In this edition
October 2026 so far — every sanctioned contest scored between 1 Oct and 19 Oct. The month is still running.
Covering KCBS-sanctioned contests
October 2026 in BBQ
The recap: every contest scored, every story, every board
Inside
The Stories
By invitation only
SmellaQue won Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY), best of 99 invited teams; B's Que took reserve. An invite-only field, so it leaves the power rating alone and goes straight into the record book.
- top score 709.7144
- 2 invitationals in Oct 2026
- not in the power rating
- the top score of the month
Hottest hand
Smoked By The Brooks took 2 Grand Championships in October 2026.
They will not let it go
Smoking Butcher won Fossalta is on Fire BBQ Competition (ONE MEAT RIBS) again — 3 straight editions of this contest.
- 2025–2026
- field of 28
First one ever
Smoked By The Brooks won their first Grand Championship at Big Creek BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY), in their 13th contest in the data.
- 2 Oct
Upset of the month
The ratings gave them a 10% chance
Dirty Shirt BBQ won Keystone Classic Cookoff over top-rated CHUNKY BBQ as the ratings underdog.
Perfect 180s
Six judges, every card a 9: 45 perfect 180s were handed out in October 2026.
- Chicken ×16
- Pork ×12
- Pork Ribs ×11
- Brisket ×6
Closest call
SMOKIN' OUTLAWS edged Meat Candy Q by 0.0116 at Smoke on the Water.
- Master Series
Back on top
Crossed Rifles BBQ won Royal Oak Invitational (COMPETITOR SERIES) (PRIVATE EVENT BY INVITATION) — their first Grand Championship since August 2023, after 38 contests without one.
- last won August 2023
- 38 contests in between
Near sweep
SMOKIN' OUTLAWS won 3 of 4 meats at Smoke on the Water (chicken, pork ribs and brisket), and the Grand Championship with them.
- Chicken
- Pork Ribs
- Brisket
- and the GC
Biggest riser
RIO VALLEY MEAT gained 28 rating points across 2 contests — the biggest climb of the month.
- 2 contests
- now #874 overall
State champions crowned
6 state championships were decided in October 2026. The biggest, La Belle MO Show Me BBQ Showdown (33 teams), went to There's No Place Like Smoke.
- Missouri
- Iowa
- Maryland
- Pennsylvania
- Kansas
Best debut
There's No Place Like finished 1st at La Belle MO Show Me BBQ Showdown — the first contest they appear in anywhere in the data.
- 111 new teams in Oct 2026
- field of 33
Best in the backyard
Big Fluff BBQ put up 356.5600 on the Backyard board at WhistleStop BBQ Festival (BACKYARD ONLY) — two meats, a different scale, and the same nerves.
- 6 Backyard boards in Oct 2026
- won it
Biggest blowout
SMELLAQUE won Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) by 6.8916 points over B'S QUE — the widest winning margin of the month.
- field of 99
Biggest field
Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) drew 99 teams, and SmellaQue won it.
- Lynchburg, TN
Milestone
SLAPS BBQ cooked their 350th contest on record at Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY), with 49 Grand Championships along the way.
- 49 GCs along the way
Road warriors
JANKY LEG BBQ cooked 3 contests in October 2026 — nobody hauled the rig further.
- best finish 1st
- 1 GC
Won without a meat
SMELLAQUE won Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) without winning a single meat — their best category finish was 5th.
- field of 99
New on the calendar
All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 1) ran for the first time on record, drawing 35 teams, and Gettin' Basted won it. Somebody put in the work to make a new contest happen.
- 6 first editions in Oct 2026
- Sunland Park, NM
Busiest weekend
5 sanctioned contests were cooked on 2 Oct alone.
- 2 Oct
Rep of the month
Michael Santiago repped 3 contests in October 2026 — somebody has to run the table.
The Boards
Highest overall scores (Master · /720)
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SMELLAQUE Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) |
709.7144 |
| 2 | GETTIN' BASTED All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 1) |
708.5716 |
| 3 | MEAT ME IN ST. LOUIS King of the Corn |
706.2744 |
| 4 | SMOKIN' OUTLAWS Smoke on the Water |
706.2516 |
| 5 | Meat Candy Q Smoke on the Water |
706.2400 |
| 6 | JANKY LEG BBQ All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 1) |
706.2400 |
| 7 | RIO VALLEY MEAT All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 1) |
705.6684 |
| 8 | Poppin Smoke BBQ The United Rentals Big Blue BBQ at Union Station |
705.1088 |
| 9 | The Pitfather BBQ All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 1) |
705.1088 |
| 10 | LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 1) |
705.0972 |
| 11 | JANKY LEG BBQ All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 2) |
705.0972 |
| 12 | OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE MD State BBQ Bash |
704.5488 |
| 13 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS The United Rentals Big Blue BBQ at Union Station |
704.5372 |
| 14 | Country Boys BBQ The MoCo Smoke Show |
703.3944 |
| 15 | Petie's Smokin Pits Smoke on the Water |
703.3712 |
Best of each meat (both series · /180)
| Category | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken ×16 💯 | Rudes BBQ La Belle MO Show Me BBQ Showdown |
180 |
| Pork Ribs ×11 💯 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS The United Rentals Big Blue BBQ at Union Station |
180 |
| Pork ×12 💯 | TEAM CRAWFORD La Belle MO Show Me BBQ Showdown |
180 |
| Brisket ×6 💯 | LC BBQ Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) |
180 |
Straight nines (perfect 180s)
…and 21 more in October 2026.
