BACKFIRIN' BBQ

BACKFIRIN' BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 25 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2016. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest (2016). They are ranked #925 of 6,485 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#925

of 6,485 rated · rankings

Rating

1613

peak 1613 · rated over 24 contests1 invitational or side-series contest not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Oct 11, 2013

latest Oct 29, 2016 · 3 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#288

Master 2016 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve · wins it all 4% of the time

Category wins

10 podiums

Overall top-10s

32% of 25 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 41%

overall standings

Best overall

690.8572 / 720

Master · Anchor City Cook Off

Perfect 180s

Current form

668.15 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 662.64 (+5.51)

Walk rate

60%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

179.4400

Pork Ribs · Anchor City Cook Off

Consistency

±18.87

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 167.70 · weakest Brisket (163.05)

Road miles

1,733

across 25 mapped stops · furthest 109 mi

Schedule strength

38%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1551)

State championships

0 🏅

won from 2 state-championship entries

Master avg

662.64 / 720

25 Master contests · 1 GC

Storylines (14 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

Against the odds

27-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 73 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest (May 6, 2016) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 27-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE SMOKE.

On the rise

+41 rating points in a year

Their power rating has climbed 41 points across 8 contests since May 6, 2016 — from 1572 up to 1613.

8 contests since May 6, 2016
now 1613

Giant slayer

32 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 32-team field at Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest.

May 6, 2016

Happy hunting ground

Top 19% average finish here

Racing for the BBQ is their spot: an average finish in the top 19% across 2 visits.

2 visits
best finish 11th
average top 19%

They almost always walk

60% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 15 of 25 contests

A top-10 category call in 60% of their 25 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

690.8572 career-best overall

96.0% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 690.8572 at Anchor City Cook Off — 96.0% of a perfect 720.

Master
Oct 9, 2015

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

UNCLE BUB'S BBQ, LLC has finished one call ahead of BACKFIRIN' BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Show 7 more storylines

A tough matchup

14–1 behind in the head-to-head

GETTIN' BASTED ahead in 93% of their meetings

GETTIN' BASTED has come out ahead in 14 of their 15 shared contests.

The weak link

−4.7 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.65 points below their pork, and turns into a call 24% of the time against 36%.

Brisket avg 163.05
Pork avg 167.70
6 calls in 25 entries

The drought

8 contests since the last title

Their last Grand Championship came at Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest on May 6, 2016 — 8 contests and 10.4 years ago.

last GC May 6, 2016
10.4 years ago

A strong matchup

5–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 83% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of POLITICAL PORK in 5 of their 6 shared contests.

Pork nemesis

9 of 15 shared pork entries lost

GETTIN' BASTED ahead 60% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, GETTIN' BASTED has out-cooked them in 9 of 15 shared pork entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

UNCLE BUB'S BBQ, LLC has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked Anchor City Cook Off every year from 2013 to 2016 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 4th

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
2016 ↗	Master	#288 (1,211 pts)	#428 (921 pts)	#286 (1,216 pts)	#377 (1,021 pts)	#354 (1,066 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#367 (1,029 pts)	#437 (889 pts)	#283 (1,194 pts)	#307 (1,094 pts)	#352 (1,024 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#749 (461 pts)	#858 (421 pts)	#695 (546 pts)	#632 (606 pts)	#804 (446 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#1463 (152 pts)	#1453 (172 pts)	#1476 (172 pts)	#1381 (187 pts)	#1651 (137 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to BACKFIRIN' BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

SCORCH AND RESQUE

#924 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 47
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 34%
Peak: 1637

1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to BACKFIRIN' BBQ)

2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team BACKFIRIN' BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 46 contests
last seen Aug 2, 2019

⚔ Head-to-head

Team Meat Coma

#928 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 62
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 29%
Peak: 1681

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to BACKFIRIN' BBQ)

They've been 1681 at their best, 68 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 60 contests
last seen Jun 26, 2026

⚔ Head-to-head

B & C SMOKERS

#923 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 113
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 26%
Peak: 1706

