The heartbreaker
1.2452
points from the title
Came within 1.2452 points of the Grand Championship at Smokin Barrel Fest (2025-06-14).
The King and His Q
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1588
peak 1596 · rated over 17 contests ⓘ
Best runs
9
straight top-10s
Contests
24
in the data
First seen
2019-05-31
latest 2026-05-24
Best ToY finish
#136
Master 2020
Grand champs
4
4 reserve
Category wins
12
29 podiums
Overall top-10s
14
of 24 contests
Avg finish
top 36%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
652.40 ▼
last 5 Master vs avg 670.15 (-17.75)
Walk rate
67%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
9
best run (overall)
Consistency
±37.67
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 171.33 · weakest Brisket (166.10)
Road miles
57,388
mi across 24 mapped stops · furthest 10663 mi
Schedule strength
24%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1532)
Purse competed for
$155K
listed at 7 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 4 state-championship entries
Master avg
670.15 / 720
20 Master contests · 4 GCs
Storylines (16 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.
Giant slayer
41
teams beaten in one weekend
Took the Grand Championship over a 41-team field at Queensland BBQ Championship.
- 2019-06-29
Happy hunting ground
2×
Grand Championships here
Smokin in the Valley is their spot: 2 Grand Championships in 5 visits.
- 5 visits
- best finish 1st
- average top 34%
Multi-meat days
3
contests with 2+ category wins
They've won two or more meats on the same day 3 times — the best of them 3 category wins at Smokin' in the Valley (2023-11-04).
- Pork Ribs 1st
- Pork 1st
- Brisket 1st
They almost always walk
67%
of contests with a top-10 call
A call in 16 of 24 contests
A top-10 category call in 67% of their 24 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
High-water mark
697.2000
career-best overall
96.8% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 697.2000 at Queensland BBQ Championship — 96.8% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- 2019-06-29
The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
Smokin Steve's BBQ has finished one call ahead of The King and His Q 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Their season
2019
2 Grand Championships
2019 was the year it came together: 5 contests, 2 Grand Championships and 3 category wins, at an average finish in the top 12%.
- 5 contests
- 5 overall top-10s
- 3 category wins
- average top 12%
A tough matchup
6–0
behind in the head-to-head
JANKY LEG BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings
JANKY LEG BBQ has come out ahead in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
The weak link
−5.2
points behind their best meat
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 5.23 points below their pork, and turns into a call 57% of the time against 65%.
- Brisket avg 166.10
- Pork avg 171.33
- 12 calls in 21 entries
A strong matchup
7–1
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 88% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of Smokin Genius in 7 of their 8 shared contests.
The comeback
2.8 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 2.8 years, then back at Smokin' in the Valley (2022-11-26).
- last seen 2020-02-08
- back 2022-11-26
Pork nemesis
5 of 6
shared pork entries lost
ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN ahead 83% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN has out-cooked them in 5 of 6 shared pork entries.
A big fish in small ponds
Top 29%
average finish in small fields
Field size changes the story: they average a top 29% finish in small fields against top 50% in large ones.
- Small (<20 teams): top 29% (10)
- Large (40+): top 50% (8)
Looking over their shoulder
2×
one call behind them
West Cooper BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.
The long haul
57,388
road miles between contests
Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 57,388 miles across 24 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 10,663 miles to Western Australia's Smokin Charity BBQ Governors Cup.
- 24 mapped stops
- furthest 10,663 mi
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.
43 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1161 of the rated field
- Contests
- 46
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 50%
- Peak
- 1610
0–3 in 3 shared contests (0% to The King and His Q)
These two have cooked 3 of the same contests — Big Reds Backyard BBQ ahead 3–0 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.
⚔ Head-to-head#1157 of the rated field
- Contests
- 15
- GCs
- 2
- Top-10s
- 60%
- Peak
- 1594
No shared contest yet.
Fewer contests behind them than The King and His Q has cooked, 15 to 24, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head#1163 of the rated field
- Contests
- 15
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 40%
- Peak
- 1589
No shared contest yet.
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 15 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-head#1156 of the rated field
- Contests
- 20
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 35%
- Peak
- 1596
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2015, 11 years before The King and His Q's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#1164 of the rated field
- Contests
- 14
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 57%
- Peak
- 1588
No shared contest yet.
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 14 contests, alongside a 57% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Head-to-head#1160 of the rated field
- Contests
- 21
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 43%
- Peak
- 1589
No shared contest yet.
