SMOKE AND FIRE

SMOKE AND FIRE is a competition barbecue team with 29 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2016 and 2020. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 24 at the Brew N Q (INVITATIONAL) (2018), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #930 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#930

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1613

peak 1613 · rated over 27 contests2 invitational or side-series contests not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 8, 2016

latest Jan 18, 2020 · 3.7 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#257

Master 2017 · every season

Grand champs

1 reserve

Category wins

14 podiums

Overall top-10s

55% of 29 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 37%

overall standings

Best overall

687.4860 / 720

Master · Brew N Q (INVITATIONAL)

Perfect 180s

Current form

662.66 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 659.27 (+3.39)

Walk rate

79%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

177.7372

Chicken · Het 5DE BBQKampioenschap Van Het Waasland

Consistency

±16.64

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 167.95 · weakest Brisket (163.63)

Road miles

15,788

across 29 mapped stops · furthest 5,289 mi

Schedule strength

30%

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

Purse competed for

$10K

listed at 1 contest — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 1 state-championship entry

Master avg

659.27 / 720

29 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (16 found in their record)

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

The heartbreaker

3.4172 points from the title

Came within 3.4172 points of the Grand Championship at Brew N Q (INVITATIONAL) (May 25, 2018).

Happy hunting ground

Top 12% average finish here

Brew N Q is their spot: an average finish in the top 12% across 2 visits.

2 visits
best finish 2nd
average top 12%

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 W.E.S.T.Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest (Jan 14, 2017).

Chicken 1st
Brisket 1st

They almost always walk

79% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 23 of 29 contests

A top-10 category call in 79% of their 29 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

687.4860 career-best overall

95.5% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 687.4860 at Brew N Q (INVITATIONAL) — 95.5% of a perfect 720.

Master
May 25, 2018

The one to beat

3× one call ahead of them

IQ - NETHERLANDS has finished one call ahead of SMOKE AND FIRE 3 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2017 their best year

2017 was the year it came together: 8 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 2 category wins, at an average finish in the top 24%.

8 contests
5 overall top-10s
2 category wins
average top 24%

Show 9 more storylines

A tough matchup

16–2 behind in the head-to-head

BUNCH OF SWINES ahead in 89% of their meetings

BUNCH OF SWINES has come out ahead in 16 of their 18 shared contests.

The weak link

−4.3 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.33 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 38% of the time against 48%.

Brisket avg 163.63
Chicken avg 167.95
11 calls in 29 entries

A strong matchup

12–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of ANTWERPS BBQ-TEAM in 12 of their 12 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

12 of 18 shared chicken entries lost

BUNCH OF SWINES ahead 67% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, BUNCH OF SWINES has out-cooked them in 12 of 18 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

White Squirrel BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A September team

Top 24% average finish in September

Something about September: average finish in the top 24% across 8 contests, versus top 37% the rest of the year.

8 September contests
top 37% the rest of the year

The long haul

15,788 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 15,788 miles across 29 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 5,289 miles to LuLu's Brew & Que.

29 mapped stops
furthest 5,289 mi

The metronome

±2.31% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.31% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 91.6% of a perfect score
29 contests

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest every year from 2017 to 2020 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 3rd

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
2020 ↗	Master	#395 (279 pts)	#383 (309 pts)	#405 (299 pts)	#426 (269 pts)	#547 (194 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#487 (673 pts)	#371 (863 pts)	#586 (593 pts)	#482 (713 pts)	#652 (523 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#282 (1,140 pts)	#205 (1,345 pts)	#277 (1,115 pts)	#466 (795 pts)	#290 (1,090 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#257 (1,304 pts)	#255 (1,234 pts)	#383 (989 pts)	#427 (894 pts)	#228 (1,374 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#960 (344 pts)	#1445 (199 pts)	#858 (454 pts)	#1181 (289 pts)	#1052 (324 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

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

Pig Destroyer

#929 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 36
GCs: 4
Top-10s: 58%
Peak: 1623

