TNT Explosive BBQ

TNT Explosive BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 26 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2019 and 2026. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Maryland State BBQ Bash (2022), and finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #1812 of 6,485 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,812

of 6,485 rated · rankings

Rating

1547

peak 1568 · rated over 19 contests2 invitational or side-series contests not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Apr 26, 2019

latest May 1, 2026 · 7 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#358

Master 2023 · every season

Grand champs

1 reserve · wins it all 4% of the time

Category wins

9 podiums

Overall top-10s

27% of 26 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 48%

overall standings

Best overall

693.6684 / 720

Master · Maryland State BBQ Bash

Perfect 180s

Current form

668.71 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 674.76 (-6.04)

Walk rate

58%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

178.3200

Pork Ribs · Almost Heaven BBQ Bash

Consistency

±11.44

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 170.40 · weakest Pork (166.63)

Road miles

5,103

across 26 mapped stops · furthest 953 mi

Schedule strength

77%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1599)

Purse competed for

$291K

listed at 18 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

1 🏅

won from 19 state-championship entries

Master avg

674.76 / 720

17 Master contests · 1 GC

Backyard avg

322.77 / 360

4 Backyard contests · 0 GCs

These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.

This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.

Storylines (15 found in their record)

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

The heartbreaker

2.8344 points from the title

Came within 2.8344 points of the Grand Championship at Almost Heaven BBQ Bash (Jun 7, 2019).

Against the odds

13-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 87 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Maryland State BBQ Bash (Oct 14, 2022) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 13-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, 3 EYZ BBQ.

Giant slayer

30 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 30-team field at Maryland State BBQ Bash.

Oct 14, 2022

High-water mark

693.6684 career-best overall

96.3% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 693.6684 at Maryland State BBQ Bash — 96.3% of a perfect 720.

Master
Oct 14, 2022

State champions

1 state championship won

They've taken 1 state championship from 19 entries at contests carrying the title.

19 state-championship entries

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

ROCKY TOP BARBEQUE has finished one call ahead of TNT Explosive BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

12–2 behind in the head-to-head

MUTTLEY CREW BBQ ahead in 86% of their meetings

MUTTLEY CREW BBQ has come out ahead in 12 of their 14 shared contests.

Show 8 more storylines

The drought

13 contests since the last title

Their last Grand Championship came at Maryland State BBQ Bash on Oct 14, 2022 — 13 contests and 4 years ago.

last GC Oct 14, 2022
4 years ago

A strong matchup

8–2 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 80% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of BIG DOG BBQ VA in 8 of their 10 shared contests.

The comeback

1.9 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 1.9 years, then back at Bear-B-Q (May 1, 2026).

last seen Jun 22, 2024
back May 1, 2026

Chicken nemesis

10 of 11 shared chicken entries lost

REDNECK SCIENTIFIC ahead 91% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, REDNECK SCIENTIFIC has out-cooked them in 10 of 11 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

OUR BARK IS BETTER THAN YOUR BITE has landed one call behind them 2 times.

An October team

Top 39% average finish in October

Something about October: average finish in the top 39% across 3 contests, versus top 48% the rest of the year.

3 October contests
top 48% the rest of the year

The long haul

5,103 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 5,103 miles across 26 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 953 miles to American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Invitational Contest.

26 mapped stops
furthest 953 mi

The metronome

±2.32% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.32% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 92.9% of a perfect score
26 contests

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
2023 ↗	Master	#358 (571 pts)	#283 (802 pts)	#335 (773 pts)	#410 (526 pts)	#336 (646 pts)
2022 ↗	Master	#506 (405 pts)	#688 (270 pts)	#529 (460 pts)	#748 (235 pts)	#533 (400 pts)
2021 ↗	Master	#910 (123 pts)	#1040 (118 pts)	#627 (278 pts)	#1204 (78 pts)	#924 (128 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#1297 (170 pts)	#1441 (150 pts)	#1240 (195 pts)	#1761 (105 pts)	#1485 (130 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to TNT Explosive BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

OMERTA BBQ

#1,823 of the rated field

1547 power rating

Contests: 22
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 55%
Peak: 1552

Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before TNT Explosive BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 22 contests

⚔ Compare careers

SAUCY SWINE-O'S

#1,818 of the rated field

1547 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1548

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 Jun 23, 2017

⚔ Compare careers

Florida Boy's BBQ

#1,815 of the rated field

1547 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1547

Fewer contests behind them than TNT Explosive BBQ has cooked, 12 to 26, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 12 contests
last seen Jul 25, 2025

⚔ Compare careers

Bastian's Barbecue Co.

