They almost always walk
68%
of contests with a top-10 call
A call in 15 of 22 contests
A top-10 category call in 68% of their 22 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.
Gold’s BBQ
Gold’s BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 22 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2024 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 4th of 22 at the Fo.G & Smoke 2026 (2026). They are ranked #2598 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1517
peak 1517 · rated over 7 contests2 invitational or side-series contests not counted
Contests
22
in the data
First seen
Sep 21, 2024
latest Sep 19, 2026 · 2 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
1
2 podiums
Overall top-10s
2
9% of 22 contests
Avg finish
top 49%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
681.18 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 677.73 (+3.45)
Walk rate
68%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±8.83
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 170.79 · weakest Brisket (165.52)
Road miles
10,350
across 22 mapped stops · furthest 4,767 mi
Schedule strength
24%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1533)
Master avg
677.73 / 720
7 Master contests · 0 GCs
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Master | #404 (452 pts) | #239 (874 pts) | #214 (970 pts) | #427 (452 pts) | #549 (302 pts) |
| 2025 ↗ | Master | #555 (304 pts) | #344 (670 pts) | #421 (583 pts) | #654 (254 pts) | #520 (369 pts) |
| 2024 ↗ | Master | #959 (114 pts) | #715 (238 pts) | #387 (621 pts) | #1111 (89 pts) | #1053 (99 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Gold’s BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
80 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#2,597 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 29%
- Peak
- 1527
Fewer contests behind them than Gold’s BBQ has cooked, 7 to 22, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Compare careers#2,608 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 29%
- Peak
- 1522
Their last contest in the data was back in 2020, 6 years before Gold’s BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#2,599 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 14%
- Peak
- 1519
They were already cooking in 2013, 11 years before Gold’s BBQ's first contest.
⚔ Compare careers#2,588 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 57%
- Peak
- 1531
Level with Gold’s BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#2,593 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 38%
- Peak
- 1528
Their last contest in the data was back in 2023, 3 years before Gold’s BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#2,587 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 17%
- Peak
- 1522
Their last contest in the data was back in 2017, 9 years before Gold’s BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onkel Felix BBQ | 7 | 5 | 2 | 71% | ⚔ compare |
| Smoky Cotte | 7 | 1 | 6 | 14% | ⚔ compare |
| SOUTH BRIXIA | 6 | 4 | 2 | 67% | ⚔ compare |
| Average Joe BBQ Team | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| Smoking Butcher | 6 | 2 | 4 | 33% | ⚔ compare |
| LUNA SMOKE - Italy | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| Art Razza Piave Bbq | 5 | 4 | 1 | 80% | ⚔ compare |
| Woodquarter Smokerheads | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| BBQ Hot Yard | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| I Cinghiali | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 12 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 176.5600 | 166.2628 | 170.79 | top 44% |
| Pork Ribs | 15 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 178.2972 | 161.0972 | 169.54 | top 41% |
| Pork | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 176.5600 | 162.8688 | 169.46 | top 56% |
| Brisket | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 170.8228 | 158.8228 | 165.52 | top 55% |
“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 58% |
| Medium (20–39) | 5 | 0 | top 54% |
| Large (40+) | 1 | 0 | top 17% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fo.G & Smoke 2026 | 2 | 4 | 0 | top 38% | Sep 19, 2026 |
| The War of Barbeque | 2 | 14 | 0 | top 69% | Jun 20, 2026 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2026
11 contests
Contests a season
7.3
across 3 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
TN
2 of 22 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
5
2 of them more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
15 entries · 1 win · 9 calls
