The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
Pork Life has finished one call ahead of Circle W Meats 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Circle W Meats
Circle W Meats is a competition barbecue team with 13 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2016 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 13th of 36 at the Smoke on the Falls (2026). They are ranked #5266 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1457
peak 1457 · rated over 9 contests
Contests
13
in the data
First seen
Apr 8, 2016
latest Apr 3, 2026 · 10 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 13 contests
Avg finish
top 98%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
322.53 ▲
last 5 Backyard vs avg 319.49 (+3.04)
Walk rate
0%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±13.03
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork Ribs
avg 159.77 · weakest Brisket (151.34)
Road miles
16
across 13 mapped stops
Schedule strength
52%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1567)
Purse competed for
$67K
listed at 6 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 8 state-championship entries
Master avg
599.13 / 720
1 Master contest · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
319.49 / 360
8 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.
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Circle W Meats, each with one reason worth a look.
129 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#5,250 of the rated field
- Contests
- 96
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 7%
- Peak
- 1457
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to Circle W Meats)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team Circle W Meats has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#5,253 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 10%
- Peak
- 1457
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#5,256 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1457
Their last contest in the data was back in 2023, 3 years before Circle W Meats's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#5,269 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1456
Fewer contests behind them than Circle W Meats has cooked, 9 to 13, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Compare careers#5,248 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1457
Level with Circle W Meats on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#5,271 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1456
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 10 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FAT BEAR BBQ | 8 | 3 | 5 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| JT'S SMOKE SHACK | 8 | 2 | 6 | 25% | ⚔ compare |
| DANG GOOD BBQ | 8 | 1 | 6 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
| LEE LA Q | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Pork Life | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Hickory Hangover | 7 | 2 | 5 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Barking Pig BBQ | 7 | 2 | 5 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Slingin Pig Meat | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| CHOOCHOO BBQ | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| RIBLIFE | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Rollin Smoke BBQ | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN' SWEETMEATS | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| COOL HAND QUE | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Dixie Pigs & Chick's BBQ Team | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| ROOTERS-N-TOOTERS TN | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 173.1200 | 145.0856 | 156.59 | top 98% |
| Pork Ribs | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 171.9772 | 146.2056 | 159.77 | top 89% |
| Pork | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 156.5028 | 156.5028 | 156.50 | top 92% |
| Brisket | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 151.3372 | 151.3372 | 151.34 | top 92% |
“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.
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke on the Falls | 6 | 13 | 0 | top 110% | Apr 3, 2026 |
More numbers
Contests a season
1
across 13 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
AL
13 of 13 contests
Contests visited
4
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
308
finished ahead 133 times, behind 481
Longest layoff
1.4 yrs
Apr 12, 2019 → Sep 18, 2020
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20261 milestone
- Most recent contest Smoke on the Falls
20252 milestones
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score341.0972 Smoke on the Falls BBQ Competition
- Career-best single call (Chicken)173.1200 Smoke on the Falls BBQ Competition
20231 milestone
- 10th tracked contest Smoke on the Falls
20162 milestones
- Career-best overall score599.1312 Smoke on the Falls Noccalula BBQ Fest
- Peak power rating (1489) Smoke on the Falls Noccalula BBQ Fest
20141 milestone
- First tracked contest Smoke on the Falls Noccalula BBQ Fest
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +8.9 | Smoke on the Falls | Apr 3, 2026 |
| +7.6 | Smoke on the Falls BBQ Competition | Apr 11, 2025 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -11.6 | Smoke on the Falls | Sep 18, 2020 |
| -11 | Smoke on the Falls Noccalula BBQ Fest | Apr 8, 2016 |
| -10.6 | Smoke on the Falls | Apr 12, 2019 |
| -10.5 | Smoke on the Falls | Apr 7, 2023 |
| -9.6 | Smoke on the Falls | Apr 8, 2022 |
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 36% | 94.3% | 94.3% |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 48% | 94.7% | 94.7% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 65% | 88.4% | 88.4% |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 113% | 85% | 85% |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 147% | 85.5% | 85.5% |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 84% | 89.7% | 89.7% |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 161% | 86.2% | 86.2% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 137% | 86.2% | 86.2% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 96% | 83.2% | 83.2% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 2026 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 13 / 36 (339.3600) | 17 (167.3828) | 11 (171.9772) | — | — |
| Apr 11, 2025 | Smoke on the Falls BBQ Competition 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 15 / 31 (341.0972) | 13 (173.1200) | 18 (167.9772) | — | — |
| Apr 12, 2024 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 20 / 31 (318.1944) | 21 (153.6572) | 16 (164.5372) | — | — |
| Apr 7, 2023 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 44 / 39 (306.1140) | 45 (149.0628) | 37 (157.0512) | — | — |
| Apr 8, 2022 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 50 / 34 (307.9084) | 39 (160.5256) | 53 (147.3828) | — | — |
| Apr 9, 2021 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 32 / 38 (322.8000) | 40 (155.9656) | 21 (166.8344) | — | — |
| Sep 18, 2020 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 45 / 28 (310.2288) | 44 (149.7028) | 34 (160.5260) | — | — |
| Apr 12, 2019 | Smoke on the Falls 🏅 Gadsden, AL | 41 / 30 (310.2288) | 41 (154.8228) | 40 (155.4060) | — | — |
| Apr 13, 2018 | Smoke on the Falls Gadsden, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Apr 7, 2017 | Smoke on the Falls Gadsden, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Apr 8, 2016 | Smoke on the Falls Noccalula BBQ Fest Gadsden, AL | 24 / 25 (599.1312) | 25 (145.0856) | 25 (146.2056) | 23 (156.5028) | 23 (151.3372) |
| Apr 10, 2015 | Smoke on the Falls Gadsden, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Apr 11, 2014 | Smoke on the Falls Noccalula BBQ Fest Gadsden, AL | — | — | — | — | — |