#1,808 of the rated field

1547 power rating

Contests: 14
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 29%
Peak: 1550

14 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 29% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 11 contests
last seen Jul 25, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Handsome Devil

#1,806 of the rated field

1547 power rating

Contests: 33
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 12%
Peak: 1589

They were already cooking in 2013, 6 years before TNT Explosive BBQ's first contest.

rated over 33 contests
last seen Oct 11, 2024

⚔ Compare careers

Smokin' Love BBQ

#1,820 of the rated field

1547 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 70%
Peak: 1547

5 straight overall top-10s says this rating is a moving target.

rated over 10 contests
last seen Oct 4, 2024

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ	16	4	12	25%	⚔ compare
MUTTLEY CREW BBQ	14	2	12	14%	⚔ compare
SMOKECRAFT - MD	13	5	8	38%	⚔ compare
CHUNKY BBQ	12	3	9	25%	⚔ compare
OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE	12	2	10	17%	⚔ compare
GOOD GOOGLY GOO BBQ	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
Optimus Swine	11	2	9	18%	⚔ compare
BIG DOG BBQ VA	10	8	2	80%	⚔ compare
REDNECK SCIENTIFIC	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN SKULLIES	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
BLUE & GRAY BBQ	9	0	9	0%	⚔ compare
Uncle Dubby's Backyard BBQ	8	5	3	63%	⚔ compare
3 EYZ BBQ	8	3	5	38%	⚔ compare
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS	8	2	6	25%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	21	9	0	2	178.2972	163.3944	170.40	top 40%
Pork Ribs	21	8	1	5	178.3200	155.3716	168.17	top 43%
Pork	17	2	0	1	174.2972	159.9544	166.63	top 63%
Brisket	17	6	1	1	177.1428	156.5484	167.37	top 53%

“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
Small (<20 teams)	1	0	top 50%
Medium (20–39)	11	1	top 48%
Large (40+)	9	0	top 49%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
VA	6	0	top 53%
NC	4	0	top 69%
DC	3	0	top 62%
KS	2	0	top 38%
WV	2	0	top 23%
PA	2	0	top 13%
TN	1	0	top 89%
MD	1	1	top 3%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle	3	10	top 62%	Jun 22, 2024
Kings of Q BBQ Cook-Off and Festival	2	9	top 55%	May 17, 2024
BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard)	2	14	top 58%	Mar 25, 2023
BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard)	2	24	top 66%	Mar 26, 2022

More numbers

Busiest season 2023 9 contests

Contests a season 3.7 across 7 seasons in the data

Most contests held in VA 7 of 26 contests · 8 states in all

Contests visited 16 4 of them more than once

First title Oct 14, 2022 Maryland State BBQ Bash

Opponents faced 888 finished ahead 916 times, behind 710

Longest layoff 1.9 yrs Jun 22, 2024 → May 1, 2026

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

20261 milestone

May 1 Most recent contest Bear-B-Q

20241 milestone

Jun 22 25th tracked contest Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle

20231 milestone

Mar 24 Peak power rating (1568) BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard)

20225 milestones

Mar 25 10th tracked contest BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard)
Oct 14 First Grand Championship Maryland State BBQ Bash
Oct 14 First state championship Maryland State BBQ Bash
Oct 14 Biggest field won (30 teams) Maryland State BBQ Bash
Oct 14 Career-best overall score693.6684 Maryland State BBQ Bash

20212 milestones

Jun 18 First category win (Pork Ribs) Almost Heaven BBQ Bash
Jun 18 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)178.3200 Almost Heaven BBQ Bash

20195 milestones

May 17 First call Twin Valley Fire and Smoke
May 17 First overall top-10 Twin Valley Fire and Smoke
Jun 7 First overall podium Almost Heaven BBQ Bash
Jun 7 First Reserve Championship Almost Heaven BBQ Bash
Jun 7 First overall past 90% of a perfect score334.2400 Almost Heaven BBQ Bash

20181 milestone

Apr 27 First tracked contest Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+16.1	Almost Heaven BBQ Bash	Jun 7, 2019
+15.2	Maryland State BBQ Bash	Oct 14, 2022
+12.7	Smoke in the Grove	Jul 26, 2019
+10.4	Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle	Jun 25, 2022
+9.3	Twin Valley Fire and Smoke	May 17, 2019

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-11.8	BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard)	Mar 25, 2023
-10.9	Bear-B-Q	May 1, 2026
-10	BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard)	Mar 25, 2022
-9.9	Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle	Jun 22, 2024
-5.6	Currituck Bulls & BBQ	Nov 4, 2022

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	GCs	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	1	0	0	0	100%	top 88%	91.6%	91.6%
2024	2	0	1	0	50%	top 71%	94.4%	93%
2023	9	0	0	0	56%	top 57%	95.6%	93.5%
2022	5	1	2	1	60%	top 49%	96.3%	94.5%
2021	1	0	0	1	100%	top 39%	94.2%	94.2%
2019	5	0	4	0	80%	top 20%	94.2%	90.6%
2018	3	0	0	0	0%	—	—	—

