The heartbreaker
Tie
level with the champion
Finished level on points with the champion at Bourbon, Brews & BBQ (BACKYARD) (Jul 15, 2022) — the Grand Championship went to the KCBS tiebreaker.
Sensuous BBQ
Sensuous BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 60 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2021 and 2026. They have won 5 Grand Championships, most recently at the Minnesota in May (2024), and finished Reserve Grand Champion 4 times. They are ranked #429 of 6,485 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1692
peak 1729 · rated over 51 contests
Contests
60
in the data
First seen
Oct 15, 2021
latest Aug 28, 2026 · 4.9 years on the trail
Grand champs
5
4 reserve · wins it all 8% of the time
Category wins
14
32 podiums
Overall top-10s
39
65% of 60 contests
Best top-10 run
25
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 27%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
338.45 ▼
last 5 Backyard vs avg 340.32 (-1.87)
Walk rate
80%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±6.23
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 172.04 · weakest Pork (166.13)
Road miles
5,474
across 60 mapped stops · furthest 374 mi
Schedule strength
61%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1577)
Purse competed for
$307K
listed at 56 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
2 🏅
won from 27 state-championship entries
Master avg
678.77 / 720
3 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
340.32 / 360
48 Backyard contests · 5 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
In the record book (on 1 all-time board)
Where this team sits in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record they hold outright; the rest are boards they are on.
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Backyard | #61 (757 pts) | #28 (1,007 pts) | #75 (682 pts) | — | — |
| 2026 ↗ | Master | #750 (142 pts) | #639 (247 pts) | #526 (387 pts) | #974 (92 pts) | #884 (117 pts) |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #66 (771 pts) | #70 (762 pts) | #68 (815 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | — | — | #1293 (60 pts) | — | — |
| 2024 ↗ | Backyard | #37 (977 pts) | #45 (919 pts) | #33 (1,016 pts) | — | — |
| 2024 ↗ | Master | #726 (199 pts) | #501 (414 pts) | #619 (335 pts) | #924 (124 pts) | #585 (319 pts) |
| 2023 ↗ | Backyard | — | #6 (1,294 pts) | #29 (1,133 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | — | — | #688 (290 pts) | — | — |
| 2022 ↗ | Backyard | — | #11 (1,232 pts) | #14 (1,205 pts) | — | — |
| 2021 ↗ | Backyard | — | #78 (470 pts) | #131 (190 pts) | — | — |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Sensuous BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
#433 of the rated field
- Contests
- 79
- GCs
- 3
- Top-10s
- 37%
- Peak
- 1746
2–0 in 2 shared contests (100% to Sensuous BBQ)
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Sensuous BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#428 of the rated field
- Contests
- 53
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 38%
- Peak
- 1692
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 52 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#427 of the rated field
- Contests
- 53
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 42%
- Peak
- 1692
Their last contest in the data was back in 2022, 4 years before Sensuous BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#430 of the rated field
- Contests
- 54
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 39%
- Peak
- 1716
Careers of much the same size, 54 contests to 60, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#434 of the rated field
- Contests
- 42
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 55%
- Peak
- 1691
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 42 contests, alongside a 55% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Compare careers#432 of the rated field
- Contests
- 38
- GCs
- 2
- Top-10s
- 66%
- Peak
- 1694
They were already cooking in 2013, 8 years before Sensuous BBQ's first contest.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DAWGS BBQ | 43 | 28 | 15 | 65% | ⚔ compare |
| FENDER BENDER BBQ | 37 | 21 | 16 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| Big Ten Bones | 35 | 19 | 16 | 54% | ⚔ compare |
| Big Racks BBQ | 34 | 21 | 12 | 62% | ⚔ compare |
| Porket About It | 31 | 20 | 11 | 65% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKEY GQ | 31 | 19 | 12 | 61% | ⚔ compare |
| Wrecking Crew BBQ | 27 | 14 | 13 | 52% | ⚔ compare |
| Furlongs Smoke & Seafood | 27 | 13 | 14 | 48% | ⚔ compare |
| Marty Party BBQ | 26 | 19 | 7 | 73% | ⚔ compare |
| HOT DADDY'S BBQ | 26 | 6 | 18 | 23% | ⚔ compare |
| Sugar Shack | 25 | 21 | 4 | 84% | ⚔ compare |
| DAD BOD BARBEQUE | 25 | 17 | 8 | 68% | ⚔ compare |
| UGLY BABY BBQ | 24 | 21 | 2 | 88% | ⚔ compare |
| Lucky Shoes BBQ | 24 | 20 | 4 | 83% | ⚔ compare |
| NECTAR OF THE HOGS | 24 | 13 | 10 | 54% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 51 | 37 | 7 | 18 | 178.8572 | 158.7884 | 172.04 | top 28% |
| Pork Ribs | 60 | 31 | 7 | 13 | 177.7028 | 155.9200 | 168.15 | top 36% |
| Pork | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 171.4056 | 161.1428 | 166.13 | top 62% |
| Brisket | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 175.4172 | 168.5256 | 170.82 | top 37% |
“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.
