In this edition
Every sanctioned contest scored in August 2026 — 1 Aug to 31 Aug.
Covering KCBS-sanctioned contests
August 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
TRIPLE H BBQ put up 711.9772 at BBQ & Fly-In on the River — the highest overall of the month.
- a new contest record
Hottest hand
SMOKIN' OUTLAWS took 2 Grand Championships in August 2026.
First one ever
SOUTH BRIXIA won their first Grand Championship at Wild West Fest on Fire 2026, in their 43rd contest in the data.
- 8 Aug
Upset of the month
The ratings gave them a 13% chance
Janky Leg won Smoke on the Bricks over top-rated Meat Candy Q as the ratings underdog.
Perfect 180s
Six judges, every card a 9: 65 perfect 180s were handed out in August 2026.
- Pork ×21
- Chicken ×20
- Pork Ribs ×16
- Brisket ×8
Closest call
Snake Holler BBQ edged Smoked By The Brooks by 0.0232 at Smoke N for the Kids (Day 2).
- Backyard Series
Back on top
B-S BBQ OUTLAWS won Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival — their first Grand Championship since September 2020, after 20 contests without one.
- last won September 2020
- 20 contests in between
Biggest riser
BBQ Hot Yard gained 52 rating points across 5 contests — the biggest climb of the month.
- 5 contests
- now #819 overall
State champions crowned
18 state championships were decided in August 2026. The biggest, BBQ & Fly-In on the River (83 teams), went to Triple H BBQ.
- Missouri
- Kansas
- Maine
- Texas
- North Carolina
- Indiana
Best debut
Janky Leg finished 1st at Smoke on the Bricks — the first contest they appear in anywhere in the data.
- 198 new teams in Aug 2026
- field of 52
Best in the backyard
Kick Ash BBQ put up 357.7144 on the Backyard board at Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY) (Contest 1) — two meats, a different scale, and the same nerves.
- 13 Backyard boards in Aug 2026
- won it
Biggest blowout
SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA won Trillium BBQ Throwdown by 9.7716 points over IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ — the widest winning margin of the month.
- field of 25
Biggest field
BBQ & Fly-In on the River drew 83 teams, and Triple H BBQ won it.
- Excelsior Springs, MO
Milestone
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN cooked their 400th contest on record at Smoke N for the Kids (Day 2), with 44 Grand Championships along the way.
- 44 GCs along the way
Road warriors
BBQ Hot Yard cooked 7 contests in August 2026 — nobody hauled the rig further.
- best finish 1st
- 2 GCs
Won without a meat
TRIPLE H BBQ won BBQ & Fly-In on the River without winning a single meat — their best category finish was 2nd.
- field of 83
New on the calendar
Battle of the Blue Ridge ran for the first time on record, drawing 41 teams, and Fred Vegas Smokers won it. Somebody put in the work to make a new contest happen.
- 12 first editions in Aug 2026
- Swannanoa, NC
Always the reserve
SCUFFLETOWN SMOKERS finished second overall 2 times in August 2026 without a Grand Championship — one place short every time.
- 2 contests
Busiest weekend
8 sanctioned contests were cooked on 28 Aug alone.
- 28 Aug
Rep of the month
Charlie Brinza repped 6 contests in August 2026 — somebody has to run the table.
The Boards
Highest overall scores (Master · /720)
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TRIPLE H BBQ BBQ & Fly-In on the River |
711.9772 |
| 2 | Colorado Bulldawg BBQ Roaring Camp BBQ Cook Off (Day 2) |
710.2628 |
| 3 | Smokin Colt Roaring Camp BBQ Cook Off (Day 2) |
709.1888 |
| 4 | OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE Kora Kares for Kids |
709.1316 |
| 5 | BBQ Symphony Cars & BBQ Festival 2026 |
708.5716 |
| 6 | Cherry Anchor BBQ Roaring Camp BBQ Cook Off (Day 2) |
708.5604 |
| 7 | Cynical BBQ Roaring Camp BBQ Cook Off (Day 1) |
708.5256 |
| 8 | OM BBQ COMPANY Roaring Camp BBQ Cook Off (Day 2) |
707.9888 |
| 9 | Janky Leg Smoke on the Bricks |
707.9772 |
| 10 | WE WILL ROCK QUE City of Madison BBQ Party (formerly Madison Ribberfest) |
707.4172 |
| 11 | PARTS 'R' SMOKIN Smoke on the Bricks |
707.4060 |
| 12 | Cynical BBQ Roaring Camp BBQ Cook Off (Day 2) |
707.4060 |
| 13 | SOUTH BRIXIA Wild West Fest on Fire 2026 |
707.3944 |
| 14 | COCAMOKE SMOKE BBQ Montana Pitmaster Classic |
706.8460 |
| 15 | TINY E BBQ Raider Red Meats BBQ & Ribeye Championship |
706.2628 |
Best of each meat (both series · /180)
| Category | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken ×20 💯 | Squealin N Dealin BBQ Smoke on the Bricks |
180 |
| Pork Ribs ×16 💯 | Meat Candy Q Smoke on the Bricks |
180 |
| Pork ×21 💯 | Rowdy Pig Smoke on the Bricks |
180 |
| Brisket ×8 💯 | Meat Candy Q Smoke on the Bricks |
180 |
Straight nines (perfect 180s)
…and 41 more in August 2026.
