The heartbreaker
2.2972
points from the title
Came within 2.2972 points of the Grand Championship at The War of Barbeque (Jun 15, 2024).
Smoky Cotte
Smoky Cotte is a competition barbecue team with 41 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2024 and 2026. They have won 3 Grand Championships, most recently at The War of Barbeque (2026), and finished Reserve Grand Champion twice. They are ranked #586 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1661
peak 1661 · rated over 20 contests4 invitational or side-series contests not counted
Contests
41
in the data
First seen
Feb 24, 2024
latest Oct 9, 2026 · 2.6 years on the trail
Grand champs
3
2 reserve · wins it all 7% of the time
Category wins
9
28 podiums
Overall top-10s
18
44% of 41 contests
Best top-10 run
7
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 27%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
6 🔥
Current form
694.21 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 688.96 (+5.25)
Walk rate
88%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±11.57
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 174.20 · weakest Brisket (170.64)
Road miles
21,498
across 41 mapped stops · furthest 5,010 mi
Schedule strength
35%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1547)
Master avg
688.96 / 720
23 Master contests · 3 GCs
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 ↗ | Master | #55 (1,740 pts) | #77 (1,544 pts) | #67 (1,624 pts) | #59 (1,555 pts) | #45 (1,750 pts) |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | #190 (1,138 pts) | #148 (1,347 pts) | #84 (1,744 pts) | #196 (1,103 pts) | #232 (988 pts) |
| 2024 ↗ | Master | #214 (999 pts) | #152 (1,220 pts) | #46 (1,880 pts) | #253 (879 pts) | #240 (914 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Smoky Cotte, each with one reason worth a look.
#585 of the rated field
- Contests
- 23
- GCs
- 2
- Top-10s
- 57%
- Peak
- 1662
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 23 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#587 of the rated field
- Contests
- 43
- GCs
- 3
- Top-10s
- 51%
- Peak
- 1685
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before Smoky Cotte's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#588 of the rated field
- Contests
- 57
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 21%
- Peak
- 1675
Careers of much the same size, 57 contests to 41, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#584 of the rated field
- Contests
- 64
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 31%
- Peak
- 1662
64 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 31% top-10 finishes rather than wins.
⚔ Compare careers#596 of the rated field
- Contests
- 66
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 24%
- Peak
- 1660
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to Smoky Cotte)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Smoky Cotte has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#594 of the rated field
- Contests
- 31
- GCs
- 4
- Top-10s
- 65%
- Peak
- 1660
They were already cooking in 2013, 11 years before Smoky Cotte's first contest.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BBQ Hot Yard | 15 | 12 | 3 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| COOKLOUNGE BBQ | 15 | 6 | 9 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Onkel Felix BBQ | 14 | 14 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| Woodquarter Smokerheads | 14 | 7 | 7 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| Szendo Smoke BBQ Team | 11 | 11 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| SOUTH BRIXIA | 11 | 10 | 1 | 91% | ⚔ compare |
| SCHLUCHTENGRILLER BBQ | 11 | 8 | 3 | 73% | ⚔ compare |
| Westside BBQ | 10 | 4 | 6 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Tracica BBQ Team | 9 | 8 | 1 | 89% | ⚔ compare |
| Barbecoa BBQ Team | 8 | 7 | 1 | 88% | ⚔ compare |
| Average Joe BBQ Team | 8 | 5 | 3 | 63% | ⚔ compare |
| LUNA SMOKE - Italy | 8 | 4 | 4 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| Gold’s BBQ | 7 | 6 | 1 | 86% | ⚔ compare |
| Art Razza Piave Bbq | 6 | 6 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| THE GRILL GATHERING BBQ-Team | 6 | 6 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 26 | 19 | 1 | 7 | 180 🔥 | 150.8000 | 172.45 | top 38% |
