FIRE, SMOKE & FLAVOR

FIRE, SMOKE & FLAVOR is a competition barbecue team with 17 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2015 and 2022. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 22 at the KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees (2018), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion twice. They are ranked #1550 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,550

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1561

peak 1588 · rated over 17 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Aug 15, 2015

latest Sep 10, 2022 · 7.1 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#503

Master 2018 · every season

Grand champs

2 reserve

Category wins

7 podiums

Overall top-10s

47% of 17 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 39%

overall standings

Best overall

686.9028 / 720

Master · EUregio Barbeque Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

621.18 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 640.47 (-19.29)

Walk rate

88%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

177.1544

Chicken · KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees

Consistency

±52.72

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 165.29 · weakest Pork (157.94)

Road miles

951

across 17 mapped stops · furthest 75 mi

Schedule strength

30%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1540)

Purse competed for

$1,800

listed at 1 contest — purses, not winnings

Master avg

640.47 / 720

17 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (15 found in their record)

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

The heartbreaker

3.9656 points from the title

Came within 3.9656 points of the Grand Championship at KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees (Jun 23, 2018).

Happy hunting ground

Top 9% average finish here

KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees is their spot: an average finish in the top 9% across 2 visits.

2 visits
best finish 2nd
average top 9%

A multi-meat day

1 contest with 2+ category wins

They've won two or more meats on the same day 1 time — the best of them 2 category wins at KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees (Jun 10, 2017).

Chicken 1st
Pork 1st

They almost always walk

88% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 15 of 17 contests

A top-10 category call in 88% of their 17 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

686.9028 career-best overall

95.4% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 686.9028 at EUregio Barbeque Festival — 95.4% of a perfect 720.

Master
Aug 19, 2017

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

BBQ HIGHLANDER has finished one call ahead of FIRE, SMOKE & FLAVOR 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2017 their best year

2017 was the year it came together: 3 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 3 category wins, at an average finish in the top 10%.

3 contests
3 overall top-10s
3 category wins
average top 10%

Show 8 more storylines

A tough matchup

12–3 behind in the head-to-head

SOUTHERN DUTCH BBQ ahead in 80% of their meetings

SOUTHERN DUTCH BBQ has come out ahead in 12 of their 15 shared contests.

The weak link

−7.4 points behind their best meat

Pork is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 7.35 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 41% of the time against 41%.

Pork avg 157.94
Chicken avg 165.29
7 calls in 17 entries

A strong matchup

7–2 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 78% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of TEAM BBQ SHOP LIMBURG in 7 of their 9 shared contests.

The comeback

2 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 2 years, then back at Farm Meat "De Vaartse Hoeve" BBQ (Sep 12, 2020).

last seen Sep 22, 2018
back Sep 12, 2020

Chicken nemesis

11 of 15 shared chicken entries lost

SOUTHERN DUTCH BBQ ahead 73% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, SOUTHERN DUTCH BBQ has out-cooked them in 11 of 15 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

BBQ+ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

Boom or bust

±7.32% swing around their own average

Their overall swings ±7.32% of a perfect score around its own average — when it lands they're dangerous, and when it doesn't the weekend is gone by lunch.

averages 89.0% of a perfect score
best 95.4%

A June team

Top 19% average finish in June

Something about June: average finish in the top 19% across 3 contests, versus top 39% the rest of the year.

3 June contests
top 39% the rest of the year

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
2022 ↗	Master	#740 (225 pts)	#827 (200 pts)	#690 (300 pts)	#890 (175 pts)	#776 (215 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#807 (164 pts)	#906 (144 pts)	#1247 (75 pts)	#726 (209 pts)	#566 (324 pts)
2020 ↗	Master	#580 (161 pts)	#771 (111 pts)	#870 (76 pts)	#489 (231 pts)	#594 (171 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#503 (711 pts)	#598 (621 pts)	#405 (891 pts)	#576 (651 pts)	#508 (726 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#614 (635 pts)	#585 (690 pts)	#918 (425 pts)	#713 (580 pts)	#1076 (315 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#1411 (193 pts)	#1034 (338 pts)	#1710 (153 pts)	#1108 (318 pts)	#1496 (183 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#1293 (207 pts)	#1601 (157 pts)	#1082 (307 pts)	#1689 (137 pts)	#1306 (217 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to FIRE, SMOKE & FLAVOR, each with one reason worth a look.

