A tough matchup
6–0
behind in the head-to-head
Big Bear BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings
Big Bear BBQ has come out ahead in 6 of their 6 shared contests.
Imperial BBQ
Imperial BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 7 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2024 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 10th of 32 at the Smokin in Steele (2024). They are ranked #5143 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1460
peak 1506 · rated over 6 contests
Contests
7
in the data
First seen
May 31, 2024
latest Jun 12, 2026 · 2 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
1
14% of 7 contests
Avg finish
top 79%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
314.80
last 5 Backyard vs avg 315.19 (-0.39)
Walk rate
14%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±5.96
spread of their Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 159.03 · weakest Pork Ribs (157.11)
Road miles
389
across 7 mapped stops · furthest 96 mi
Schedule strength
61%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1577)
Purse competed for
$31K
listed at 7 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 3 state-championship entries
Backyard avg
315.19 / 360
6 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to Imperial BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
126 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#5,140 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 50%
- Peak
- 1460
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 7, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#5,128 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1460
They were already cooking in 2016, 8 years before Imperial BBQ's first contest.
⚔ Compare careers#5,127 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1460
Their last contest in the data was back in 2021, 5 years before Imperial BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#5,147 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1459
Level with Imperial BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#5,122 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1460
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before Imperial BBQ's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#5,133 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1460
Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before Imperial 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sensuous BBQ | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| Big Bear BBQ | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| DAWGS BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Unknown Smokers | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 163.9772 | 149.1200 | 159.03 | top 77% |
| Pork Ribs | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 163.9884 | 145.6456 | 157.11 | top 73% |
“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) | 2 | 0 | top 97% |
| Medium (20–39) | 3 | 0 | top 64% |
| Large (40+) | 1 | 0 | top 90% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smokin' in Steele | 2 | 10 | 0 | top 51% | May 30, 2025 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2026
3 contests
Contests a season
2.3
across 3 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
MN
5 of 7 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
5
1 of them more than once
Most-entered meat
Pork Ribs
7 entries · 0 wins · 1 call
Opponents faced
136
finished ahead 44 times, behind 179
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20262 milestones
- Career-best overall score321.6456 Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD)
- Most recent contest Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD)
20251 milestone
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)163.9884 Smokin' in Steele
20244 milestones
- First tracked contest Smokin in Steele
- First call Smokin in Steele
- First overall top-10 Smokin in Steele
- Peak power rating (1506) Smokin in Steele
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +5.6 | Smokin in Steele | May 31, 2024 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -12.1 | Bent Brewstillery BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY) | Sep 7, 2024 |
| -11.9 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) | Aug 16, 2025 |
| -8.4 | Spring into Summer Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) | May 29, 2026 |
| -8.1 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) | Jun 12, 2026 |
| -5.6 | Smokin' in Steele | May 30, 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 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 89% | 89.3% | 89.3% |
| 2025 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 86% | 87% | 85.7% |
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50% | top 63% | 88.1% | 87.7% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 12, 2026 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (MASTER & BACKYARD) 🏅 West Salem, WI | 36 / 40 (321.6456) | 37 (161.6800) | 35 (159.9656) | — | — |
| Jun 12, 2026 | Bring'n Home the Bacon Day 1 (ONE MEAT RIBS) West Salem, WI | — | — | 22 (162.8228) | — | — |
| May 29, 2026 | Spring into Summer Backyard BBQ Competition (BACKYARD ONLY) Owatonna, MN | 22 / 25 (321.0516) | 21 (163.9772) | 23 (157.0744) | — | — |
| Aug 16, 2025 | Boomer Backyard BBQ Cookoff (BACKYARD ONLY) Canton, MN | 17 / 17 (303.8856) | 16 (158.2400) | 17 (145.6456) | — | — |
| May 30, 2025 | Smokin' in Steele 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 20 / 28 (313.1084) | 22 (149.1200) | 17 (163.9884) | — | — |
| Sep 7, 2024 | Bent Brewstillery BBQ (BACKYARD ONLY) Roseville, MN | 17 / 18 (314.2860) | 16 (158.8572) | 12 (155.4288) | — | — |
| May 31, 2024 | Smokin in Steele 🏅 Owatonna, MN | 10 / 32 (317.1544) | 8 (162.2972) | 10 (154.8572) | — | — |