In this edition
Every sanctioned contest scored in January 2026 — 1 Jan to 31 Jan.
Covering KCBS-sanctioned contests
January 2026 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
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS put up 708.5600 at Lakeland Pig Festival — the highest overall of the month.
First one ever
GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ won their first Grand Championship at 11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge, in their 6th contest in the data.
- 16 Jan
Upset of the month
The ratings gave them a 11% chance
GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ won 11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge over top-rated IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ as the ratings underdog.
Perfect 180s
Six judges, every card a 9: 21 perfect 180s were handed out in January 2026.
- Chicken ×7
- Pork ×6
- Pork Ribs ×5
- Brisket ×3
Closest call
GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ edged Uncle Jesse's BBQ by 0.0004 at 11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge.
- Master Series
Contest record
Bocephus BBQ put up 705.7028 at SJV Winter Rub — the best overall in 4 editions of the contest on record, past the old mark of 699.3596.
- old record 699.3596
- 3 earlier editions
Biggest riser
Mike's Backyard BBQ gained 35 rating points across 2 contests — the biggest climb of the month.
- 2 contests
- now #1646 overall
State champions crowned
5 state championships were decided in January 2026. The biggest, Lakeland Pig Festival (63 teams), went to Fred Vegas Smokers.
- Florida
- Arizona
- California
- Nebraska
Best debut
ANNOINTED BBQ finished 1st at The Golden State Battle VIII — the first contest they appear in anywhere in the data.
- 95 new teams in Jan 2026
- field of 41
Best in the backyard
Mike's Backyard BBQ put up 355.4172 on the Backyard board at 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam — two meats, a different scale, and the same nerves.
- 2 Backyard boards in Jan 2026
- won it
Biggest field
Lakeland Pig Festival drew 63 teams, and Fred Vegas Smokers won it.
- Lakeland, FL
Milestone
Smoke Central BBQ cooked their 150th contest on record at 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam, with 16 Grand Championships along the way.
- 16 GCs along the way
Road warriors
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ cooked 3 contests in January 2026 — nobody hauled the rig further.
- best finish 2nd
Won without a meat
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS won Lakeland Pig Festival without winning a single meat — their best category finish was 3rd.
- field of 63
New on the calendar
11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge ran for the first time on record, drawing 53 teams, and GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ won it. Somebody put in the work to make a new contest happen.
- 4 first editions in Jan 2026
- Bullhead City, AZ
Always the reserve
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ finished second overall 2 times in January 2026 without a Grand Championship — one place short every time.
- 3 contests
Rep of the month
Jeanne Titus repped 4 contests in January 2026 — somebody has to run the table.
The Boards
Highest overall scores (Master · /720)
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | FRED VEGAS SMOKERS Lakeland Pig Festival |
708.5600 |
| 2 | LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ The Golden State Battle VIII |
708.5372 |
| 3 | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ Lakeland Pig Festival |
706.2628 |
| 4 | GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ 11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge |
706.2516 |
| 5 | SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ Lakeland Pig Festival |
706.2516 |
| 6 | MAYA JANE BBQ CO. 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
706.2512 |
| 7 | Uncle Jesse's BBQ 11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge |
706.2512 |
| 8 | Cherry Anchor BBQ The Golden State Battle VIII |
706.2400 |
| 9 | Bocephus BBQ SJV Winter Rub |
705.7028 |
| 10 | IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
705.0856 |
| 11 | Porterhouse BBQ The Golden State Battle VIII |
705.0856 |
| 12 | SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA Lakeland Pig Festival |
703.9428 |
| 13 | MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS SJV Winter Rub |
703.4060 |
| 14 | BrewsCue Lakeland Pig Festival |
703.3944 |
| 15 | SHIGGIN & GRINNIN Lakeland Pig Festival |
702.8344 |
Best of each meat (both series · /180)
| Category | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken ×7 💯 | Optimus Swine 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
180 |
| Pork Ribs ×5 💯 | Smoke Central BBQ 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
180 |
| Pork ×6 💯 | MAYA JANE BBQ CO. 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
180 |
