2ND HAND SMOKE Lakeland Pig Festival
- 44th R.C.BUCK'S GRILLIN' TEAM Lakeland Pig Festival
- 46th THE BBQ SHACK LAKELAND LLC Lakeland Pig Festival
- 50th B2 BBQ Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge
- 51st MOODSWING BBQ Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge
- 52nd KENNY'S BBQ Lakeland Pig Festival
- 55th Big Smoke BBQ & Catering LLC Lakeland Pig Festival
- 59th THE KAV'S Lakeland Pig Festival
Best of Each Meat
Both series, out of 180
| Meat | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken† | BURNTOUT BBQ CO National Western BBQ Throwdown |
180 |
| Pork Ribs† | HOT WACHULA'S W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest |
180 |
| Pork | GETTIN' BASTED National Western BBQ Throwdown |
179.4400 |
| Brisket† | SAUCED! BBQ TEAM Lakeland Pig Festival |
180 |
† a perfect 180 was scored in this category during the edition.
Who Showed Up
Contests · Grand Championships · best overall finish
| Team | C | GC | Best |
|---|---|---|---|
| SHIG NINJA BBQ | 3 | — | 14 |
| BIG POPPA SMOKERS | 2 | — | 2 |
| HOT WACHULA'S | 2 | — | 3 |
| B-S BBQ OUTLAWS | 2 | — | 6 |
| GRILLIN' BEAVERS | 2 | — | 6 |
| BOOMERANG BBQ | 2 | — | 7 |
| Backdraft BBQ | 2 | — | 9 |
| WILD HOGS BBQ | 2 | — | 14 |
| GETTIN' BASTED | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| GRILLER INSTINCT | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| MIDNIGHT BURN | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Rooftop BBQ | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 Live Que | 1 | — | — |
| 92 BB Crew | 1 | — | — |
| 92 BBQ Crew 2 | 1 | — | — |
Where They Cooked
Contests · teams
| State/Prov. | C | Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | 1 | 124 |
| Arizona | 1 | 70 |
| Colorado | 1 | 39 |
| BZ | 1 | 30 |
Every sanctioned contest scored in this edition — 4 in all, newest first. Click a column head to sort; click a row for the contest.
| Contest | Grand Champion | High score |
|---|---|---|
| Lakeland Pig Festival Jan. 26 · Lakeland, Fla. · 60 teams |
MIDNIGHT BURN | 702.2284 |
| Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Jan. 19 · Bullhead City, Ariz. · 70 teams |
ROOFTOP BBQ | 700.5600 |
| W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest Jan. 13 · Rein in Taufers, BZ · 30 teams |
GRILLER INSTINCT | 674.8688 |
| National Western BBQ Throwdown Jan. 5 · Denver, Colo. · 39 teams |
GETTIN' BASTED | 691.3712 |
Contests Advertised
- Red White & Que - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (Day 1) — Friday, Oct. 23. West Creek, N.J. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
- Red White & Que - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) — Friday, Oct. 23. West Creek, N.J. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
- VPD Back the Blue BBQ Competition — Friday, Oct. 23. Vidalia, La. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
- Rock Lane Presents Grills Gone Wild — Friday, Oct. 23. Branson, Mo. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
- The Butcher's Smoke & Flames Barbeque Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) — Friday, Oct. 23. Cullman, Ala. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
- Foothills Smoke-Off Challenge — Friday, Oct. 23. Lenoir, N.C. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
- Red White & Que - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (Day 2) — Saturday, Oct. 24. West Creek, N.J. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
- Red White & Que - CAMPGROUND BBQ SERIES (ONE MEAT RIBS) — Saturday, Oct. 24. West Creek, N.J. Entries through the organizer; sanctioned by KCBS.
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