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
May 1, 2026	Bear-B-Q 🏅 New Bern, NC	23 / 26 (659.8400)	17 (167.3944)	25 (158.2056)	22 (162.8228)	10 (171.4172)
Jun 22, 2024	Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle 🏅 Washington, DC	33 / 36 (660.4344)	28 (169.7028)	35 (155.3716)	25 (169.6800)	26 (165.6800)
May 17, 2024	Kings of Q BBQ Cook-Off and Festival 🏅 Ayden, NC	9 / 18 (679.3260)	2 (175.4172)	13 (164.5488)	3 (174.2744)	11 (165.0856)
Oct 13, 2023	Jack Daniel's World Championship Invitational Barbecue (Competitor's Series) (JUDGES BY INVITATION ONLY) unrated Lynchburg, TN	72 / 81 (661.6680)	19 (172.5600)	75 (164.5484)	51 (168.0112)	77 (156.5484)
Sep 27, 2023	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Invitational Contest unrated Kansas City, KS	98 / 211 (684.5256)	10 (178.2972)	85 (172)	181 (164.5256)	112 (169.7028)
Sep 27, 2023	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS	142 / 487 (682.2972)	210 (169.7028)	132 (172.5600)	72 (174.2972)	266 (165.7372)
Jun 24, 2023	Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle 🏅 Washington, DC	18 / 29 (675.3260)	17 (171.9656)	3 (176.5716)	27 (159.9544)	18 (166.8344)
Jun 24, 2023	Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Washington, DC	—	9 (172.5600)	—	—	—
Jun 24, 2023	Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle (ONE MEAT RIBS) Washington, DC	—	—	16 (167.4056)	—	—
May 19, 2023	Kings of Q BBQ Cook-Off and Festival 🏅 Ayden, NC	15 / 25 (661.5656)	9 (172)	21 (158.8000)	17 (163.9428)	11 (166.8228)
Mar 25, 2023	BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	41 / 46 (659.8856)	30 (170.8228)	30 (167.4172)	37 (164.5256)	45 (157.1200)
Mar 24, 2023	BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	14 / 53 (688.5716)	29 (168.5828)	13 (174.8916)	25 (169.6800)	6 (175.4172)
Nov 4, 2022	Currituck Bulls & BBQ 🏅 Powells Point, NC	17 / 22 (670.1716)	10 (171.9772)	19 (166.2744)	8 (171.9772)	18 (159.9428)
Oct 14, 2022	Maryland State BBQ Bash 🏅 Belair, MD	1 / 30 (693.6684)	13 (171.4056)	2 (177.7144)	13 (167.4056)	1 (177.1428)
Jun 25, 2022	Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle 🏅 Washington, DC	10 / 32 (689.6916)	12 (173.7256)	3 (176.0116)	23 (165.6800)	5 (174.2744)
Mar 26, 2022	BBQ Gives Back (Day 2) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	24 / 50 (684.5372)	18 (174.2628)	14 (174.8800)	34 (167.9888)	32 (167.4056)
Mar 25, 2022	BBQ Gives Back (Day 1) (Masters and Backyard) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	44 / 53 (662.8004)	46 (163.3944)	19 (171.9888)	46 (160.5600)	33 (166.8572)
Jun 18, 2021	Almost Heaven BBQ Bash 🏅 Roanoke, WV	11 / 28 (678.3200)	12 (168.5828)	1 (178.3200)	20 (162.8572)	10 (168.5600)
Oct 25, 2019	Zom-B-Q (BBQ Wythe US) 🏅 Wytheville, VA	5 / 20 (678.2400)	7 (170.8228)	4 (172.0116)	13 (164.5828)	9 (170.8228)
Jul 26, 2019	Smoke in the Grove 🏅 Spring Grove, PA	4 / 53 (322.1828)	5 (165.0856)	9 (157.0972)	—	—
Jun 7, 2019	Almost Heaven BBQ Bash 🏅 Roanoke, WV	2 / 31 (334.2400)	3 (166.2628)	3 (167.9772)	—	—
May 17, 2019	Twin Valley Fire and Smoke 🏅 Morgantown, PA	8 / 44 (321.0288)	6 (163.9544)	8 (157.0744)	—	—
Apr 26, 2019	Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition 🏅 Lanexa, VA	14 / 32 (313.6116)	—	—	—	—
Aug 17, 2018	Smokin on The Dock of the Bay Crisfield, MD	—	—	—	—	—
Jul 27, 2018	Smoke in the Grove Spring Grove, PA	—	—	—	—	—
Apr 27, 2018	Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition Lenexa, VA	—	—	—	—	—

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

TNT Explosive BBQ

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

Backyard avg

Storylines (15 found in their record)

The heartbreaker

Against the odds

Giant slayer

High-water mark

State champions

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The drought

A strong matchup

The comeback

Chicken nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

An October team

The long haul

The metronome

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)