Careers of much the same size, 36 contests to 29, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 25 contests
last seen Jun 13, 2025

⚔ Compare careers

BACKFIRIN' BBQ

#928 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 25
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 32%
Peak: 1613

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 24 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 24 contests
last seen Oct 29, 2016

⚔ Compare careers

SOUTHERN QUE

#924 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1616

21 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 38% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 21 contests
last seen May 4, 2018

⚔ Compare careers

FOGGY BOTTOM BBQ

#925 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 36
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1636

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

rated over 36 contests
last seen Mar 1, 2024

⚔ Compare careers

SCORCH AND RESQUE

#927 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 47
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 34%
Peak: 1637

A longer road to the same neighbourhood — 47 contests to 29.

rated over 46 contests
last seen Aug 2, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

SMOKIN' IN THE D

#931 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 61
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 44%
Peak: 1677

They've been 1677 at their best, 64 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 59 contests
last seen Jul 31, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
ROKENDE REGAHS	21	12	9	57%	⚔ compare
White Squirrel BBQ	20	9	11	45%	⚔ compare
BBQ+	20	5	15	25%	⚔ compare
UNCLE TONY'S COCKNEY Q	19	8	11	42%	⚔ compare
BUNCH OF SWINES	18	2	16	11%	⚔ compare
IQ - NETHERLANDS	18	2	16	11%	⚔ compare
PUREBBQ	16	11	5	69%	⚔ compare
DE FILOUS	16	8	8	50%	⚔ compare
SOUTHERN DUTCH BBQ	16	5	11	31%	⚔ compare
SMOKE ON THE WILD SIDE	15	7	8	47%	⚔ compare
DE VLIEGENDE HOLLANDER BBQ-TEAM	15	2	13	13%	⚔ compare
BBQ RANGERS BELGIUM	14	8	6	57%	⚔ compare
WETTELS ON FIRE	13	12	1	92%	⚔ compare
SMOKEY THE BOAR	13	10	3	77%	⚔ compare
BUGHOUSE SMOKERS	13	6	7	46%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	29	14	2	7	177.7372	154.8456	167.95	top 40%
Pork Ribs	29	14	0	2	173.7372	144.5028	164.05	top 42%
Pork	29	7	0	2	176.5600	143.9884	163.65	top 49%
Brisket	29	11	1	3	175.4172	145.6800	163.63	top 40%

“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	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	3	top 68%
Medium (20–39)	16	top 31%
Large (40+)	10	top 37%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
BZ	4	top 26%
BE	2	top 56%
CO	1	top 68%
NL	1	top 20%
DE	1	top 60%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest	4	3	top 26%	Jan 18, 2020
Brew N Q	2	2	top 12%	May 26, 2018
Beer,Fries & BBQ V (Day 2)	2	5	top 28%	May 12, 2018
Eastern BBQ Contest	2	18	top 54%	Mar 31, 2018

More numbers

Busiest season 2018 11 contests

Contests a season 5.8 across 5 seasons in the data

Most contests held in BZ 4 of 29 contests · 5 states and provinces in all

Contests visited 23 4 of them more than once

Opponents faced 331 finished ahead 703 times, behind 345

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

20202 milestones

Jan 18 Peak power rating (1613) W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest
Jan 18 Most recent contest W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest

20191 milestone

Feb 16 25th tracked contest Austrian BBQ Festival BARBECUE on ICE

20183 milestones

May 25 First Reserve Championship Brew N Q (INVITATIONAL)
May 25 Career-best overall score687.4860 Brew N Q (INVITATIONAL)
Sep 15 Career-best single call (Chicken)177.7372 Het 5DE BBQKampioenschap Van Het Waasland

20174 milestones

Jan 14 First category win (Chicken) W.E.S.T.Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest
Jan 14 First overall podium W.E.S.T.Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest
Jan 14 First multi-meat day W.E.S.T.Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest
Sep 16 10th tracked contest Het BBQKampioenschap Van Het Waasland 2017