| Pork Ribs | 37 | 30 | 3 | 8 | 178.8572 | 151.9428 | 171.62 | top 34% |
| Pork | 23 | 18 | 2 | 5 | 180 🔥 | 163.4288 | 174.20 | top 33% |
| Brisket | 23 | 15 | 3 | 8 | 180 🔥 | 159.9544 | 170.64 | top 36% |
“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) | 11 | 2 | top 23% |
| Medium (20–39) | 9 | 1 | top 29% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 35% |
By state / province (where the contests were held)
| Where | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| TN | 2 | 0 | top 45% |
| NO | 1 | 0 | top 25% |
| BZ | 1 | 0 | top 46% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The War of Barbeque | 3 | 1 | 1 | top 17% | Jun 20, 2026 |
| Wild West Fest on Fire 2026 | 3 | 2 | 0 | top 26% | Aug 8, 2026 |
| Fo.G & Smoke 2026 | 2 | 4 | 0 | top 20% | Sep 19, 2026 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2026
15 contests · 2 GCs
Contests a season
10.3
across 4 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
TN
3 of 41 contests · 3 states in all
Contests visited
18
3 of them more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
37 entries · 3 wins · 30 calls
First title
Jun 28, 2025
Mee (a)t and Fire BBQ Festival Innsbruck
Opponents faced
337
finished ahead 412 times, behind 203
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20264 milestones
- Career-best overall score707.3944 The War of Barbeque
- 5th perfect 180 No Smoke, No Glory
- Peak power rating (1661) Fo.G & Smoke 2026
- Most recent contest Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY)
20253 milestones
- First perfect 180 (Pork) The War of Barbeque
- First Grand Championship Mee (a)t and Fire BBQ Festival Innsbruck
- 25th tracked contest Wild West Fest on Fire
20246 milestones
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score669.1544 W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol
- First overall top-10 The War of Barbeque
- First overall podium The War of Barbeque
- First Reserve Championship The War of Barbeque
- 10th tracked contest Alps BBQ Days (ONE MEAT RIBS)
- First category win (Pork Ribs) Wild West Fest on Fire (ONE MEAT RIBS)
20232 milestones
- First tracked contest Country Road & BBQ Contest (ONE MEAT RIBS)
- First call Country Road & BBQ Contest (ONE MEAT RIBS)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +15.7 | The War of Barbeque | Jun 15, 2024 |
| +15.5 | Mee (a)t and Fire BBQ Festival Innsbruck | Jun 28, 2025 |
| +14.5 | Vienna Pet Fair BBQ Contest | Feb 28, 2026 |
| +13.4 | Fo.G & Smoke 2024 | Sep 21, 2024 |
| +12.4 | The War of Barbeque | Jun 20, 2026 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -0.1 | Muehlviertler BBQ Festival | May 18, 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 | 15 | 2 | 9 | 5 | 80% | top 23% | 98.2% | 96.6% |
| 2025 | 11 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 100% | top 25% | 96.6% | 95.4% |
| 2024 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 86% | top 37% | 97.5% | 94.4% |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | — | — | — |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 9, 2026 | Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) unrated Lynchburg, TN | 37 / 99 (690.2056) | 85 (166.2400) | 20 (176) | 54 (171.4056) | 15 (176.5600) |
| Sep 19, 2026 | Fo.G & Smoke 2026 Spilamberto | 5 / 22 (690.8000) | — | 8 (170.8572) | 6 (175.4172) | 5 (173.1084) |
| Aug 14, 2026 | Cars & BBQ Festival 2026 Tallinn | 5 / 17 (697.6456) | 8 (170.8228) | 8 (173.7028) | 6 (176.5600) | 3 (176.5600) |
| Aug 8, 2026 | Wild West Fest on Fire 2026 Medvode | 2 / 18 (697.6456) | 4 (177.1428) | 13 (167.3828) | 4 (176.5600) | 3 (176.5600) |
| Jul 18, 2026 | Open Barbecue Championship Wilhering | 4 / 20 (694.7656) | 2 (174.2628) | 7 (173.1316) | 6 (175.4056) | 7 (171.9656) |
| Jul 17, 2026 | European Invitational Championship (COMPETITOR SERIES) unrated Wilhering | 5 / 17 (692.5144) | 1 (180) | 3 (177.1428) | 6 (175.4172) | 15 (159.9544) |
| Jul 10, 2026 | No Smoke, No Glory Zagreb | 4 / 16 (697.0976) | 13 (166.2516) | 8 (173.1316) | 4 (177.7144) | 1 (180) |
| Jun 20, 2026 | The War of Barbeque Peschiera del Garda | 1 / 25 (707.3944) | 4 (178.8572) | 2 (176.5600) | 5 (175.4172) | 1 (176.5600) |