By field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 12 | 1 | top 36% |
| Medium (20–39) | 26 | 2 | top 27% |
| Large (40+) | 13 | 2 | top 20% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
More numbers
Busiest season
2023
15 contests · 3 GCs
Contests a season
10
across 6 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
MN
26 of 60 contests · 4 states in all
Contests visited
19
15 of them more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
60 entries · 7 wins · 31 calls
First title
Oct 14, 2022
Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD ONLY)
Opponents faced
515
finished ahead 1,655 times, behind 576
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20263 milestones
- Career-best single call (Chicken)178.8572 Spring into Summer Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY)
- Career-best overall score686.1828 MN Masters BBQ
- Most recent contest MN Masters BBQ
20251 milestone
- 50th tracked contest Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY)
20243 milestones
- 5th Grand Championship Minnesota in May
- Biggest field won (58 teams) Minnesota in May
- Peak power rating (1729) Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY)
20233 milestones
- First state championship Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD)
- 25th tracked contest Bent Brewstillery BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY)
- 10th category win Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)
20224 milestones
- First Reserve Championship Minnesota in May (Backyard)
- First category win (Chicken) Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD)
- 10th tracked contest B-Dale BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First Grand Championship Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD ONLY)
20215 milestones
- First tracked contest Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD)
- First call Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD)
- First overall top-10 Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD)
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score335.3944 Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD)
- First overall podium Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 2 (BACKYARD)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +15.2 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) | Jun 10, 2022 |
| +14.9 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 2 (BACKYARD) | Oct 16, 2021 |
| +14.3 | Minnesota in May (Backyard) | May 13, 2022 |
| +13.9 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD) | Oct 15, 2021 |
| +13 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD ONLY) | Oct 14, 2022 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -14.8 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) | Aug 15, 2026 |
| -14.2 | Art of the Que (Masters and Backyard 1) | Jun 27, 2025 |
| -10.7 | MN Masters BBQ | Aug 23, 2024 |
| -9.3 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 2 (MASTER & BACKYARD) | Jun 13, 2026 |
| -8.1 | Smokin in Steele | May 31, 2024 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — tap a meat to add it)
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
How entries end (by meat)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 60% | top 39% | 95.9% | 94.4% |
| 2025 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 78% | top 42% | 95.2% | 93.6% |
| 2024 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 73% | top 31% | 97.3% | 94.4% |
| 2023 | 15 | 3 | 11 | 5 | 80% | top 18% | 97.9% | 95.2% |
| 2022 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 5 | 100% | top 20% | 98.7% | 94.7% |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 100% | top 10% | 94.6% | 93.9% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28, 2026 | MN Masters BBQ 🏅 Pierz, MN | 8 / 22 (686.1828) | 2 (176.5600) | 2 (174.2628) | 16 (166.8344) | 11 (168.5256) |
| Aug 15, 2026 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 15 / 18 (334.7424) | 16 (162.7768) | 10 (171.9656) | — | — |