Opponents faced
79
finished ahead 99 times, behind 76
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20264 milestones
- First overall top-10 BBQ Expo Master's Challenge
- Career-best overall score691.9544 Fo.G & Smoke 2026
- Peak power rating (1517) Fo.G & Smoke 2026
- Most recent contest Fo.G & Smoke 2026
20251 milestone
- 10th tracked contest Fossalta is on Fire BBQ Competition (ONE MEAT RIBS)
20245 milestones
- First tracked contest "Smokin' Ribs Showdown" (ONE MEAT RIBS) #1
- First call "Smokin' Ribs Showdown" (ONE MEAT RIBS) #1
- First category win (Pork Ribs) Fo.G & Smoke 2024
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score667.9544 Fo.G & Smoke 2024
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)178.2972 Fo.G & Smoke 2024
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +12.5 | BBQ Expo Master's Challenge | Apr 11, 2026 |
| +11.6 | Fo.G & Smoke 2026 | Sep 19, 2026 |
| +1 | BBQ Expo Master's Challenge | Mar 29, 2025 |
| +0.2 | Fo.G & Smoke 2024 | Sep 21, 2024 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -4.1 | The War of Barbeque | Jun 14, 2025 |
| -4 | The War of Barbeque | Jun 20, 2026 |
| -0.7 | Fo.G & Smoke 2025 | Sep 20, 2025 |
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 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 64% | top 34% | 96.1% | 95.3% |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 71% | top 61% | 94.3% | 93.4% |
| 2024 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 75% | top 58% | 92.8% | 92.8% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 19, 2026 | Fo.G & Smoke 2026 Spilamberto | 4 / 22 (691.9544) | — | 4 (174.8688) | 4 (176.5600) | 13 (164.5256) |
| Jun 20, 2026 | The War of Barbeque Peschiera del Garda | 17 / 25 (677.5656) | 19 (169.6684) | 12 (169.6800) | 11 (173.1200) | 19 (165.0972) |
| Jun 20, 2026 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Peschiera del Garda | — | 14 (167.9656) | — | — | — |
| Jun 20, 2026 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT RIBS) Peschiera del Garda | — | — | 6 (174.8456) | — | — |
| May 23, 2026 | 8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: Wells Cup, Cocktail Ancillary, Dessert Ancillary (Saturday, May 23, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN | — | — | — | — | — |
| May 22, 2026 | 8th Annual KCBS World Invitational: World Rib Finals (Friday, May 22, 2026) unrated Lebanon, TN | — | — | 77 (161.0972) | — | — |
| May 3, 2026 | Grill Contest Rivergaro (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Rivergaro, PZ | — | 6 (171.4056) | — | — | — |
| May 3, 2026 | Grill Contest Rivergaro (ONE MEAT RIBS) Rivergaro, PZ | — | — | 8 (168.5372) | — | — |
| Apr 11, 2026 | BBQ Expo Master's Challenge Parma | 7 / 42 (688.4800) | 6 (176.5600) | 20 (167.3944) | 10 (173.7028) | 14 (170.8228) |
| Mar 21, 2026 | Rocker's and Smoker's (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Livorno Ferraris (vc) | — | 4 (173.7256) | — | — | — |
| Mar 21, 2026 | Rocker's and Smoker's (ONE MEAT RIBS) Livorno Ferraris (vc) | — | — | 3 (173.1316) | — | — |
| Oct 18, 2025 | Fossalta is on Fire BBQ Competition (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Fossalta di Piave | — | 6 (170.2628) | — | — | — |
| Oct 18, 2025 | Fossalta is on Fire BBQ Competition (ONE MEAT RIBS) Fossalta di Piave | — | — | 8 (166.8228) | — | — |
| Sep 20, 2025 | Fo.G & Smoke 2025 Spilamberto | 14 / 24 (669.0632) | 5 (174.8800) | 14 (162.8344) | 17 (168.5372) | 14 (162.8116) |
| Jun 14, 2025 | The War of Barbeque Peschiera del Garda | 14 / 20 (678.8576) | 8 (173.1316) | 7 (173.1200) | 16 (164.5944) | 11 (168.0116) |
| Jun 14, 2025 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Peschiera del Garda | — | 14 (169.6800) | — | — | — |
| Jun 14, 2025 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT RIBS) Peschiera del Garda | — | — | 17 (165.1200) | — | — |
| Mar 29, 2025 | BBQ Expo Master's Challenge Brescia | 16 / 30 (670.2516) | 17 (168) | 16 (166.8344) | 21 (166.8456) | 8 (168.5716) |
| Sep 21, 2024 | Fo.G & Smoke 2024 Providence of MODENA (MO) | 11 / 19 (667.9544) | 10 (167.9656) | 1 (178.2972) | 16 (162.8688) | 14 (158.8228) |
| Jun 15, 2024 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT CHICKEN) Peschiera del Garda | — | 11 (166.2628) | — | — | — |
| Jun 15, 2024 | The War of Barbeque (ONE MEAT RIBS) Peschiera del Garda | — | — | 8 (166.8800) | — | — |
| Apr 6, 2024 | "Smokin' Ribs Showdown" (ONE MEAT RIBS) #1 Brescia | — | — | 4 (173.7028) | — | — |
An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.