On the move (power rating)
| Team | Rating | Aug 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| BBQ Hot Yard No. 819 in the power rankings |
1,626 | +52 |
| Smoked By The Brooks No. 791 in the power rankings |
1,629 | +36 |
| All Smoked Up BBQ No. 507 in the power rankings |
1,675 | +35 |
| Kamado BONO No. 1,728 in the power rankings |
1,551 | +35 |
| Kick Ash BBQ No. 1,259 in the power rankings |
1,582 | +34 |
| smoKINGBATKO BBQ No. 3,156 in the power rankings |
1,502 | +31 |
| Hoosier BBQ No. 1,681 in the power rankings |
1,553 | +28 |
| Smoke Til Ya Broke No. 1,634 in the power rankings |
1,556 | +27 |
| 1 Bite BBQ No. 1,009 in the power rankings |
1,605 | +25 |
| Smokin A's No. 3,293 in the power rankings |
1,498 | +25 |
| Ole Mae I BBQ No. 5,669 in the power rankings |
1,447 | -20 |
| Rapped with Smoke BBQ | 1,479 | -21 |
| Whatcha Smokin' No. 6,023 in the power rankings |
1,433 | -21 |
| Risky Brisket No. 561 in the power rankings |
1,667 | -25 |
| DB BBQ No. 402 in the power rankings |
1,699 | -30 |
Who showed up
| Team | Contests | GCs | Best |
|---|---|---|---|
| BBQ Hot Yard | 7 | 2 | 1 |
| Rudes BBQ | 6 | 2 | 1 |
| Colorado Bulldawg BBQ | 5 | 2 | 1 |
| All Smoked Up BBQ | 5 | — | 2 |
| Shmack Q | 5 | — | 2 |
| Big Ten Bones | 5 | — | 3 |
| Skinny Pig BBQ | 5 | — | 4 |
| OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| JANKY LEG BBQ | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| SMOKIN E'S BBQ | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| WE WILL ROCK QUE | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Wapatui Smokers | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Big Bear BBQ | 4 | — | 4 |
| MAN MEAT BBQ | 4 | — | 4 |
| Too Sauced Guys Bar-B-Que | 4 | — | 6 |
Who ran the table
| Rep | Contests | States |
|---|---|---|
| Charlie Brinza | 6 | 1 |
| Jeanne Titus | 5 | 2 |
| Craig Maidens | 4 | 3 |
| Forrest Bruce | 4 | 2 |
| Heather Maidens | 4 | 3 |
| Dave Rogers | 3 | 2 |
| David Burstein | 3 | 1 |
| Haymo Gutweniger | 3 | — |
| Ian Schmidt | 3 | 2 |
| Julie Poe | 3 | 2 |
| Laurie Tweten | 3 | 1 |
| Luca Famigli | 3 | — |
| Manuela Seliger | 3 | — |
| Stephan Seliger | 3 | — |
| Becky Druetzler | 2 | 2 |
| Bill Jones | 2 | 2 |
| Brian Moore | 2 | 2 |
| Dave Druetzler | 2 | 2 |
| Del Anderson | 2 | 2 |
| Eugene Wickham | 2 | 2 |
Where they cooked
| State/Prov. | Contests | Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Illinois | 8 | 137 |
| Minnesota | 3 | 45 |
| Missouri | 2 | 110 |
| Maine | 2 | 89 |
| Kansas | 2 | 78 |
| Indiana | 2 | 52 |
| California | 2 | 26 |
| Pennsylvania | 2 | 26 |
| Texas | 1 | 55 |
| Virginia | 1 | 53 |
| North Carolina | 1 | 41 |
| Montana | 1 | 39 |
| Wyoming | 1 | 29 |
| Ontario | 1 | 28 |
| Washington | 1 | 27 |
| Massachusetts | 1 | 25 |
| Michigan | 1 | 20 |
| Alberta | 1 | 17 |
| Nova Scotia | 1 | 10 |
Best in the backyard (Backyard · /360)
New to the circuit
First editions (new on the calendar)
| Contest | Teams | Won by |
|---|---|---|
| Battle of the Blue Ridge Swannanoa, NC |
41 | Fred Vegas Smokers |
| City of Madison BBQ Party (formerly Madison Ribberfest) Madison, IN |
39 | WE WILL ROCK QUE |
| East Central State BBQ Cookoff - Paola Roots Festival Paola, KS |
31 | Wood Hook BBQ |
| Smoke in the North (Day 1) Boras, Sweden |
28 | Barbecoa BBQ Team |
| 9th Annual DuPont BBQ Competition DuPont, WA |
27 | Colorado BullDawg BBQ |
| Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY) (Contest 2) Cherry Valley, IL |
25 | Kick Ash BBQ |
| Smokin Ribs for the Kids (BACKYARD ONLY) (Contest 1) Cherry Valley, IL |
24 | Kick Ash BBQ |
| Cars & BBQ Festival 2026 Tallinn, Estonia |
17 | BBQ Symphony |
| Saxonburg BBQ Smokeout Saxonburg, PA |
16 | Team Cookie |
| Camper's Corner BBQ Cookoff London, ON |
14 | Smokin Outlaws |
| Chippewa Valley Ribfest (BACKYARD ONLY) Montevideo, MN |
14 | Fender Bender BBQ |
| Great Lakes Smoke Showdown BBQ Cook Off (COMPETITOR SERIES) Lapeer, MI |
12 | Q-Jitsu |
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Every contest scored (42 in August 2026)
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.