| Jun 13, 2026 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 2 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 22 / 37 (330.1944) | 1 (174.2744) | 27 (155.9200) | — | — |
| Jun 12, 2026 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 17 / 40 (341.6688) | 12 (173.1200) | 23 (168.5488) | — | — |
| Jun 12, 2026 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (ONE MEAT RIBS) West Salem, WI | — | — | 20 (163.9428) | — | — |
| May 29, 2026 | Spring into Summer Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Owatonna, MN | 4 / 25 (345.1088) | 3 (178.8572) | 13 (166.2516) | — | — |
| May 8, 2026 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 7 / 77 (340.5488) | 2 (175.4056) | 17 (165.1432) | — | — |
| May 8, 2026 | Minnesota in May (ONE MEAT RIBS) St. Peter, MN | — | — | 35 (165.0972) | — | — |
| Apr 24, 2026 | Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) Stanley, WI | 4 / 24 (345.1544) | 11 (169.7372) | 2 (175.4172) | — | — |
| Apr 3, 2026 | Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA | 19 / 42 (337.6572) | 21 (169.1200) | 16 (168.5372) | — | — |
| Aug 16, 2025 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 6 / 17 (341.0972) | 6 (171.9772) | 8 (169.1200) | — | — |
| Jun 27, 2025 | Art of the Que (Masters and Backyard 1) 🏅 Spencer, IA | 13 / 15 (327.3256) | 16 (158.7884) | 7 (168.5372) | — | — |
| Jun 27, 2025 | Art of the Que (Backyard 2) Spencer, IA | 4 / 17 (341.1084) | 7 (169.1084) | 2 (172) | — | — |
| Jun 14, 2025 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 2 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 11 / 36 (337.6572) | 15 (168.5372) | 9 (169.1200) | — | — |
| Jun 13, 2025 | Bring'n Home the Bacon (ONE MEAT RIBS) West Salem, WI | — | — | 25 (165.1316) | — | — |
| Jun 13, 2025 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 23 / 36 (335.3368) | 27 (166.2284) | 16 (169.1084) | — | — |
| May 30, 2025 | Smokin' in Steele 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 5 / 28 (342.8572) | 4 (172.5600) | 8 (170.2972) | — | — |
| May 9, 2025 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 19 / 58 (335.9428) | 8 (174.8572) | 30 (161.0856) | — | — |
| Apr 25, 2025 | Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) Stanley, WI | 10 / 24 (333.0856) | 15 (164.5256) | 8 (168.5600) | — | — |
| Sep 7, 2024 | Bent Brewstillery BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY) Roseville, MN | 9 / 18 (329.1428) | 14 (162.8800) | 4 (166.2628) | — | — |
| Aug 23, 2024 | MN Masters BBQ 🏅 Pierz, MN | 18 / 27 (672.4568) | 2 (176.5600) | 22 (162.2400) | 22 (165.1312) | 13 (168.5256) |
| Aug 17, 2024 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 2 / 18 (343.3944) | 10 (169.6916) | 1 (173.7028) | — | — |
| Jul 5, 2024 | Smoke & Fire (BACKYARD ONLY) Stanley, WI | 5 / 16 (340.5028) | 1 (177.7028) | 13 (162.8000) | — | — |
| Jun 8, 2024 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 2 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 9 / 37 (337.6572) | 2 (177.7028) | 20 (159.9544) | — | — |
| Jun 7, 2024 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 8 / 41 (342.8000) | 8 (171.9656) | 6 (170.8344) | — | — |
| Jun 7, 2024 | Bring'n Home the Bacon (ONE MEAT RIBS) West Salem, WI | — | — | 20 (163.3828) | — | — |
| May 31, 2024 | Smokin in Steele 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 14 / 32 (677.6572) | 7 (173.7144) | 15 (167.3828) | 29 (161.1428) | 4 (175.4172) |
| May 10, 2024 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 1 / 58 (350.2628) | 11 (173.1200) | 1 (177.1428) | 2 (171.4056) | — |
| May 10, 2024 | Minnesota in May (ONE MEAT RIBS) St. Peter, MN | — | — | 20 (169.7028) | — | — |
| Mar 29, 2024 | Iowa State BBQ Championship 🏅 Altoona, IA | 13 / 42 (339.9428) | 12 (171.9656) | 18 (167.9772) | — | — |
| Oct 28, 2023 | Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) 🏅 Oak Grove, MO | 12 / 40 (340.5144) | 1 (177.7144) | 18 (162.8000) | — | — |
