In this edition
Every sanctioned contest scored in July 2025 — 1 Jul to 31 Jul.
Covering KCBS-sanctioned contests
July 2025 in BBQ
The recap: every contest scored, every story, every board
Inside
The Stories
Score of the month
top 1% of every Master overall ever scored
TRIPLE H BBQ put up 711.9772 at Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 1) — the highest overall of the month.
Hottest hand
Too Sauced BBQ took 2 Grand Championships in July 2025.
First one ever
Piggy & Swine BBQ won their first Grand Championship at Smoke on the Rail BBQ Festival (Day 1), in their 52nd contest in the data.
- 25 Jul
Title defended
House of Que won Connecticut Barbecue Challenge again — back-to-back Grand Championships at the same contest.
- 2024–2025
- field of 30
Upset of the month
The ratings gave them a 11% chance
Piggy & Swine BBQ won Smoke on the Rail BBQ Festival (Day 1) over top-rated GETTIN' BASTED as the ratings underdog.
Perfect 180s
Six judges, every card a 9: 61 perfect 180s were handed out in July 2025.
- Chicken ×18
- Pork Ribs ×16
- Pork ×15
- Brisket ×12
Closest call
BBQ MIKE edged SMOKEY GQ by 0.0000 at Dowagiac BBQ Competition and Summer Festival (BACKYARD ONLY).
- Backyard Series
Back on top
SMOKIN' SWEETMEATS won South Carolina Festival of Discovery — their first Grand Championship since November 2022, after 34 contests without one.
- last won November 2022
- 34 contests in between
Contest record
SMELLAQUE put up 700.5600 at Didsbury Lions BBQ — the best overall in 5 editions of the contest on record, past the old mark of 693.6684.
- old record 693.6684
- 4 earlier editions
Near sweep
GOOD GOOGLY GOO BBQ won 3 of 4 meats at The Great Atlantic BBQ Competition (chicken, pork ribs and pork), and the Grand Championship with them.
- Chicken
- Pork Ribs
- Pork
- and the GC
Biggest riser
Fire Pig gained 47 rating points across 4 contests — the biggest climb of the month.
- 4 contests
- now #640 overall
State champions crowned
24 state championships were decided in July 2025. The biggest, South Carolina Festival of Discovery (66 teams), went to Smokin' Sweetmeats.
- South Carolina
- New Jersey
- Ohio
- Virginia
- Missouri
- Oregon
Best debut
Rowdy Pig finished 2nd at Code 3 Spices - Smokin' on Main — the first contest they appear in anywhere in the data.
- 103 new teams in Jul 2025
- field of 32
Best in the backyard
BBQ MIKE put up 354.2972 on the Backyard board at Dowagiac BBQ Competition and Summer Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) — two meats, a different scale, and the same nerves.
- 14 Backyard boards in Jul 2025
- won it
Biggest blowout
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS won Albany County Fair Smokin' BBQ Cook-Off by 9.7600 points over PAPA'S PIT CREW — the widest winning margin of the month.
- field of 26
Biggest field
South Carolina Festival of Discovery drew 66 teams, and Smokin' Sweetmeats won it.
- Greenwood, SC
Milestone
MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ cooked their 200th contest on record at Cameron Elks BBQ Cook-Off, with 9 Grand Championships along the way.
- 9 GCs along the way
Road warriors
Bushwood BBQ cooked 7 contests in July 2025 — nobody hauled the rig further.
- best finish 1st
- 1 GC
Won without a meat
BLUE CHIP BBQ won Buckeye BBQ Classic without winning a single meat — their best category finish was 2nd.
- field of 40
New on the calendar
Buckeye BBQ Classic ran for the first time on record, drawing 40 teams, and BLUE CHIP BBQ won it. Somebody put in the work to make a new contest happen.
- 12 first editions in Jul 2025
- Hillsboro, OH
Always the reserve
OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE finished second overall 2 times in July 2025 without a Grand Championship — one place short every time.
- 3 contests
Busiest weekend
7 sanctioned contests were cooked on 11 Jul alone.
- 11 Jul
Rep of the month
Eugene Wickham repped 4 contests in July 2025 — somebody has to run the table.
