The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
PO PO PORK has finished one call ahead of Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q
Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q is a competition barbecue team with 5 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2023 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 12th of 28 at the Art of the Que (2023). They are ranked #3325 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings. Also listed in KCBS results as “Sweet Natty's Smokin'Q”.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1497
peak 1502 · rated over 5 contests
Contests
5
in the data
First seen
May 12, 2023
latest May 8, 2026 · 3 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 5 contests
Avg finish
top 52%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Walk rate
40%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±4.18
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 168.54 · weakest Pork Ribs (155.84)
Road miles
202
across 5 mapped stops · furthest 101 mi
Schedule strength
68%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1587)
Purse competed for
$54K
listed at 5 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 5 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
316.71 / 360
5 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
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 | #317 (60 pts) | #253 (120 pts) | #326 (60 pts) | — | — |
| 2025 ↗ | Backyard | #368 (60 pts) | #371 (60 pts) | #380 (60 pts) | — | — |
| 2024 ↗ | Backyard | #373 (60 pts) | #377 (60 pts) | #379 (60 pts) | — | — |
| 2023 ↗ | Backyard | — | #254 (126 pts) | #314 (91 pts) | — | — |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q, each with one reason worth a look.
102 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#3,340 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 10%
- Peak
- 1502
0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q)
2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#3,326 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1497
Their last contest in the data was back in 2022, 4 years before Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#3,334 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 40%
- Peak
- 1509
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,313 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1505
They were already cooking in 2014, 9 years before Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q's first contest.
⚔ Compare careers#3,338 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1506
Level with Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#3,341 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 17%
- Peak
- 1497
Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 9 years before Sweet Natty's Smokin' Q's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steel Smoke BBQ | 5 | 5 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| UGLY BABY BBQ | 5 | 4 | 1 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKE IN THE EYE | 5 | 3 | 2 | 60% | ⚔ compare |
| MACHETE BOYS BBQ | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Ash Kickin' BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| Furlongs Smoke & Seafood | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| Sota Smoke BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| Weasel's Bone Lickin' BBQ | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| WHEN PIGS DIE | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| Big Ten Bones | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| DAWGS BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| FENDER BENDER BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Hogline BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| HOT DADDY'S BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| NECTAR OF THE HOGS | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 166.8456 | 155.9200 | 160.87 | top 45% |
| Pork Ribs | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 163.3828 | 147.9312 | 155.84 | top 53% |
| Pork | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 168.5372 | 168.5372 | 168.54 | top 10% |
“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) | 1 | 0 | top 43% |
| Large (40+) | 4 | 0 | top 54% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota in May | 4 | 30 | 0 | top 54% | May 8, 2026 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2023
2 contests
Contests a season
1.3
across 4 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
MN
4 of 5 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
2
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
210
finished ahead 164 times, behind 292
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20261 milestone
- Most recent contest Minnesota in May
20241 milestone
- Career-best single call (Pork)168.5372 Minnesota in May
20234 milestones
- First tracked contest Minnesota in May
- First call Art of the Que
- Career-best overall score321.6344 Art of the Que
- Peak power rating (1502) Art of the Que
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +3.8 | Art of the Que | Jul 7, 2023 |
| +3.5 | Minnesota in May | May 8, 2026 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -6.1 | Minnesota in May | May 9, 2025 |
| -2.5 | Minnesota in May | May 10, 2024 |
| -1.8 | Minnesota in May | May 12, 2023 |
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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 39% | 87.4% | 87.4% |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 66% | 86.5% | 86.5% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 59% | 89.3% | 89.3% |
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 48% | 89.3% | 88.3% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 8, 2026 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 30 / 77 (314.7768) | 13 (166.8456) | 34 (147.9312) | — | — |
| May 9, 2025 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 38 / 58 (311.2916) | 36 (155.9200) | 37 (155.3716) | — | — |
| May 10, 2024 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 34 / 58 (321.6000) | 36 (158.2172) | 28 (163.3828) | 6 (168.5372) | — |
| Jul 7, 2023 | Art of the Que 🏅 Spencer, IA | 12 / 28 (321.6344) | 9 (166.8344) | 15 (154.8000) | — | — |
| May 12, 2023 | Minnesota in May 🏅 St. Peter, MN | 31 / 59 (314.2404) | 30 (156.5488) | 32 (157.6916) | — | — |