SUGAR BABY BBQ

SUGAR BABY BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 9 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2014 and 2019. Their best overall finish is 11th of 34 at the Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival (2018). They are ranked #3729 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#3,729

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1489

peak 1489 · rated over 9 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Jun 20, 2014

latest Jun 14, 2019 · 5 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#1208

Master 2015 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podium

Overall top-10s

0% of 9 contests

Avg finish

top 70%

overall standings

Best overall

683.3716 / 720

Master · Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

668.83 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 648.69 (+20.14)

Walk rate

67%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

175.4400

Chicken · Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival

Consistency

±49.87

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork Ribs

avg 168.12 · weakest Brisket (165.32)

Road miles

570

across 9 mapped stops · furthest 129 mi

Schedule strength

82%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1608)

State championships

0 🏅

won from 1 state-championship entry

Master avg

648.69 / 720

9 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (7 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

They almost always walk

67% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 6 of 9 contests

A top-10 category call in 67% of their 9 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

683.3716 career-best overall

94.9% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 683.3716 at Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival — 94.9% of a perfect 720.

Master
Jun 15, 2018

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

HARLAN CO. COAL BURNERS has finished one call ahead of SUGAR BABY BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

7–0 behind in the head-to-head

BLUE CHIP BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

BLUE CHIP BBQ has come out ahead in 7 of their 7 shared contests.

The comeback

2.1 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 2.1 years, then back at Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival (Jun 15, 2018).

last seen May 13, 2016
back Jun 15, 2018

Pork Ribs nemesis

5 of 6 shared pork ribs entries lost

BLUE CHIP BBQ ahead 83% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, BLUE CHIP BBQ has out-cooked them in 5 of 6 shared pork ribs entries.

They cook the hard rooms

1608 average field rating faced

A tougher draw than 82% of rated fields

The fields they enter average a 1608 power rating — a tougher draw than 82% of every rated contest in the data.

9 rated contests

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
2019 ↗	Master	#2530 (55 pts)	#1796 (100 pts)	#1967 (70 pts)	#1817 (95 pts)	#2010 (60 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1239 (189 pts)	#1079 (269 pts)	#1292 (199 pts)	#1440 (164 pts)	#1004 (299 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#1656 (144 pts)	#1266 (254 pts)	#1678 (159 pts)	#1863 (124 pts)	#1626 (164 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#1208 (234 pts)	#1374 (209 pts)	#1543 (170 pts)	#960 (369 pts)	#897 (394 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#2761 (57 pts)	#2817 (52 pts)	#1719 (147 pts)	#2618 (67 pts)	#2820 (52 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to SUGAR BABY BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

RING OF FIRE BBQ

#3,744 of the rated field

1488 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 30%
Peak: 1488

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Jan 27, 2023
on a 3-contest top-10 run

⚔ Compare careers

KEGGER'S

#3,727 of the rated field

1489 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1512

Their last contest in the data was back in 2016, 3 years before SUGAR BABY BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 9 contests

⚔ Compare careers

WOLF CANDY BBQ

#3,710 of the rated field

1489 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 22%
Peak: 1509

Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 9, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Jun 26, 2015

⚔ Compare careers

Big Back BBQ

#3,746 of the rated field

1488 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1505

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

rated over 10 contests
last seen Oct 16, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Grill Em All

#3,731 of the rated field

1489 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 40%
Peak: 1489

They turned up 7 years after SUGAR BABY BBQ did, first appearing in 2021.

rated over 10 contests
last seen Jan 24, 2025

⚔ Compare careers

The Catering Vets

#3,712 of the rated field

1489 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 10%
Peak: 1509

Careers of much the same size, 10 contests to 9, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 10 contests
last seen Oct 20, 2023

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Pappy Q	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
Extra Mile BBQ	7	1	6	14%	⚔ compare
BLUE CHIP BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKE ON THIS	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
CONTINENTAL BARBEQUE CO.	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
CONTAGIOUS Q	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
WARREN COUNTY PORK CHOPPERS	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	9	2	0	175.4400	158.8456	167.48	top 57%
Pork Ribs	8	1	0	171.9656	165.6916	168.12	top 54%
Pork	9	2	0	172.5944	158.8344	166.45	top 57%
Brisket	9	3	1	174.8572	149.6684	165.32	top 52%

