High-water mark
675.9544
career-best overall
93.9% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 675.9544 at Lakeland Pig Festival — 93.9% of a perfect 720.
- Backyard
- Jan 27, 2023
The Rusty Pig
The Rusty Pig is a competition barbecue team with 15 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 4th of 58 at the Lakeland Pig Festival (2019). They are ranked #2035 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1537
peak 1537 · rated over 10 contests
Contests
15
in the data
First seen
Nov 15, 2013
latest Jan 22, 2026 · 12.2 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
2
2 podiums
Overall top-10s
3
20% of 15 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight overall top-10s
Avg finish
top 43%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Walk rate
33%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±17.16
spread of their Backyard (4-meat) overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 168.61 · weakest Brisket (159.74)
Road miles
17
across 15 mapped stops
Schedule strength
32%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1543)
Purse competed for
$150K
listed at 6 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 7 state-championship entries
Master avg
633.59 / 720
3 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
333.65 / 360
3 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
Backyard (4-meat) avg
658.91 / 720
4 Backyard (4-meat) contests · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master out of 720, Backyard out of 360, Backyard (4-meat) out of 720), 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 The Rusty Pig, each with one reason worth a look.
76 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#2,023 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 50%
- Peak
- 1539
3–1 in 4 shared contests (75% to The Rusty Pig)
These two have cooked 4 of the same contests — The Rusty Pig ahead 3–1 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.
⚔ Head-to-head#2,030 of the rated field
- Contests
- 14
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 43%
- Peak
- 1551
3–2 in 5 shared contests (60% to The Rusty Pig)
Careers of much the same size, 14 contests to 15, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#2,024 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 67%
- Peak
- 1537
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to The Rusty Pig)
They turned up 11 years after The Rusty Pig did, first appearing in 2024.
⚔ Head-to-head#2,032 of the rated field
- Contests
- 17
- GCs
- 1
- Top-10s
- 29%
- Peak
- 1555
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to The Rusty Pig)
Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 17 contests, alongside a 29% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Head-to-head#2,037 of the rated field
- Contests
- 27
- GCs
- 2
- Top-10s
- 26%
- Peak
- 1585
3–0 in 3 shared contests (100% to The Rusty Pig)
They've been 1585 at their best, 48 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#2,036 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 18%
- Peak
- 1537
Level with The Rusty Pig on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gourmet Rednecks | 9 | 6 | 3 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| 92 BB Crew | 8 | 7 | 1 | 88% | ⚔ compare |
| Sons of Hamarchy | 8 | 4 | 4 | 50% | ⚔ compare |
| Accutech BBQ | 8 | 3 | 4 | 38% | ⚔ compare |
| Barely Sober BBQ | 8 | 1 | 7 | 13% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN ACES BBQ - FL | 7 | 7 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
| Burning Bush BBQ | 7 | 6 | 1 | 86% | ⚔ compare |
| Porkganic BBQ | 7 | 6 | 1 | 86% | ⚔ compare |
| GOOD AS ANY BBQ | 7 | 5 | 2 | 71% | ⚔ compare |
| Team Smoke Showin' | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| SWAMP BOYS | 7 | 4 | 3 | 57% | ⚔ compare |
| HOT WACHULA'S | 7 | 3 | 4 | 43% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokin' Hooligans | 7 | 3 | 4 | 43% | ⚔ compare |
| SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA | 7 | 2 | 4 | 29% | ⚔ compare |
| Double Barrel Smokers | 6 | 6 | 0 | 100% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 170.2512 | 155.9772 | 163.74 | top 45% |
| Pork Ribs | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 174.2972 | 145.6800 | 161.80 | top 49% |
| Pork | 10 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 174.2744 | 159.9544 | 168.61 | top 30% |
| Brisket | 10 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 176.0116 | 143.3144 | 159.74 | top 48% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 1 | 0 | top 78% |