On the move (power rating)
| Team | Rating | Oct 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| RIO VALLEY MEAT No. 874 in the power rankings |
1,619 | +28 |
| Can Do BBQ No. 1,670 in the power rankings |
1,554 | +26 |
| The Pitfather BBQ No. 482 in the power rankings |
1,681 | +25 |
| Smoked By The Brooks No. 791 in the power rankings |
1,629 | +24 |
| Bailout Barbecue No. 2,146 in the power rankings |
1,533 | +21 |
| Dirty Shirt BBQ | 1,487 | +20 |
| There's No Place Like | 1,519 | +19 |
| Estancia No. 6,110 in the power rankings |
1,429 | +18 |
| Squealin & Dealin | 1,518 | +18 |
| TRIPLE B BBQ No. 2,948 in the power rankings |
1,507 | +18 |
| Too Sauced BBQ No. 288 in the power rankings |
1,727 | -18 |
| IN DEEP SAUCE No. 1,214 in the power rankings |
1,586 | -19 |
| POPPA PIG AND PORKCHOP No. 851 in the power rankings |
1,622 | -19 |
| DM's BBQ | 1,479 | -21 |
| SadieQ No. 4,032 in the power rankings |
1,483 | -25 |
Who showed up
| Team | Contests | GCs | Best |
|---|---|---|---|
| JANKY LEG BBQ | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Brinkerhoff BBQ | 3 | — | 3 |
| MAN MEAT BBQ | 3 | — | 3 |
| Colorado Bulldawg BBQ | 3 | — | 5 |
| LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ | 3 | — | 5 |
| BrewsCue | 3 | — | 10 |
| TEAM CRAWFORD | 3 | — | 11 |
| IN DEEP SAUCE | 3 | — | 15 |
| BBQ Hot Yard | 3 | — | 73 |
| Smoked By The Brooks | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Better Half Barbecue | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| GETTIN' BASTED | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| SMOKIN' OUTLAWS | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Art la Razza Piave Bbq | 2 | — | — |
Who ran the table
| Rep | Contests | States |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Santiago | 3 | 1 |
| Rhonda Santiago | 3 | 1 |
| Bill Jones | 2 | 1 |
| Carol Bigler | 2 | 2 |
| Clara Williams | 2 | 2 |
| Debbie Spray | 2 | 1 |
| Eugene Wickham | 2 | 2 |
| Haymo Gutweniger | 2 | — |
| Jonathan B Williams | 2 | 2 |
| Luca Famigli | 2 | — |
| Randy G Bigler | 2 | 2 |
| Robert McKee | 2 | 1 |
| Sarah Wickham | 2 | 2 |
| Scott Spray | 2 | 1 |
| Alan Rothrock | 1 | 1 |
| Becky Druetzler | 1 | 1 |
| Brandon Bressner | 1 | 1 |
| Bunny Tuttle | 1 | 1 |
| Carolyn Wells | 1 | 1 |
| Charlie Brinza | 1 | 1 |
Where they cooked
| State/Prov. | Contests | Teams |
|---|---|---|
| Missouri | 5 | 104 |
| Maryland | 2 | 83 |
| New Mexico | 2 | 38 |
| Tennessee | 1 | 99 |
| Alabama | 1 | 46 |
| Georgia | 1 | 38 |
| Iowa | 1 | 31 |
| Kansas | 1 | 25 |
| Pennsylvania | 1 | 25 |
| Indiana | 1 | 20 |
Best in the backyard (Backyard · /360)
By invitation (invite-only fields)
| Contest | Teams | Grand Champion |
|---|---|---|
| Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Oct 9, 2026 · Lynchburg, TN |
99 | SmellaQue |
| Royal Oak Invitational Oct 15, 2026 · Roswell, GA |
38 | Crossed Rifles BBQ |
New to the circuit
First editions (new on the calendar)
| Contest | Teams | Won by |
|---|---|---|
| All American BBQ Cook-Off (Day 1) Sunland Park, NM |
35 | Gettin' Basted |
| Keystone Classic Cookoff Harrisburg, PA |
25 | Dirty Shirt BBQ |
| The United Rentals Big Blue BBQ at Union Station Kansas City, MO |
20 | Poppin Smoke BBQ |
| Gladfest Smokefest (ONE MEAT RIBS) Gladstone, MO |
19 | Sauced and Smoked DBQ |
| Octoberfest (BACKYARD ONLY) Argos, IN |
19 | Holy Cow |
| The MoCo Smoke Show Silver Spring, MD |
15 | Country Boys BBQ |
Running a contest? The organizer tools →
Every contest scored (18 in October 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.