“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
Medium (20–39)	6	0	top 74%
Large (40+)	3	0	top 62%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
KY	7	0	top 69%
TN	2	0	top 71%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival	2	11	0	top 58%	Jun 14, 2019

More numbers

Busiest season 2015 3 contests

Contests a season 1.8 across 5 seasons in the data

Most contests held in KY 7 of 9 contests · 2 states in all

Contests visited 8 1 of them more than once

Opponents faced 191 finished ahead 99 times, behind 205

Longest layoff 2.1 yrs May 13, 2016 → Jun 15, 2018

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

20191 milestone

Jun 14 Most recent contest Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival

20182 milestones

Jun 15 Career-best overall score683.3716 Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival
Jun 15 Career-best single call (Chicken)175.4400 Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival

20152 milestones

Jun 19 First overall past 90% of a perfect score662.2744 Barbourville BBQ Cook-Off & Festival
Oct 2 Peak power rating (1496) Jim Beam BBQ Classic

20142 milestones

Jun 20 First tracked contest Barbourville BBQ Festival
Jun 20 First call Barbourville BBQ Festival

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+11.8	Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival	Jun 15, 2018
+7	Jim Beam BBQ Classic	Oct 2, 2015
+2.1	Cumberland Plateau BBQ Cook-Off & Cruise In Day 1	Jul 13, 2018
+0.3	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	May 13, 2016

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-12.3	Big Buffalo Crossing BBQ Cook-Off	Oct 16, 2015
-9	Barbourville BBQ Festival	Jun 20, 2014
-4.7	Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival	Jun 14, 2019
-4.4	Smoke on the Shores	Mar 11, 2016
-2	Barbourville BBQ Cook-Off & Festival	Jun 19, 2015

Scores over time (% of a perfect score — 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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2019	1	0%	top 83%	92.4%	92.4%
2018	2	50%	top 49%	94.9%	93.9%
2016	2	50%	top 72%	92.4%	92.1%
2015	3	100%	top 71%	93.8%	85.6%
2014	1	100%	top 89%	89.7%	89.7%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Jun 14, 2019	Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival 🏅 Barbourville, KY	25 / 30 (665.5772)	16 (170.2628)	22 (166.2400)	17 (169.6800)	24 (159.3944)
Jul 13, 2018	Cumberland Plateau BBQ Cook-Off & Cruise In Day 1 Jamestown, TN	26 / 40 (668.5256)	28 (165.1656)	13 (170.8572)	25 (167.3828)	24 (165.1200)
Jun 15, 2018	Barbourville BBQ Cookoff & Festival Barbourville, KY	11 / 34 (683.3716)	4 (175.4400)	21 (165.6916)	16 (167.3828)	3 (174.8572)
May 13, 2016	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Bowling Green, KY	19 / 29 (661.6456)	9 (170.8456)	16 (166.8112)	23 (158.8344)	15 (165.1544)
Mar 11, 2016	Smoke on the Shores Nashville, TN	38 / 49 (665.0400)	14 (172.5600)	29 (166.2628)	40 (160.5372)	31 (165.6800)
Oct 16, 2015	Big Buffalo Crossing BBQ Cook-Off Munfordville, KY	34 / 34 (510.2516)	19 (167.9772)	—	10 (170.8572)	7 (171.4172)
Oct 2, 2015	Jim Beam BBQ Classic Springfield, KY	19 / 45 (675.3600)	33 (163.9656)	20 (170.2972)	23 (168.5372)	10 (172.5600)
Jun 19, 2015	Barbourville BBQ Cook-Off & Festival Barbourville, KY	18 / 25 (662.2744)	23 (158.8456)	18 (166.8228)	6 (172.5944)	16 (164.0116)
Jun 20, 2014	Barbourville BBQ Festival Barbourville, KY	24 / 27 (646.1712)	25 (162.2744)	8 (171.9656)	22 (162.2628)	26 (149.6684)

SUGAR BABY BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (7 found in their record)

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The comeback

Pork Ribs nemesis

They cook the hard rooms

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

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

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

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

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

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

Scores over time (% of a perfect score — 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

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

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