| Oct 27, 2023 | Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) 🏅 Oak Grove, MO | 7 / 47 (345.1316) | 3 (177.7144) | 12 (167.4172) | — | — |
| Oct 15, 2023 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II (BACKYARD) West Salem, WI | 5 / 24 (344.5256) | 11 (171.9656) | 5 (172.5600) | — | — |
| Oct 13, 2023 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 6 / 21 (340.5716) | 6 (172.5600) | 11 (168.0116) | — | — |
| Oct 13, 2023 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II (ONE MEAT RIBS) West Salem, WI | — | — | 19 (165.6800) | — | — |
| Sep 9, 2023 | Bent Brewstillery BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY) Roseville, MN | 1 / 30 (349.1316) | 1 (178.8572) | 9 (170.2744) | — | — |
| Aug 19, 2023 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 3 / 16 (342.8688) | 10 (167.4288) | 1 (175.4400) | — | — |
| Jul 21, 2023 | Fillmore County Fair BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Preston, MN | 1 / 15 (352.5600) | 2 (176) | 2 (176.5600) | — | — |
| Jul 7, 2023 | Art of the Que 🏅 Spencer, IA | 10 / 28 (330.7772) | 5 (171.4172) | 11 (159.3600) | — | — |
| Jun 10, 2023 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 2 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 4 / 40 (342.2516) | 4 (173.1200) | 5 (169.1316) | — | — |
| Jun 9, 2023 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 1 / 43 (347.4172) | 6 (170.8572) | 1 (176.5600) | — | — |
| Jun 9, 2023 | Bring'n Home the Bacon (ONE MEAT RIBS) West Salem, WI | — | — | 19 (165.6800) | — | — |
| Jun 2, 2023 | Smokin in Steele 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 9 / 29 (335.4168) | 9 (166.8340) | 7 (168.5828) | — | — |
| May 12, 2023 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 5 / 59 (342.2628) | 1 (175.4172) | 15 (166.8456) | — | — |
| May 12, 2023 | Minnesota in May (One Meat Ribs) St. Peter, MN | — | — | 12 (170.8228) | — | — |
| Oct 15, 2022 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 2 (BACKYARD ONLY) West Salem, WI | 3 / 20 (341.6572) | 2 (175.4172) | 11 (166.2400) | — | — |
| Oct 15, 2022 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II (One Meat Ribs) West Salem, WI | — | — | 3 (167.3944) | — | — |
| Oct 14, 2022 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD ONLY) West Salem, WI | 1 / 22 (346.8228) | 4 (173.7028) | 1 (173.1200) | — | — |
| Sep 10, 2022 | Bent Brewstillery BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY) Roseville, MN | 3 / 30 (345.1316) | 3 (175.4172) | 7 (169.7144) | — | — |
| Aug 20, 2022 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 6 / 15 (331.4056) | 1 (173.1200) | 13 (158.2856) | — | — |
| Aug 5, 2022 | B-Dale BBQ Contest (BACKYARD ONLY) Roseville, MN | 9 / 21 (337.7256) | 12 (168.0228) | 5 (169.7028) | — | — |
| Jul 22, 2022 | Fillmore County Fair BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Preston, MN | 4 / 13 (339.9656) | 11 (164.5256) | 1 (175.4400) | — | — |
| Jul 15, 2022 | Bourbon, Brews & BBQ (BACKYARD) Bancroft, IA | 2 / 14 (355.4172) | 3 (177.7144) | 1 (177.7028) | — | — |
| Jun 11, 2022 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 2 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 5 / 37 (343.3944) | 7 (173.1200) | 7 (170.2744) | — | — |
| Jun 10, 2022 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 2 / 39 (341.6916) | 1 (175.4172) | 8 (166.2744) | — | — |
| Jun 3, 2022 | Smokin in Steele (Master & Backyard Contest) 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 7 / 33 (324.4912) | 6 (162.2628) | 6 (162.2284) | — | — |
| May 13, 2022 | Minnesota in May (Backyard) Cambridge, MN | 2 / 38 (345.7256) | 4 (173.1428) | 3 (172.5828) | — | — |
| Apr 1, 2022 | Iowa State BBQ Championship (Backyard) Altoona, IA | 10 / 27 (339.3828) | 8 (171.9772) | 9 (167.4056) | — | — |
| Oct 16, 2021 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 2 (BACKYARD) West Salem, WI | 3 / 36 (340.6176) | 4 (174.3088) | 14 (166.3088) | — | — |
| Oct 15, 2021 | Bring'n Home the Bacon II Day 1 (BACKYARD) West Salem, WI | 5 / 40 (335.3944) | 2 (174.2628) | 22 (161.1316) | — | — |