| Large (40+) | 9 | 0 | top 39% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeland Pig Festival | 7 | 4 | 0 | top 30% | Jan 22, 2026 |
| When Pigs Fly South | 2 | 26 | 0 | top 70% | Dec 2, 2016 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2016
2 contests
Contests a season
1.2
across 13 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
FL
15 of 15 contests
Contests visited
3
2 of them more than once
Opponents faced
441
finished ahead 556 times, behind 298
Longest layoff
2 yrs
Jan 24, 2020 → Jan 28, 2022
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20262 milestones
- Peak power rating (1537) Lakeland Pig Festival
- Most recent contest Lakeland Pig Festival
20231 milestone
- Career-best overall score675.9544 Lakeland Pig Festival
20201 milestone
- 10th tracked contest Lakeland Pig Festival
20194 milestones
- First call Lakeland Pig Festival
- First category win (Brisket) Lakeland Pig Festival
- First overall top-10 Lakeland Pig Festival
- Career-best single call (Brisket)176.0116 Lakeland Pig Festival
20141 milestone
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score649.5660 When Pigs Fly South
20131 milestone
- First tracked contest When Pigs Fly South
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +16.3 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 25, 2019 |
| +14.3 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 26, 2024 |
| +13.2 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 27, 2023 |
| +10.2 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 28, 2022 |
| +0.6 | Lakeland Pig Festival | Jan 22, 2026 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -8.8 | When Pigs Fly South | Nov 15, 2013 |
| -7.3 | When Pigs Fly South | Dec 2, 2016 |
| -1.7 | When Pigs Fly South | Nov 7, 2014 |
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 46% | 90.8% | 90.8% |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 57% | 92.2% | 92.2% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 10% | 95.1% | 95.1% |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 16% | 93.9% | 93.9% |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 100% | top 23% | 90.5% | 90.5% |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 51% | 88.1% | 88.1% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 100% | top 7% | 93.6% | 93.6% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 78% | 87.9% | 87.9% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2014 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 62% | 90.2% | 90.2% |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 80% | 85.9% | 85.9% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 22, 2026 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 29 / 63 (326.7544) | 41 (159.3600) | 23 (167.3944) | 16 (168.5256) | 15 (166.2400) |
| Jan 24, 2025 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 23 / 40 (331.9544) | 20 (166.8228) | 30 (165.1316) | 12 (172) | 36 (155.3484) |
| Jan 26, 2024 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 6 / 61 (342.2284) | 9 (170.2512) | 7 (171.9772) | 8 (174.2744) | 15 (165.1200) |
| Jan 27, 2023 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 8 / 51 (675.9544) | 33 (161.6572) | 8 (174.2972) | 14 (169.6800) | 6 (170.3200) |
| Jan 28, 2022 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 14 / 60 (651.8856) | 9 (167.4400) | 31 (150.2172) | 1 (174.2628) | 18 (159.9656) |
| Jan 24, 2020 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 27 / 53 (634.0572) | 6 (169.6684) | 24 (161.1200) | 26 (159.9544) | 40 (143.3144) |
| Jan 25, 2019 | Lakeland Pig Festival 🏅 Lakeland, FL | 4 / 58 (673.7372) | 14 (166.8572) | 26 (160.5828) | 6 (170.2856) | 1 (176.0116) |
| Jan 26, 2018 | Lakeland Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jan 27, 2017 | Lakeland Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Dec 2, 2016 | When Pigs Fly South Lakeland, FL | 28 / 36 (632.9372) | 31 (157.0856) | 29 (157.0744) | 23 (164.5600) | 28 (154.2172) |
| Jan 29, 2016 | Lakeland Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jan 30, 2015 | Lakeland Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nov 7, 2014 | When Pigs Fly South Lakeland, FL | 26 / 42 (649.5660) | 24 (162.2400) | 18 (164.5372) | 12 (170.2628) | 31 (152.5260) |
| Jan 23, 2014 | The Tiger Town Pig Festival Lakeland, FL | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nov 15, 2013 | When Pigs Fly South Lakeland, FL | 39 / 49 (618.2744) | 32 (155.9772) | 43 (145.6800) | 27 (162.3084) | 35 (154.3088) |