The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
THE LICKS has finished one call ahead of Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1472
peak 1472 · rated over 11 contests ⓘ
Contests
11
in the data
First seen
2014-06-27
latest 2025-06-27
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
of 11 contests
Avg finish
top 62%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
639.33 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 629.94 (+9.38)
Walk rate
18%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±19.18
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 159.51 · weakest Brisket (155.07)
Road miles
15
mi across 11 mapped stops
Schedule strength
11%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1516)
Purse competed for
$90K
listed at 6 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 10 state-championship entries
Master avg
629.94 / 720
11 Master contests · 0 GCs
Storylines (6 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
11–0
behind in the head-to-head
B & C SMOKERS ahead in 100% of their meetings
B & C SMOKERS has come out ahead in 11 of their 11 shared contests.
The weak link
−4.4
points behind their best meat
Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.44 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 9%.
- Brisket avg 155.07
- Chicken avg 159.51
- 0 calls in 11 entries
A strong matchup
10–1
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 91% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of No Clue BBQ in 10 of their 11 shared contests.
The comeback
2 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 2 years, then back at The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship (2021-06-25).
- last seen 2019-06-21
- back 2021-06-25
Chicken nemesis
9 of 11
shared chicken entries lost
BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE ahead 82% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE has out-cooked them in 9 of 11 shared chicken 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.
139 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#4523 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1472
4–6 in 10 shared contests (40% to Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye)
These two have cooked 10 of the same contests — Overland Trail BBQ ahead 6–4 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.
⚔ Head-to-head#4519 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1510
1–4 in 5 shared contests (20% to Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye)
They've been 1510 at their best, 38 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#4490 of the rated field
- Contests
- 13
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
1–5 in 6 shared contests (17% to Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye)
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 6 years before Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#4489 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1473
1–3 in 4 shared contests (25% to Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye)
Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 11, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#4521 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1472
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye)
They turned up 7 years after Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye did, first appearing in 2021.
⚔ Head-to-head#4504 of the rated field
- Contests
- 11
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 9%
- Peak
- 1508
No shared contest yet.
Level with Smoke on the Water and Fire in my Eye 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Clue BBQ | 11 | 10 | 1 | 91% | ⚔ compare |
| The Drizzlers | 11 | 8 | 3 | 73% | ⚔ compare |
| Too Hot to Handle | 11 | 8 | 3 | 73% | ⚔ compare |
| DUNN UP BBQ | 11 | 7 | 4 | 64% | ⚔ compare |
| Slow Cookin' Cats | 11 | 7 | 4 | 64% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokin Engineers | 11 | 7 | 4 | 64% | ⚔ compare |
| Every Man A Smoker | 11 | 6 | 5 | 55% | ⚔ compare |
| Genuswine Brisket Authority | 11 | 6 | 5 | 55% | ⚔ compare |
| Happy Beetle BBQ | 11 | 6 | 5 | 55% | ⚔ compare |
| THE LICKS | 11 | 6 | 5 | 55% | ⚔ compare |
| B&D BBQ | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| Can't Beat Our Meat | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| Grill on Grill Action | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| KC Rib doctor | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
| Nice Rack | 11 | 5 | 6 | 45% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 172.6056 | 146.2400 | 159.51 | top 55% |
| Pork Ribs | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 166.8228 | 149.6916 | 157.49 | top 63% |
| Pork | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 173.1428 | 142.3428 | 157.87 | top 60% |
| Brisket | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 171.4172 | 141.0744 | 155.07 | top 62% |
“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.
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 5 | 49 | 0 | top 51% | 2025-06-27 |
| Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship | 3 | 103 | 0 | top 61% | 2016-06-24 |
The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
11 yrs
2014-06-27 → 2025-06-27
Busiest season
2025
1 contest
Contests a season
1
across 11 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
KS
11 of 11 contests
Contests visited
5
2 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
11 entries · 0 wins · 1 calls
Strongest meat
Chicken
averages 159.51 · weakest Brisket (155.07)
Walk rate
18%
a top-10 call in 2 of 11 contests
Overall top-10 rate
0%
0 of 11 contests
Master average
629.94
out of 720 · 11 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
514
712–1,186 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
15
11 mapped stops
Schedule strength
1516
average field rating faced — tougher than 11% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$90,050
listed at 6 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 10 state-championship entries
Longest layoff
2 yrs
2019-06-21 → 2021-06-25
Power rating
1472
peak 1472 · #4505 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2014
- First tracked contest Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
- Peak power rating (1495) Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
- 2015
- First call Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
- 2017
- Career-best single call (Pork)173.1428 Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship
- 2021
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score653.6692 The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship
- 2023
- Career-best overall score658.1716 The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
- 2024
- 10th tracked contest The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
- 2025
- Most recent contest The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +7.3 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship | 2021-06-25 |
| +6.3 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 2023-06-23 |
| +0.5 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 2024-06-21 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -12.7 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 2022-06-24 |
| -8.2 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle | 2018-06-22 |
| -5.8 | Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship | 2017-06-23 |
| -5.3 | Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship | 2014-06-27 |
| -4 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship | 2019-06-21 |
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)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 63% | 89.9% | 89.9% |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 55% | 89.7% | 89.7% |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 37% | 91.4% | 91.4% |
| 2022 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 95% | 82.2% | 82.2% |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 34% | 90.8% | 90.8% |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 68% | 87.6% | 87.6% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 79% | 85% | 85% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 71% | 85.9% | 85.9% |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 59% | 87% | 87% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | top 56% | 87.5% | 87.5% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 67% | 85.4% | 85.4% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-06-27 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 100 / 159 (647.3140) | 110 (160.5600) | 72 (166.8228) | 134 (155.4056) | 78 (164.5256) |
| 2024-06-21 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 95 / 172 (645.5768) | 138 (155.3828) | 92 (162.2628) | 122 (158.2512) | 35 (169.6800) |
| 2023-06-23 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 62 / 167 (658.1716) | 36 (169.7144) | 85 (163.4172) | 58 (169.1200) | 111 (155.9200) |
| 2022-06-24 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 156 / 164 (591.9088) | 156 (146.2400) | 147 (149.6916) | 151 (147.4172) | 149 (148.5600) |
| 2021-06-25 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 49 / 145 (653.6692) | 23 (168.5716) | 80 (161.1316) | 26 (170.2744) | 100 (153.6916) |
| 2019-06-21 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 124 / 183 (630.6972) | 147 (153.6572) | 114 (156.5144) | 103 (160.5828) | 97 (159.9428) |
| 2018-06-22 | The Great Lenexa BBQ Battle Lenexa, KS | 146 / 185 (611.8624) | 58 (163.4056) | 132 (154.2512) | 138 (152.5484) | 166 (141.6572) |
| 2017-06-23 | Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 130 / 184 (618.7432) | 140 (151.9772) | 133 (152.5488) | 10 (173.1428) | 167 (141.0744) |
| 2016-06-24 | Great Lenexa BBQ Battle-Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 108 / 183 (626.3200) | 148 (150.8228) | 73 (161.7372) | 168 (142.3428) | 17 (171.4172) |
| 2015-06-26 | Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 103 / 183 (630.2284) | 7 (172.6056) | 145 (151.4400) | 95 (159.9656) | 153 (146.2172) |
| 2014-06-27 | Great Lenexa BBQ Battle - Kansas State Championship 🏅 Lenexa, KS | 124 / 184 (614.8916) | 86 (161.6800) | 131 (152.5600) | 151 (147.5200) | 105 (153.1316) |