Level with The King and His Q on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ribs n Pigs BBQ | 9 | 5 | 4 | 56% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokin Genius | 8 | 7 | 1 | 88% | ⚔ compare |
| Aussie TongMasters | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| Pit Bull Smokers | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| BLUE MIST BBQ | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| MEAT RUSHMORE BBQ | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA | 6 | 3 | 3 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| CHUNKY BBQ | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| Colorado Bulldawg BBQ | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| MAN MEAT BBQ | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| Squealin N Dealin BBQ | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE SMOKE | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| JANKY LEG BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Mulkey's BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 21 | 13 | 3 | 6 | 179.4400 | 163.9888 | 170.47 | top 42% |
| Pork Ribs | 22 | 16 | 5 | 10 | 177.7372 | 165.1316 | 171.30 | top 29% |
| Pork | 20 | 13 | 2 | 8 | 177.7028 | 161.6912 | 171.33 | top 34% |
| Brisket | 21 | 12 | 2 | 5 | 175.4056 | 146.8228 | 166.10 | top 45% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| TN | 2 | 0 | top 80% |
| KS | 2 | 0 | top 40% |
| MO | 2 | 0 | top 69% |
| WA | 1 | 0 | top 20% |
| CA | 1 | 0 | top 18% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 10 | 3 | top 29% |
| Medium (20–39) | 2 | 0 | top 17% |
| Large (40+) | 8 | 1 | top 50% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smokin in the Valley | 5 | 1 | 2 | top 34% | 2026-04-25 |
| Smokin' in the Valley | 2 | 1 | 1 | top 17% | 2023-11-04 |
| Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) | 2 | 26 | 0 | top 69% | 2024-10-26 |
The story so far (20 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
7 yrs
2019-05-31 → 2026-05-24
Busiest season
2026
6 contests · 1 GC
Contests a season
3.4
across 7 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
TN
3 of 24 contests · 5 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
14
3 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
22 entries · 5 wins · 16 calls
Strongest meat
Pork
averages 171.33 · weakest Brisket (166.10)
Walk rate
67%
a top-10 call in 16 of 24 contests
Overall top-10 rate
58%
14 of 24 contests
Wins it all
17%
4 Grand Championships · 4 reserve
First title
2019-06-29
Queensland BBQ Championship
Best top-10 run
9
straight contests
Master average
670.15
out of 720 · 20 contests · 4 GCs
Opponents faced
750
619–638 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
57,388
24 mapped stops · furthest 10,663 mi
Schedule strength
1532
average field rating faced — tougher than 24% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$155,340
listed at 7 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 4 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
2.8 yrs
2020-02-08 → 2022-11-26
Power rating
1588
peak 1596 · #1165 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2019
- First tracked contest Horse Town Brew N Que Festival (JUDGES FULL)
- First call Horse Town Brew N Que Festival (JUDGES FULL)
- First overall top-10 Horse Town Brew N Que Festival (JUDGES FULL)
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score675.8856 Horse Town Brew N Que Festival (JUDGES FULL)
- First overall podium Queensland BBQ Championship
- First Grand Championship Queensland BBQ Championship
- Biggest field won (41 teams) Queensland BBQ Championship
- Career-best overall score697.2000 Queensland BBQ Championship
- First Reserve Championship Burleigh BBQ Championships
- First category win (Pork Ribs) Heatbeads BBQ Turf Wars
- First multi-meat day Heatbeads BBQ Turf Wars
- 2024
- 10th tracked contest Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD)
- 2025
- Career-best single call (Chicken)179.4400 Smokin in the Valley
- Peak power rating (1596) Smokin in the Valley
- 2026
- 10th category win Smokin in the Valley
- Most recent contest Chicken & Ribs BBQ Smoke-Off (ONE MEAT CHICKEN)
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +15.6 | Queensland BBQ Championship | 2019-06-29 |
| +14.3 | Smokin in the Valley | 2019-11-09 |
| +12.8 | Burleigh BBQ Championships | 2019-08-03 |
| +12.3 | Smokin in the Valley | 2026-04-25 |
| +12.2 | Smokin' in the Valley | 2023-11-04 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -20.3 | Smokin in the Valley | 2025-11-01 |
| -11.7 | Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) | 2024-10-25 |
| -1 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest | 2024-10-30 |
| -0.2 | Northeast Beerbq Festival | 2020-01-24 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 50% | top 57% | 96.7% | 95.2% |
| 2025 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 100% | top 44% | 96% | 88.6% |
| 2024 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 55% | 96.1% | 94.2% |
