BELLY DOWN BBQ

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#3624

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1490

peak 1490 · rated over 7 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-09-13

latest 2018-07-06

Best ToY finish

#1448

Master 2015

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

0 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 7 contests

Avg finish

top 67%

overall standings

Best overall

665.1772 / 720

Master · Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge

Perfect 180s

Current form

651.48 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 638.78 (+12.70)

Walk rate

43%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

174.9144

Chicken · Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge

Consistency

±25.91

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 166.94 · weakest Brisket (150.57)

Road miles

mi across 7 mapped stops

Schedule strength

62%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1579)

Master avg

638.78 / 720

7 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (5 found in this team's record)

Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.

High-water mark

665.1772 career-best overall

92.4% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 665.1772 at Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge — 92.4% of a perfect 720.

Master
2016-07-08

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

MILLER'S BARNYARD BARBEQUE has finished one call ahead of BELLY DOWN BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

6–0 behind in the head-to-head

Four Men and A Pig ahead in 100% of their meetings

Four Men and A Pig has come out ahead in 6 of their 6 shared contests.

The weak link

−16.4 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 16.36 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 43%.

Brisket avg 150.57
Chicken avg 166.94
0 calls in 7 entries

A strong matchup

4–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Smokin Slow BBQ in 4 of their 4 shared contests.

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The nearest teams in the power rankings, with a different reason on each card — six teams on one rating are rarely on it for the same reason. Rating decides who makes the list; where teams tie on it, the ones this team has actually cooked against come first, then teams at a similar point in their own career. KCBS doesn’t publish where a team is from, so nothing here is inferred from geography.

153 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.

STRIPE'S RED, WHITE & BBQ

#3617 of the rated field

1491 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 5
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1491

2–0 in 2 shared contests (100% to BELLY DOWN BBQ)

2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team BELLY DOWN BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 5 contests
last seen 2017-07-07

⚔ Head-to-head

Jessi James Smoking Guns BBQ

#3634 of the rated field

1490 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 14%
Peak: 1511

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 7 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2026-08-28

⚔ Head-to-head

Smoke Me Tender

#3635 of the rated field

1490 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1504

No shared contest yet.

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2025-08-08

⚔ Head-to-head

SmokeMasters BBQ

#3608 of the rated field

1491 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 11%
Peak: 1491

No shared contest yet.

Level with BELLY DOWN BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2025-03-14

⚔ Head-to-head

Smokeback Mountain

#3595 of the rated field

1491 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1504

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 7 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2023-09-15

⚔ Head-to-head

IQue 180

#3592 of the rated field

1491 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1503

No shared contest yet.

Careers of much the same size, 7 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2023-06-10

⚔ Head-to-head

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Four Men and A Pig	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
MILLER'S BARNYARD BARBEQUE	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
GETTIN' BASTED	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
SLAPS BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	7	3	174.9144	158.8344	166.94	top 44%
Pork Ribs	7	0	169.7372	142.8232	158.50	top 71%
Pork	7	2	173.1544	140.5372	162.77	top 54%
Brisket	7	0	157.7144	140.5488	150.57	top 79%

“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 contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 58%
Medium (20–39)	4	top 77%
Large (40+)	2	top 52%

Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Burg Fest BBQ Contest	2	11	0	top 68%	2015-09-25

The story so far (15 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 4.8 yrs 2013-09-13 → 2018-07-06

Busiest season 2015 2 contests

Contests a season 1.2 across 6 seasons in the data

Cooks most in MO 7 of 7 contests

Contests visited 6 1 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 7 entries · 0 wins · 3 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 166.94 · weakest Brisket (150.57)

Walk rate 43% a top-10 call in 3 of 7 contests

Overall top-10 rate 0% 0 of 7 contests

Master average 638.78 out of 720 · 7 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 143 77–135 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 55 7 mapped stops

Schedule strength 1579 average field rating faced — tougher than 62% of rated contests

Longest layoff 1 yrs 2013-09-13 → 2014-09-26

Power rating 1490 peak 1490 · #3624 of 6,413 rated

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

2013
Sep 13 First tracked contest Bucksaw Band & BBQ
Sep 13 First call Bucksaw Band & BBQ
2015
Sep 25 First overall past 90% of a perfect score649.0288 Burg Fest BBQ Contest
2016
Jul 8 Career-best overall score665.1772 Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge
2017
Jul 7 Career-best single call (Chicken)174.9144 Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge
2018
Jul 6 Peak power rating (1490) Johnson County BBQ Challenge(JUDGES FULL)
Jul 6 Most recent contest Johnson County BBQ Challenge(JUDGES FULL)

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+8.6	Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge	2016-07-08
+4.4	Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge	2017-07-07
+2.9	Burg Fest BBQ Contest	2015-09-25
+0.1	Johnson County BBQ Challenge(JUDGES FULL)	2018-07-06

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.6	Bucksaw Band & BBQ	2013-09-13
-6.3	Johnson County Fair BBQ	2015-07-10
-5.6	Burg Fest BBQ Contest	2014-09-26

Category scores over time

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Team of the Year rank by season

Season by season

Season	Contests	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2018	1	0%	top 64%	89.8%	89.8%
2017	1	100%	top 54%	92.1%	92.1%
2016	1	0%	top 40%	92.4%	92.4%
2015	2	50%	top 70%	90.1%	89%
2014	1	0%	top 77%	87.7%	87.7%
2013	1	100%	top 96%	80.9%	80.9%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2018-07-06	Johnson County BBQ Challenge(JUDGES FULL) Warrensburg, MO	30 / 47 (646.7316)	35 (160.5372)	26 (166.2400)	28 (164.5600)	34 (155.3944)
2017-07-07	Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge Warrensburg, MO	19 / 35 (663.3720)	4 (174.9144)	21 (165.0972)	8 (173.1544)	29 (150.2060)
2016-07-08	Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge Warrensburg, MO	16 / 40 (665.1772)	12 (172.0000)	13 (169.7372)	21 (165.7256)	23 (157.7144)
2015-09-25	Burg Fest BBQ Contest Warrensburg, MO	11 / 19 (649.0288)	8 (170.2628)	18 (152.5260)	6 (169.1428)	11 (157.0972)
2015-07-10	Johnson County Fair BBQ Warrensburg, MO	27 / 33 (633.1088)	18 (165.1656)	28 (153.6916)	15 (169.7144)	33 (144.5372)
2014-09-26	Burg Fest BBQ Contest Warrensburg, MO	17 / 22 (631.3256)	12 (166.8456)	17 (159.4172)	17 (156.5484)	20 (148.5144)
2013-09-13	Bucksaw Band & BBQ Clinton, MO	22 / 23 (582.7436)	9 (158.8344)	22 (142.8232)	20 (140.5372)	21 (140.5488)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)

Team of the Year standings (rank per category by season — year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2017 ↗	Master	#2027 (90 pts)	#1384 (210 pts)	#2190 (80 pts)	#1626 (155 pts)	#2266 (60 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#2020 (105 pts)	#1846 (125 pts)	#1884 (120 pts)	#2208 (80 pts)	#2291 (70 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#1448 (172 pts)	#1299 (232 pts)	#1709 (137 pts)	#1201 (267 pts)	#1498 (172 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#2527 (63 pts)	#1712 (133 pts)	#2558 (63 pts)	#2425 (73 pts)	#2481 (68 pts)