20164 milestones

May 8 First tracked contest Beers, Fries & BBQ III - The Belgian Championship Low & Slow BBQ
Sep 17 First call Het BBQ Kampionenschap Van Het Waasland
Sep 17 First overall top-10 Het BBQ Kampionenschap Van Het Waasland
Sep 17 First overall past 90% of a perfect score653.7028 Het BBQ Kampionenschap Van Het Waasland

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+13.8	Farm Meat	Sep 9, 2017
+13.7	4th Ruhrpott BBQ 2017	Sep 22, 2017
+13.7	W.E.S.T.Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest	Jan 14, 2017
+12.8	Beer,Fries & BBQ V (Day 2)	May 12, 2018
+12.3	Brew N Q	May 26, 2018

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.8	Springbreak BBQ Contest	Mar 24, 2018
-9.2	Meat, Smoke & Beer Festival- BBQ on Ice	Feb 17, 2018
-8.7	Beers, Fries & BBQ III - The Belgian Championship Low & Slow BBQ	May 8, 2016
-7.2	LuLu's Brew & Que	Apr 26, 2019
-2.7	W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest	Jan 13, 2018

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	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2020	1	1	0	100%	top 29%	93.4%	93.4%
2019	5	3	0	100%	top 39%	94.4%	92.2%
2018	11	5	1	73%	top 42%	95.5%	91.4%
2017	8	5	2	88%	top 24%	94.2%	92%
2016	4	2	0	50%	top 48%	93.1%	90%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Jan 18, 2020	W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest Rein in Taufers, BZ	8 / 28 (672.5372)	10 (167.9540)	9 (167.4516)	6 (173.7488)	13 (163.3828)
Nov 30, 2019	Beer,Fries & BBQ-The Winter Edition Helshoven	10 / 31 (654.1600)	5 (170.2972)	7 (167.4172)	16 (161.0856)	20 (155.3600)
Sep 21, 2019	Het BBQ Kampioenschap Van Het Waasland Sint Niklaas	12 / 36 (654.8232)	2 (176.0572)	19 (161.1316)	15 (164.5372)	24 (153.0972)
Apr 26, 2019	LuLu's Brew & Que 🏅 Brighton, CO	27 / 40 (654.1832)	32 (162.2516)	30 (158.2744)	2 (172.5484)	24 (161.1088)
Feb 16, 2019	Austrian BBQ Festival BARBECUE on ICE Weissensee	6 / 12 (677.6112)	8 (171.4056)	10 (164.5600)	8 (166.2284)	2 (175.4172)
Jan 19, 2019	W.E.S.T. Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest Rein in Taufers, BZ	4 / 30 (679.4404)	3 (177.1428)	6 (172.5944)	14 (167.4288)	21 (162.2744)
Sep 22, 2018	5th Ruhrpott BBQ 2018 Waltrop	6 / 73 (662.3088)	2 (176.0572)	13 (165.1200)	36 (158.2744)	21 (162.8572)
Sep 15, 2018	Het 5DE BBQKampioenschap Van Het Waasland Sint Niklaas	9 / 31 (666.7772)	1 (177.7372)	8 (166.2856)	30 (150.7772)	7 (171.9772)
Jun 30, 2018	PRIME UVE INVITATIONAL BARBECUE CHAMPIONSHIP unrated Gaiarine	14 / 18 (657.5540)	16 (161.6684)	9 (168)	13 (166.2400)	14 (161.6456)
May 26, 2018	Brew N Q Burton Upon Trent	5 / 34 (676.5260)	10 (169.6916)	6 (170.2972)	13 (166.8344)	6 (169.7028)
May 25, 2018	Brew N Q (INVITATIONAL) unrated Burton Upon Trent	2 / 24 (687.4860)	8 (170.3428)	4 (168.5372)	4 (174.3088)	4 (174.2972)