| 2023 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 100% | top 9% | 95.5% | 95.5% |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 100% | top 25% | 91.5% | 91.5% |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 100% | top 34% | 94.1% | 93.1% |
| 2019 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 100% | top 12% | 96.8% | 94.3% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-21 | Chicken & Ribs BBQ Smoke-Off (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Herne Hill, Australia, 6056 | — | 1 (177.7028) | — | — | — |
| 2026-06-21 | Chicken & Ribs BBQ Smoke-Off (ONE MEAT RIBS) Herne Hill, Australia, 6056 | — | — | 4 (173.1544) | — | — |
| 2026-05-24 | 8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: Master Series Invitational and the Backyard Series Invitational (Sunday, May 24, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN | 59 / 82 (687.3600) | 63 (171.4172) | 36 (174.8572) | 14 (177.7028) | 77 (163.3828) |
| 2026-05-23 | 8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: Wells Cup, Cocktail Ancillary, Dessert Ancillary (Saturday, May 23, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN | 103 / 117 (672.4344) | 88 (169.1200) | 67 (170.8344) | 90 (167.3828) | 101 (165.0972) |
| 2026-05-22 | 8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: World Chicken Finals (Friday, May 22, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN | — | 70 (165.1200) | — | — | — |
| 2026-04-25 | Smokin in the Valley Herne Hill, Western Australia, 6056 | 1 / 9 (695.9656) | 4 (172.5600) | 1 (176.0000) | 3 (176.5600) | 1 (170.8456) |
| 2025-11-01 | Smokin in the Valley Herne Hill, Western Australia, 6056 | 9 / 9 (514.8344) | — | 2 (170.2972) | 5 (170.2628) | 2 (174.2744) |
| 2025-08-02 | Smokin in the Valley Herne Hill, Western Australia, 6056 | 2 / 12 (691.3828) | 1 (179.4400) | 5 (166.8228) | 3 (177.1544) | 5 (167.9656) |
| 2025-06-14 | Smokin Barrel Fest Nanson, WA | 2 / 10 (682.8116) | 1 (177.1428) | 6 (165.1316) | 2 (176.0000) | 4 (164.5372) |
| 2025-04-26 | Smokin' in the Valley Herne Hill, Western Australia, 6056 | 5 / 13 (663.9432) | 6 (163.9888) | 3 (170.2744) | 3 (169.1200) | 7 (160.5600) |
| 2024-10-30 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Invitational Contest unrated Kansas City, KS | 43 / 169 (691.9200) | 88 (171.9772) | 79 (171.4172) | 51 (173.1200) | 38 (175.4056) |
| 2024-10-30 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS | 241 / 444 (673.5884) | 299 (165.1200) | 195 (170.2628) | 134 (171.9656) | 249 (166.2400) |
| 2024-10-30 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2024-10-26 | Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 2) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) 🏅 Oak Grove, MO | 26 / 56 (683.3144) | 30 (171.9772) | 13 (174.2860) | 42 (168.5256) | 28 (168.5256) |
| 2024-10-25 | Boo-B-Que BBQ Championship (Day 1) (MASTERS and BACKYARD) 🏅 Oak Grove, MO | 49 / 53 (665.0632) | 48 (165.1544) | 41 (167.3944) | 50 (163.3828) | 28 (169.1316) |
| 2023-11-04 | Smokin' in the Valley Perth, Western Australia, | 1 / 11 (687.3828) | 2 (166.2400) | 1 (174.8800) | 1 (174.2628) | 1 (172.0000) |
| 2022-11-26 | Smokin' in the Valley Perth, Western Australia, | 3 / 12 (658.7660) | 3 (166.2744) | 1 (171.4172) | 5 (163.3828) | 5 (157.6916) |
| 2020-02-08 | Western Australia's Smokin Charity BBQ Governors Cup Perth, 6000 | 2 / 11 (663.4168) | 7 (164.5484) | 3 (165.1428) | 3 (169.7028) | 5 (164.0228) |
| 2020-01-24 | Northeast Beerbq Festival Bundalong, Vic, 3730 | 5 / 10 (677.6800) | 4 (170.8572) | 3 (169.7028) | 3 (174.2972) | 7 (162.8228) |
| 2019-11-09 | Smokin in the Valley Herne Hill WA, 6056 | 1 / 17 (670.3316) | 4 (168.0344) | 1 (170.3316) | 6 (161.6912) | 2 (170.2744) |
| 2019-11-04 | Heatbeads BBQ Turf Wars Cranbourne Melbourne, 3950 | 8 / 28 (657.1312) | 15 (164.0000) | 1 (172.5828) | 1 (173.7256) | 26 (146.8228) |
| 2019-08-03 | Burleigh BBQ Championships Queensland, 4220 | 2 / 32 (692.5028) | 2 (176.5600) | 8 (171.4172) | 5 (172.5484) | 3 (171.4056) |
| 2019-06-29 | Queensland BBQ Championship CLEVELAND QUEENSLAND, 4163 | 1 / 41 (697.2000) | 6 (176.0228) | 2 (177.7372) | 5 (174.9028) | 17 (168.5372) |
| 2019-05-31 | Horse Town Brew N Que Festival (JUDGES FULL) 🏅 Norco, CA | 9 / 49 (675.8856) | 4 (176.5600) | 8 (172.0000) | 12 (170.8228) | 33 (156.5028) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Master | #273 (612 pts) | #194 (885 pts) | #263 (750 pts) | #278 (617 pts) | #274 (612 pts) |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | #291 (754 pts) | #342 (675 pts) | #345 (759 pts) | #282 (819 pts) | #325 (724 pts) |
| 2024 ↗ | Master | #408 (501 pts) | #452 (476 pts) | #430 (561 pts) | #426 (501 pts) | #435 (501 pts) |
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #711 (212 pts) | #765 (212 pts) | #745 (262 pts) | #865 (162 pts) | #882 (162 pts) |
| 2020 ↗ | Master | #136 (811 pts) | #199 (621 pts) | #110 (966 pts) | #129 (856 pts) | #195 (596 pts) |
| 2019 ↗ | Master | #262 (1102 pts) | #335 (937 pts) | #252 (1112 pts) | #358 (927 pts) | #536 (627 pts) |