| Brisket ×3 💯 | GETTIN' BASTED 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
180 |
Straight nines (perfect 180s)
On the move (power rating)
| Team | Rating | Jan 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Mike's Backyard BBQ No. 1,646 in the power rankings |
1,555 | +35 |
| Clean Smoke BBQ Team No. 1,229 in the power rankings |
1,584 | +32 |
| When Pigs Fly Family BBQ No. 1,223 in the power rankings |
1,585 | +27 |
| Tillman's BBQ No. 519 in the power rankings |
1,673 | +21 |
| Pops BBQ 22 No. 2,312 in the power rankings |
1,527 | +20 |
| Uncle Jesse's BBQ | 1,522 | +19 |
| ANNOINTED BBQ | 1,519 | +19 |
| GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ No. 1,420 in the power rankings |
1,570 | +18 |
| Rollin Smoke BBQ No. 154 in the power rankings |
1,777 | +17 |
| GRILL WORTHY | 1,517 | +17 |
| Tiquicia Smokers BBQ No. 4,421 in the power rankings |
1,475 | -16 |
| Burnin and Lootin No. 42 in the power rankings |
1,855 | -18 |
| TRIPLE H BBQ No. 14 in the power rankings |
1,896 | -18 |
| TCB-Takin Care of BBQ No. 5,529 in the power rankings |
1,450 | -21 |
| Glamping Grillers No. 258 in the power rankings |
1,737 | -26 |
Who showed up
| Team | Contests | GCs | Best |
|---|---|---|---|
| IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ | 3 | — | 2 |
| BrewsCue | 3 | — | 5 |
| Poppa Pig | 3 | — | 8 |
| FRED VEGAS SMOKERS | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Mike's Backyard BBQ | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Rollin Smoke BBQ | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Dogpatch Q | 2 | — | 2 |
| Clean Smoke BBQ Team | 2 | — | 3 |
| Porterhouse BBQ | 2 | — | 3 |
| Tillman's BBQ | 2 | — | 3 |
| Big Johns BBQ Company | 2 | — | 4 |
| Pork Bombin BBQ | 2 | — | 4 |
| When Pigs Fly Family BBQ | 2 | — | 4 |
| Kings BBQ Team | 2 | — | 5 |
Who ran the table
| Rep | Contests | States |
|---|---|---|
| Jeanne Titus | 4 | 1 |
| Mike Garretson | 4 | 1 |
| Charlie Brinza | 3 | 2 |
| Ernesto Uribe | 2 | 1 |
| Kelly McIntosh | 2 | 1 |
| Natasha Loew | 2 | 1 |
| Bill Jones | 1 | 1 |
| Bunny Tuttle | 1 | 1 |
| Carolyn Wells | 1 | 1 |
| Dave Rogers | 1 | 1 |
| Del Anderson | 1 | 1 |
| Kathleen McIntosh | 1 | 1 |
| Peg Rogers | 1 | 1 |
| Rich Tuttle | 1 | 1 |
Where they cooked
| State/Prov. | Contests | Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Florida | 2 | 197 |
| Arizona | 1 | 59 |
| California | 1 | 45 |
| Nebraska | 1 | 38 |
Best in the backyard (Backyard · /360)
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike's Backyard BBQ 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
355.4172 |
| 2 | Rollin Smoke BBQ 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
355.4056 |
| 3 | Clean Smoke BBQ Team 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
354.8456 |
| 4 | Rollin Smoke BBQ Lakeland Pig Festival |
354.2628 |
| 5 | Dogpatch Q Lakeland Pig Festival |
352.5600 |
| 6 | When Pigs Fly Family BBQ 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
352 |
| 7 | Rub N Butts 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
351.9772 |
| 8 | Mike's Backyard BBQ Lakeland Pig Festival |
348.5716 |
| 9 | Sleepy Pete's BBQ Lakeland Pig Festival |
346.8228 |
| 10 | Big & Ugly BBQ 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
346.2400 |
| 11 | Dogpatch Q 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam |
345.6800 |
| 12 | Drunkin Brothers BBQ Lakeland Pig Festival |
345.1088 |
New to the circuit
First editions (new on the calendar)
| Contest | Teams | Won by |
|---|---|---|
| 11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Bullhead City, AZ |
53 | GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ |
| The Golden State Battle VIII Riverside, CA |
41 | Loot N' Booty BBQ |
| 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam St. Augustine, FL |
38 | Maya Jane BBQ Co. |
| Chiriqui Grill Fest Internacional Chiriqui, Panama |
31 | Grill & Chill |
Running a contest? The organizer tools →
Every contest scored (6 in January 2026)
| Contest | Grand Champion | score |
|---|---|---|
| The Golden State Battle VIII Jan 30, 2026 · Riverside, CA · 41 teams |
Loot N' Booty BBQ RC: Cherry Anchor BBQ |
708.5372 |
| SJV Winter Rub Jan 30, 2026 · Omaha, NE · 38 teams |
Bocephus BBQ RC: MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS |
705.7028 |
| Chiriqui Grill Fest Internacional Jan 24, 2026 · Chiriqui · 31 teams |
Grill & Chill RC: 88 BBQ |
680.0112 |
| Lakeland Pig Festival Jan 22, 2026 · Lakeland, FL · 63 teams |
Fred Vegas Smokers RC: IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ |
708.5600 |
| 11th Annual Slab-O-Rama Barbeque Challenge Jan 16, 2026 · Bullhead City, AZ · 53 teams |
GOD'S COUNTRY BBQ RC: Uncle Jesse's BBQ |
706.2516 |
| 10th Annual Jimmy Jam BBQ Slam Jan 9, 2026 · St. Augustine, FL · 38 teams |
Maya Jane BBQ Co. RC: IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ |
706.2512 |
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.