The Boards
Highest overall scores (Master · /720)
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TRIPLE H BBQ Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 1) |
711.9772 |
| 2 | GOOD GOOGLY GOO BBQ The Great Atlantic BBQ Competition |
710.8228 |
| 3 | MAN MEAT BBQ Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 2) |
708.5372 |
| 4 | SMOKIN' SWEETMEATS South Carolina Festival of Discovery |
708 |
| 5 | SMOKIN' VOLTS BBQ Blaze of 47 |
707.9888 |
| 6 | FINGER LEIKAM GOOD Dodge City Days Smokin' Saddles Double Header (Day 2) |
707.4060 |
| 7 | Low Eye Que Shenandoah ShenDig |
707.3944 |
| 8 | BAR-B-CUDA BBQ Sutherlin Throwdown |
707.3944 |
| 9 | TRIPLE H BBQ Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 2) |
707.3944 |
| 10 | Pits and Grills Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 1) |
706.8228 |
| 11 | Piggy & Swine BBQ Smoke on the Rail BBQ Festival (Day 1) |
706.8112 |
| 12 | Big Boys BBQ Sutherlin Throwdown |
706.2512 |
| 13 | MUNNY'S STOVE Dodge City Days Smokin' Saddles Double Header (Day 1) |
706.2400 |
| 14 | Smokin' Bliss BBQ Sutherlin Throwdown |
705.7144 |
| 15 | SMOKIN' VOLTS BBQ Curley Que Classic |
705.1200 |
Best of each meat (both series · /180)
| Category | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken ×18 💯 | SWEET SMOKE Q FLORIDA South Carolina Festival of Discovery |
180 |
| Pork Ribs ×16 💯 | Blue Smoke Q South Carolina Festival of Discovery |
180 |
| Pork ×15 💯 | WOOD HOOK BBQ Cameron Elks BBQ Cook-Off |
180 |
| Brisket ×12 💯 | SMOKE N' ASH BBQ South Carolina Festival of Discovery |
180 |
Straight nines (perfect 180s)
…and 37 more in July 2025.
On the move (power rating)
| Team | Rating | Jul 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Fire Pig No. 640 in the power rankings |
1,652 | +47 |
| T-Dawg BBQ No. 574 in the power rankings |
1,664 | +34 |
| HORMONAL ESCAPE COMPETITION BBQ No. 830 in the power rankings |
1,625 | +34 |
| Must B Smokin' Somethin' BBQ Team No. 658 in the power rankings |
1,648 | +32 |
| SinBin BBQ No. 1,107 in the power rankings |
1,594 | +29 |
| MUNNY'S STOVE No. 209 in the power rankings |
1,753 | +28 |
| Palm tree smokehouse No. 4,721 in the power rankings |
1,469 | +26 |
| Pinky Out BBQ No. 326 in the power rankings |
1,718 | +24 |
| Too Sauced BBQ No. 288 in the power rankings |
1,727 | +24 |
| Brinkerhoff BBQ No. 207 in the power rankings |
1,754 | +23 |
| Kith n' Kin No. 254 in the power rankings |
1,740 | -23 |
| Petie's Smokin Pits BBQ No. 206 in the power rankings |
1,754 | -24 |
| Smokey Bros BBQ | 1,484 | -25 |
| MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ No. 516 in the power rankings |
1,674 | -28 |
| SMOKIN' LEFTY'S BBQ No. 878 in the power rankings |
1,619 | -28 |
Who showed up
| Team | Contests | GCs | Best |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bushwood BBQ | 7 | 1 | 1 |
| MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | 6 | — | 8 |
| MAN MEAT BBQ | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| GETTIN' BASTED | 5 | — | 2 |
| T-Dawg BBQ | 5 | — | 2 |
| Big Reds Backyard BBQ | 5 | — | 4 |
| WHEN PIGS DIE | 5 | — | 5 |
| Too Sauced BBQ | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| E SQUARED BBQ | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Fire Pig | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| HOT DADDY'S BBQ | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| MUNNY'S STOVE | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| HESSHOGS | 4 | — | 2 |