May 12, 2018	Beer,Fries & BBQ V (Day 2) Hasselt	5 / 51 (669.2232)	36 (161.7144)	6 (168.0460)	11 (169.7600)	6 (169.7028)
May 11, 2018	Beer Fries & BBQ V (Day1) Hasselt	17 / 37 (645.5884)	21 (164.0112)	14 (162.8228)	32 (151.9316)	11 (166.8228)
Mar 31, 2018	Eastern BBQ Contest Ninove	18 / 33 (647.3256)	18 (163.4400)	28 (153.0972)	13 (167.3828)	13 (163.4056)
Mar 24, 2018	Springbreak BBQ Contest Lommel Belgium	34 / 39 (610.7200)	21 (161.6800)	35 (144.5028)	30 (153.7144)	30 (150.8228)
Feb 17, 2018	Meat, Smoke & Beer Festival- BBQ on Ice Weissensee	13 / 17 (659.3716)	2 (173.7372)	11 (161.6800)	9 (166.8572)	14 (157.0972)
Jan 13, 2018	W.E.S.T. Winter extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest Rein in Taufers, BZ	16 / 30 (653.0172)	13 (167.3712)	8 (166.8688)	23 (155.3716)	17 (163.4056)
Oct 7, 2017	5th Annual BBQ Society Cook-Off Hoofddorp	12 / 47 (665.6228)	16 (169.1428)	14 (168)	30 (163.9428)	15 (164.5372)
Sep 22, 2017	4th Ruhrpott BBQ 2017 Waltrop NRW, Germany	3 / 66 (678.3316)	11 (170.3428)	19 (165.1200)	13 (169.6916)	2 (173.1772)
Sep 16, 2017	Het BBQKampioenschap Van Het Waasland 2017 Sint Niklaas	6 / 31 (666.2512)	3 (175.4056)	18 (159.9656)	11 (167.4172)	8 (163.4628)
Sep 9, 2017	Farm Meat Dongen	3 / 38 (673.6684)	9 (167.3940)	20 (161.1316)	2 (176.5600)	4 (168.5828)
Aug 26, 2017	Regahfest 2017 The Hague	7 / 28 (653.0400)	5 (173.1084)	24 (151.9772)	10 (163.3944)	7 (164.5600)
May 13, 2017	Beer,Fries & BBQ IV Hasselt	22 / 50 (645.6568)	16 (166.8340)	6 (167.4172)	49 (143.9884)	9 (167.4172)
Apr 15, 2017	Eastern BBQ Contest Ninove, Belgium	22 / 41 (639.9656)	29 (159.9884)	2 (172.0228)	21 (162.2744)	35 (145.6800)
Jan 14, 2017	W.E.S.T.Winter Extreme South Tyrol BBQ Contest Rein in Taufers, BZ	3 / 30 (676.5600)	1 (173.7256)	13 (169.7028)	24 (160.0116)	1 (173.1200)
Oct 8, 2016	4th Annual BBQ Society Cook-off Hoofddorp. Netherlands, NL	9 / 46 (670.2400)	31 (163.4056)	7 (173.7372)	16 (166.2744)	12 (166.8228)
Sep 24, 2016	3rd Ruhrpott BBQ 2016 Waltrop NRW, DE	40 / 67 (637.7032)	54 (154.8456)	46 (155.3944)	20 (165.7488)	22 (161.7144)
Sep 17, 2016	Het BBQ Kampionenschap Van Het Waasland Nikiaas, Belgium	9 / 29 (653.7028)	20 (160.5256)	3 (170.8456)	16 (159.4516)	11 (162.8800)
May 8, 2016	Beers, Fries & BBQ III - The Belgian Championship Low & Slow BBQ Hasselt, Belgium	32 / 40 (629.5540)	24 (163.3712)	26 (155.4172)	23 (159.9656)	35 (150.8000)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

SMOKE AND FIRE

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

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (16 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

Chicken nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

A September team

The long haul

The metronome

A standing appointment

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, 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

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)