| May 24, 2026 | 8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: Master Series Invitational and the Backyard Series Invitational (Sunday, May 24, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN | 43 / 82 (693.6228) | 54 (173.1200) | 31 (175.4172) | 16 (177.7028) | 68 (167.3828) |
| May 22, 2026 | 8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: World Rib Finals (Friday, May 22, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN | — | — | 16 (176.0116) | — | — |
| Apr 11, 2026 | BBQ Expo Master's Challenge Parma | 6 / 42 (688.5028) | 18 (172.5600) | 14 (169.6800) | 6 (174.2856) | 11 (171.9772) |
| Mar 21, 2026 | Rocker's and Smoker's (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Livorno Ferraris (vc) | — | 2 (176.5600) | — | — | — |
| Mar 21, 2026 | Rocker's and Smoker's (ONE MEAT RIBS) Livorno Ferraris (vc) | — | — | 1 (178.8572) | — | — |
| Feb 28, 2026 | Vienna Pet Fair BBQ Contest Vienna | 1 / 12 (697.0860) | 5 (174.2744) | 7 (165.0972) | 2 (177.7144) | 1 (180) |
| Feb 28, 2026 | Vienna Pet Fair BBQ Contest (ONE MEAT RIBS) Vienna | — | — | 4 (174.2744) | — | — |
| Sep 20, 2025 | Fo.G & Smoke 2025 Spilamberto | 4 / 24 (687.3256) | 12 (170.2628) | 4 (174.2628) | 7 (173.1316) | 6 (169.6684) |
| Aug 9, 2025 | Wild West Fest on Fire Medvode | 4 / 20 (695.3828) | 2 (180) | 5 (173.7028) | 13 (166.2744) | 2 (175.4056) |
| Aug 9, 2025 | Wild West Fest on Fire (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Medvode | — | 2 (177.1544) | — | — | — |
| Aug 9, 2025 | Wild West Fest on Fire (ONE MEAT RIBS) Medvode | — | — | 4 (174.8572) | — | — |
| Jun 28, 2025 | Mee (a)t and Fire BBQ Festival Innsbruck Innsbruck | 1 / 7 (695.4284) | 3 (176.5600) | 5 (168.5712) | 1 (180) | 5 (170.2972) |
| Jun 28, 2025 | Mee (a)t and Fire BBQ Festival Innsbruck (ONE MEAT RIBS) Innsbruck | — | — | 2 (175.4172) | — | — |
| Jun 14, 2025 | The War of Barbeque Peschiera del Garda | 7 / 20 (687.3372) | 10 (171.9656) | 8 (172.5716) | 1 (180) | 15 (162.8000) |
| Jun 14, 2025 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT RIBS) Peschiera del Garda | — | — | 5 (170.8456) | — | — |
| May 3, 2025 | Marchfelder Feuerfest Orth an der Donau, NO | 3 / 12 (674.1828) | 5 (167.9772) | 9 (160.5372) | 3 (175.4056) | 2 (170.2628) |
| May 3, 2025 | Marchfelder Feuerfest (ONE MEAT RIBS) Orth an der Donau, NO | — | — | 4 (168.0116) | — | — |
| Mar 29, 2025 | BBQ Expo Master's Challenge Brescia | 11 / 30 (681.6572) | 2 (175.4400) | 7 (171.9772) | 15 (170.2628) | 18 (163.9772) |
| Oct 19, 2024 | Vienna BBQ Days Vienna | 6 / 14 (682.2172) | 5 (173.7144) | 8 (169.7144) | 10 (166.8228) | 4 (171.9656) |
| Oct 19, 2024 | Vienna BBQ Days (ONE MEAT RIBS) Vienna | — | — | 6 (169.7144) | — | — |
| Sep 21, 2024 | Fo.G & Smoke 2024 Providence of MODENA (MO) | 3 / 19 (687.4056) | 4 (172.0228) | 3 (174.2628) | 7 (174.2856) | 6 (166.8344) |
| Aug 10, 2024 | Wild West Fest on Fire Medvode | 5 / 11 (685.6568) | 7 (167.4284) | 1 (177.7144) | 2 (175.4056) | 6 (165.1084) |
| Aug 10, 2024 | Wild West Fest on Fire (ONE MEAT RIBS) Medvode | — | — | 1 (177.7144) | — | — |
| Jul 20, 2024 | Alps BBQ Days (ONE MEAT RIBS) Reichenau an der Rax | — | — | 2 (173.7028) | — | — |
| Jun 15, 2024 | The War of Barbeque Peschiera del Garda | 2 / 17 (701.6916) | 4 (177.1428) | 6 (173.7144) | 5 (176.5600) | 3 (174.2744) |
| Jun 15, 2024 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Peschiera del Garda | — | 4 (172.5600) | — | — | — |
| Jun 15, 2024 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT RIBS) Peschiera del Garda | — | — | 11 (164.5372) | — | — |
| May 18, 2024 | Muehlviertler BBQ Festival Freistadt | 13 / 22 (651.4060) | 6 (174.3316) | 22 (151.9428) | 17 (163.4288) | 15 (161.7028) |
| May 18, 2024 | Muehlviertler BBQ Festival (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Freistadt | — | 21 (150.8000) | — | — | — |
| Apr 6, 2024 | "Smokin' Ribs Showdown" (ONE MEAT RIBS) #1 Brescia | — | — | 6 (170.8344) | — | — |
| Apr 6, 2024 | "Smokin' Ribs Showdown" (ONE MEAT RIBS) #2 Brescia | — | — | 9 (169.6800) | — | — |
| Feb 24, 2024 | W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol Rein in Taufers, BZ | 12 / 26 (669.1544) | 15 (166.2972) | 9 (169.7372) | 10 (171.4400) | 15 (161.6800) |
| Oct 7, 2023 | Country Road & BBQ Contest (ONE MEAT RIBS) Cartigliano | — | — | 7 (168.5600) | — | — |
An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.