| Meat Candy Q | 4 | — | 2 |
| WAG'S BACKWOODS BBQ | 4 | — | 3 |
Who ran the table
| Rep | Contests | States |
|---|---|---|
| Eugene Wickham | 4 | 2 |
| Sarah Wickham | 4 | 2 |
| Bill Jones | 3 | 2 |
| Dave Rogers | 3 | 1 |
| Ian Schmidt | 3 | 3 |
| Julie Poe | 3 | 3 |
| Louise Weidner | 3 | 2 |
| Peg Rogers | 3 | 1 |
| Robert McKee | 3 | 1 |
| Alan Rothrock | 2 | 2 |
| Alex Jr Brown | 2 | 2 |
| Brian Moore | 2 | 2 |
| Craig Maidens | 2 | 1 |
| Doug Reid | 2 | 2 |
| Heather Maidens | 2 | 1 |
| Jeanne Titus | 2 | 2 |
| John Scharffbillig | 2 | 1 |
| Larry Voth | 2 | 1 |
| Laurie Tweten | 2 | 1 |
| Lynda Voth | 2 | 1 |
Where they cooked
| State/Prov. | Contests | Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Missouri | 6 | 102 |
| Iowa | 4 | 71 |
| Pennsylvania | 3 | 75 |
| Virginia | 2 | 75 |
| Kansas | 2 | 37 |
| Minnesota | 2 | 27 |
| South Carolina | 1 | 72 |
| New Jersey | 1 | 63 |
| Illinois | 1 | 58 |
| Ohio | 1 | 40 |
| Connecticut | 1 | 36 |
| Oregon | 1 | 36 |
| Alberta | 1 | 34 |
| Nebraska | 1 | 31 |
| Utah | 1 | 26 |
| Wyoming | 1 | 26 |
| Michigan | 1 | 17 |
| Hawaii | 1 | 13 |
| Montana | 1 | 13 |
| Nova Scotia | 1 | 11 |
Best in the backyard (Backyard · /360)
New to the circuit
First editions (new on the calendar)
| Contest | Teams | Won by |
|---|---|---|
| Buckeye BBQ Classic Hillsboro, OH |
40 | BLUE CHIP BBQ |
| Sutherlin Throwdown Sutherlin, OR |
35 | Bar-B-Cuda BBQ |
| Smokin on the Osage BBQ Contest and Car Show (Day 1) Osceola, MO |
32 | Triple H BBQ |
| 9th Annual E'burg BBQ Contest Emmetsburg, IA |
31 | Hot Daddy's BBQ |
| KTD Smokn' Gobbler Worthington, MN |
26 | Home Farm BBQ |
| Blaze of 47 Salt Lake City, UT |
26 | Smokin' Volts BBQ |
| Albany County Fair Smokin' BBQ Cook-Off Laramie, WY |
26 | Parrothead Smokers |
| Goose's 1st Annual Pitmaster Showdown Papillion, NE |
24 | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ |
| Dodge City Days Smokin' Saddles Double Header (Day 1) Dodge City, KS |
18 | Munny's Stove BBQ |
| Dillon Days Blowin' Smoke BBQ Cook Off Dillon, MT |
13 | Brinkerhoff BBQ |
| Curley Que Classic Honolulu, HI |
12 | Smokin' Volts BBQ |
| The Great Atlantic BBQ Competition Bible Hill, NS |
11 | Good Googly Goo BBQ |
Running a contest? The organizer tools →
Every contest scored (35 in July 2025)
The Archive
Every month with scored results, back to the start of the data. Subscribe to the monthly feed and each one lands as it closes.
2026 (338 contests) · the 2026 season in review
2025 (386 contests) · the 2025 season in review
2024 (343 contests) · the 2024 season in review
2023 (376 contests) · the 2023 season in review
2022 (376 contests) · the 2022 season in review
2021 (310 contests) · the 2021 season in review
2020 (134 contests) · the 2020 season in review
2019 (430 contests) · the 2019 season in review
2018 (480 contests) · the 2018 season in review
2017 (517 contests) · the 2017 season in review
2016 (505 contests) · the 2016 season in review
2015 (494 contests) · the 2015 season in review
2014 (469 contests) · the 2014 season in review
2013 (436 contests) · the 2013 season in review
2012 (1 contest) · the 2012 season in review
Every figure here is computed from the public results at kcbs.us, refreshed nightly. The Smoke Ring is not a publication of the Kansas City Barbeque Society.