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

PORK DYNASTY

#1,555 of the rated field

1561 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 63%
Peak: 1561

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 16 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 16 contests
last seen Oct 2, 2015

⚔ Compare careers

SPICEWINE IRONWORKS

#1,552 of the rated field

1561 power rating

Contests: 19
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 37%
Peak: 1567

Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 5 years before FIRE, SMOKE & FLAVOR's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 19 contests

⚔ Compare careers

DEAD PIG WALKING

#1,537 of the rated field

1562 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 20%
Peak: 1565

Careers of much the same size, 15 contests to 17, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 15 contests
last seen Mar 29, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

Bearded Boar BBQ

#1,541 of the rated field

1562 power rating

Contests: 20
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 45%
Peak: 1580

Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 20 contests, alongside a 45% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 20 contests
last seen Sep 4, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

EL REY SMOKERS COMPETITION TEAM

#1,551 of the rated field

1561 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 33%
Peak: 1568

Level with FIRE, SMOKE & FLAVOR on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 14 contests
last seen Sep 22, 2017

⚔ Compare careers

GREENWITCH QUE CO.

#1,542 of the rated field

1562 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1563

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 21 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 21 contests
last seen Jul 23, 2022

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
SOUTHERN DUTCH BBQ	15	3	12	20%	⚔ compare
BBQ+	12	4	8	33%	⚔ compare
IQ - NETHERLANDS	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
Backcorner BBQ	10	4	6	40%	⚔ compare
BBQ WIESEL	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
TEAM BBQ SHOP LIMBURG	9	7	2	78%	⚔ compare
VIKING BBQ	9	4	5	44%	⚔ compare
PUREBBQ	9	3	6	33%	⚔ compare
DE FILOUS	9	3	6	33%	⚔ compare
White Squirrel BBQ	9	1	8	11%	⚔ compare
BETER WORDT HET NIET BBQ	8	6	2	75%	⚔ compare
ROKENDE REGAHS	8	5	3	63%	⚔ compare
DRAGON BBQ	8	4	4	50%	⚔ compare
THE SMOKIN' PORKETEERS	7	7	0	100%	⚔ compare
BAERL B Q (DE)	7	6	1	86%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	17	7	2	2	177.1544	148	165.29	top 44%
Pork Ribs	16	9	2	2	174.8916	153.1428	164.08	top 37%
Pork	17	7	1	2	176.5944	20	157.94	top 40%
Brisket	17	8	0	1	171.4172	142.2056	162.81	top 39%

“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)	13	0	top 42%
Large (40+)	4	0	top 31%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
DE	1	0	top 36%
NR	1	0	top 36%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
EUregio Barbeque Festival	2	3	0	top 55%	Aug 18, 2018
KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees	2	2	0	top 9%	Jun 23, 2018

More numbers

Busiest season 2018 5 contests

Contests a season 2.4 across 7 seasons in the data

Most contests held in DE 1 of 17 contests · 2 states in all

Contests visited 15 2 of them more than once

Opponents faced 236 finished ahead 400 times, behind 226

Longest layoff 2 yrs Sep 22, 2018 → Sep 12, 2020

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

20221 milestone

Sep 10 Most recent contest Farm Meat "De Vaartse Hoeve" BBQ Contest

20182 milestones

Jun 23 10th tracked contest KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees
Jun 23 Peak power rating (1588) KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees

20175 milestones

Jun 10 First overall podium KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees
Jun 10 First Reserve Championship KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees
Jun 10 First multi-meat day KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees
Jun 10 Career-best single call (Chicken)177.1544 KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees
Aug 19 Career-best overall score686.9028 EUregio Barbeque Festival

20162 milestones

Aug 20 First category win (Chicken) EUregio Barbecue Festival
Aug 20 First overall top-10 EUregio Barbecue Festival

20153 milestones

Aug 15 First tracked contest EUregio BBQ Festival
Aug 15 First call EUregio BBQ Festival
Sep 25 First overall past 90% of a perfect score651.4400 2nd Ruhrpott BBQ 2015

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+14.4	KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees	Jun 10, 2017
+14	EUregio Barbeque Festival	Aug 19, 2017
+12.9	KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees	Jun 23, 2018
+12.4	KCBS Greek Fire Festival 2018	Apr 28, 2018
+11.8	4th Ruhrpott BBQ 2017	Sep 22, 2017

