The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
BLOWIN' SMOKE NWA has finished one call ahead of BELLA-CUE BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
BELLA-CUE BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1465
peak 1465 · rated over 7 contests ⓘ
Contests
7
in the data
First seen
2014-09-26
latest 2017-09-22
Best ToY finish
#1195
Master 2016
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
of 7 contests
Avg finish
top 79%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
641.19 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 607.92 (+33.27)
Walk rate
29%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±65.89
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 158.60 · weakest Pork (143.10)
Road miles
426
mi across 7 mapped stops · furthest 167 mi
Schedule strength
61%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1576)
Master avg
607.92 / 720
7 Master contests · 0 GCs
Storylines (3 found in this team's record)
Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.
A tough matchup
6–0
behind in the head-to-head
BIG BUTTS NEED RUBBIN TOO ahead in 100% of their meetings
BIG BUTTS NEED RUBBIN TOO has come out ahead in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
The weak link
−15.5
points behind their best meat
Pork is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 15.50 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 14% of the time against 0%.
- Pork avg 143.10
- Chicken avg 158.60
- 1 calls in 7 entries
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The nearest teams in the power rankings, with a different reason on each card — six teams on one rating are rarely on it for the same reason. Rating decides who makes the list; where teams tie on it, the ones this team has actually cooked against come first, then teams at a similar point in their own career. KCBS doesn’t publish where a team is from, so nothing here is inferred from geography.
134 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#4868 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1465
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to BELLA-CUE BBQ)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team BELLA-CUE BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#4864 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 14%
- Peak
- 1465
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 7 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#4863 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1465
No shared contest yet.
They turned up 8 years after BELLA-CUE BBQ did, first appearing in 2022.
⚔ Head-to-head#4852 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1465
No shared contest yet.
Level with BELLA-CUE BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#4867 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1465
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 7 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#4838 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1466
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 7 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BIG BUTTS NEED RUBBIN TOO | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| INDIAN TERRITORY SMOKE | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BUFFALO'S BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 164.5600 | 151.4516 | 158.60 | top 83% |
| Pork Ribs | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 160.5716 | 137.6456 | 152.54 | top 79% |
| Pork | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 172.0000 | 20.0000 | 143.10 | top 63% |
| Brisket | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 169.7256 | 129.6344 | 153.68 | top 67% |
“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 state / province
| Where | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| AR | 4 | 0 | top 75% |
| OK | 3 | 0 | top 83% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 3 | 0 | top 81% |
| Large (40+) | 4 | 0 | top 77% |
The story so far (15 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
3 yrs
2014-09-26 → 2017-09-22
Busiest season
2016
4 contests
Contests a season
2.3
across 3 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
AR
4 of 7 contests · 2 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
7
0 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
7 entries · 0 wins · 0 calls
Strongest meat
Chicken
averages 158.60 · weakest Pork (143.10)
Walk rate
29%
a top-10 call in 2 of 7 contests
Overall top-10 rate
0%
0 of 7 contests
Master average
607.92
out of 720 · 7 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
196
62–234 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
426
7 mapped stops · furthest 167 mi
Schedule strength
1576
average field rating faced — tougher than 61% of rated contests
Longest layoff
1.5 yrs
2014-09-26 → 2016-03-25
Power rating
1465
peak 1465 · #4855 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2014
- First tracked contest Bikes Blues & BBQ
- Peak power rating (1486) Bikes Blues & BBQ
- 2016
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score657.7488 Chillin & Grillin
- Career-best overall score657.7488 Chillin & Grillin
- 2017
- First call *Smoke on the Border Gravette Chambers of Commerce
- Career-best single call (Pork)172.0000 *Smoke on the Border Gravette Chambers of Commerce
- Most recent contest Bikes, Blues and BBQ
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +2.3 | Chillin & Grillin | 2016-04-08 |
| +2.1 | Bikes Blues and BBQ | 2016-09-23 |
| +1.8 | Bikes, Blues and BBQ | 2017-09-22 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -14.2 | Bikes Blues & BBQ | 2014-09-26 |
| -11.6 | Firelake BBQ Cook Off | 2016-03-25 |
| -8 | Grand Lake BBQ & Festival | 2016-05-20 |
| -7.3 | *Smoke on the Border Gravette Chambers of Commerce | 2017-04-01 |
Category scores over time
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
How entries end (by meat)
Team of the Year rank by season
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 71% | 89.3% | 88.5% |
| 2016 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 77% | 91.4% | 87.8% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 100% | 62.8% | 62.8% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-09-22 | Bikes, Blues and BBQ Fayetteville, AR | 22 / 38 (642.8684) | 20 (164.5600) | 26 (157.7028) | 31 (150.8800) | 7 (169.7256) |
| 2017-04-01 | *Smoke on the Border Gravette Chambers of Commerce Gravette, AR | 31 / 37 (631.8056) | 34 (153.0972) | 26 (159.3828) | 6 (172.0000) | 31 (147.3256) |
| 2016-09-23 | Bikes Blues and BBQ Fayetteville, AR | 25 / 43 (646.1940) | 33 (161.1428) | 26 (157.6684) | 20 (165.1544) | 21 (162.2284) |
| 2016-05-20 | Grand Lake BBQ & Festival Langley, OK | 44 / 46 (627.3372) | 44 (159.4056) | 45 (152.5716) | 42 (159.3828) | 38 (155.9772) |
| 2016-04-08 | Chillin & Grillin Sand Springs, OK | 24 / 43 (657.7488) | 37 (158.2972) | 27 (160.5716) | 14 (171.4400) | 16 (167.4400) |
| 2016-03-25 | Firelake BBQ Cook Off Shawnee, OK | 65 / 66 (596.9600) | 51 (162.2628) | 65 (142.2172) | 50 (162.8456) | 66 (129.6344) |
| 2014-09-26 | Bikes Blues & BBQ Fayetteville, AR | 30 / 30 (452.5144) | 30 (151.4516) | 29 (137.6456) | 30 (20.0000) | 29 (143.4172) |
Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)
Team of the Year standings (rank per category by season — year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
| Year | Series | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #1645 (135 pts) | #1677 (145 pts) | #1822 (120 pts) | #1296 (235 pts) | #1325 (225 pts) |
| 2016 ↗ | Master | #1195 (245 pts) | #1312 (240 pts) | #1307 (240 pts) | #1099 (320 pts) | #1093 (305 pts) |