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-17.6	EUregio Barbeque Festival	Aug 18, 2018
-17.2	Farm Meat "De Vaartse Hoeve" Barbeque Contest	Sep 11, 2021
-3.2	Farm Meat "De Vaartse Hoeve" BBQ Contest	Sep 10, 2022
-2.5	5th Ruhrpott BBQ 2018	Sep 22, 2018
-2.3	EUregio BBQ Festival	Aug 15, 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	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2022	2	1	0	100%	top 51%	91.9%	90.3%
2021	2	0	0	50%	top 73%	91.6%	79.2%
2020	1	1	0	100%	top 23%	92.5%	92.5%
2018	5	2	1	80%	top 42%	94%	87.6%
2017	3	3	3	100%	top 10%	95.4%	94%
2016	2	1	1	100%	top 36%	93%	91.5%
2015	2	0	0	100%	top 44%	90.5%	88.8%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 10, 2022	Farm Meat "De Vaartse Hoeve" BBQ Contest Dongen	17 / 28 (638.1832)	16 (164.5372)	6 (166.8460)	22 (155.9544)	19 (150.8456)
Jun 25, 2022	Riverland Smokers BBQ Contest Dodewaard	9 / 22 (661.6572)	14 (164.5484)	9 (166.2744)	13 (163.9772)	9 (166.8572)
Oct 23, 2021	KCBS International BBQ contest Vuur en Vlees Liesselseweg, Deurne	14 / 30 (659.2912)	18 (164.5256)	21 (159.9656)	18 (163.3828)	4 (171.4172)
Sep 11, 2021	Farm Meat "De Vaartse Hoeve" Barbeque Contest Dongen	29 / 29 (480.5256)	27 (151.3828)	—	12 (164)	12 (165.1428)
Sep 12, 2020	Farm Meat "De Vaartse Hoeve" BBQ Dongen	7 / 31 (666.2516)	14 (164.5600)	21 (156.5372)	3 (176.5944)	6 (168.5600)
Sep 22, 2018	5th Ruhrpott BBQ 2018 Waltrop	39 / 73 (635.3600)	26 (164.5600)	24 (161.7372)	11 (166.8572)	63 (142.2056)
Aug 18, 2018	EUregio Barbeque Festival Waldfeucht-Haaren/NRW	32 / 32 (529.1316)	7 (171.9772)	1 (171.4744)	32 (20)	9 (165.6800)
Jun 23, 2018	KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees Deurne	2 / 22 (673.1200)	4 (167.9772)	5 (166.8572)	6 (168)	2 (170.2856)
Apr 28, 2018	KCBS Greek Fire Festival 2018 Reichshof	3 / 32 (676.5944)	9 (170.8572)	7 (164.5828)	4 (175.4172)	12 (165.7372)
Mar 24, 2018	Springbreak BBQ Contest Lommel Belgium	14 / 39 (639.3484)	36 (148)	4 (166.8572)	18 (159.4056)	8 (165.0856)
Sep 22, 2017	4th Ruhrpott BBQ 2017 Waltrop NRW, Germany	8 / 66 (666.3660)	4 (173.1544)	30 (161.7716)	8 (171.4400)	29 (160)
Aug 19, 2017	EUregio Barbeque Festival Waldfeucht-Haaren/NRW	3 / 31 (686.9028)	4 (173.7028)	1 (174.8916)	8 (171.4284)	10 (166.8800)
Jun 10, 2017	KCBS International BBQ Contest Vuur en Vlees Deurne	2 / 24 (677.6688)	1 (177.1544)	18 (162.2400)	1 (173.1200)	10 (165.1544)
Sep 24, 2016	3rd Ruhrpott BBQ 2016 Waltrop NRW, DE	24 / 67 (648.4912)	47 (158.2400)	49 (153.1428)	4 (174.2856)	19 (162.8228)
Aug 20, 2016	EUregio Barbecue Festival Waldfeutch-Haaren/NRW, NR	10 / 28 (669.6804)	1 (176.5600)	17 (162.8460)	14 (168.5944)	17 (161.6800)
Sep 25, 2015	2nd Ruhrpott BBQ 2015 Herten, NRW	16 / 67 (651.4400)	48 (157.7144)	7 (168.0572)	30 (160.5828)	14 (165.0856)
Aug 15, 2015	EUregio BBQ Festival Waldfeucht-Haaren / Nordrhein	14 / 22 (627.9544)	15 (160.5372)	8 (161.1888)	19 (151.9656)	14 (154.2628)

FIRE, SMOKE & FLAVOR

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Purse competed for

Master avg

Storylines (15 found in their record)

The heartbreaker

Happy hunting ground

A multi-meat day

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

Their season

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

The comeback

Chicken nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

Boom or bust

A June team

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)