2–0 in 2 shared contests (100% to BACKFIRIN' BBQ)

113 contests to 25: their number has had years to settle where BACKFIRIN' BBQ's is still finding its level.

rated over 112 contests
last seen Sep 30, 2026

⚔ Head-to-head

Pig Destroyer

#926 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 36
GCs: 4
Top-10s: 58%
Peak: 1623

Their rating is built on 4 Grand Championships in 36 contests, alongside a 58% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 25 contests
last seen Jun 13, 2025

⚔ Compare careers

SMOKE AND FIRE

#927 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 29
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 55%
Peak: 1613

Level with BACKFIRIN' BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 27 contests
last seen Jan 18, 2020

⚔ Compare careers

SOUTHERN QUE

#921 of the rated field

1613 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1616

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.

rated over 21 contests
last seen May 4, 2018

⚔ Compare careers

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
GETTIN' BASTED	15	1	14	7%	⚔ compare
VALLEY OAKS STEAK COMPANY	13	3	10	23%	⚔ compare
BURNT FINGER BBQ	13	2	11	15%	⚔ compare
DIRT ROAD BBQ	13	2	11	15%	⚔ compare
SMOKE THIS BBQ MO	12	4	8	33%	⚔ compare
UNCLE BUB'S BBQ, LLC	11	4	7	36%	⚔ compare
THUMP & STRUM BBQ	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
IN DEEP SAUCE	11	2	9	18%	⚔ compare
SHAKE 'N BAKE BBQ	11	1	10	9%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN O BBQ	10	3	7	30%	⚔ compare
SLAPS BBQ	9	2	7	22%	⚔ compare
MY 3 SONS BARBEQUE MO	8	4	4	50%	⚔ compare
GETTIN' SAUCED	8	2	6	25%	⚔ compare
HUNKA HUNKA BURNIN' RUB	7	5	2	71%	⚔ compare
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE SMOKE	7	4	3	57%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	25	6	0	1	174.2744	145.0972	165.00	top 50%
Pork Ribs	25	10	1	3	179.4400	153.7484	166.89	top 39%
Pork	25	9	0	3	177.1544	156.5028	167.70	top 40%
Brisket	25	6	2	3	174.8800	146.2056	163.05	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
Small (<20 teams)	1	0	top 21%
Medium (20–39)	13	1	top 39%
Large (40+)	11	0	top 46%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
MO	23	1	top 41%
KS	2	0	top 43%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Anchor City Cook Off	4	4	0	top 38%	Oct 14, 2016
Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest	2	1	1	top 35%	May 6, 2016
37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN)	2	51	0	top 43%	Oct 29, 2016
Racing for the BBQ	2	11	0	top 19%	Jul 29, 2016

More numbers

Busiest season 2016 9 contests · 1 GC

Contests a season 6.3 across 4 seasons in the data

Most contests held in MO 23 of 25 contests · 2 states in all

Contests visited 19 4 of them more than once

First title May 6, 2016 Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest

Opponents faced 1,137 finished ahead 1,539 times, behind 596

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

20166 milestones

May 6 First Grand Championship Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest
May 6 Biggest field won (32 teams) Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest
Oct 14 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)179.4400 Anchor City Cook Off
Oct 29 25th tracked contest 37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN)
Oct 29 Peak power rating (1613) 37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN)
Oct 29 Most recent contest 37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN)

20155 milestones

Jun 5 10th tracked contest Hott Butts BBQ Contest
Jul 10 First overall top-10 Johnson County Fair BBQ
Sep 11 First overall podium Butler Chamber of Commerce BBQ & Huckster's Day
Oct 9 First category win (Brisket) Anchor City Cook Off
Oct 9 Career-best overall score690.8572 Anchor City Cook Off

20141 milestone

Jul 11 First overall past 90% of a perfect score650.7652 Johnson County Fair BBQ

20132 milestones

Oct 11 First tracked contest Anchor City Cook Off
Oct 25 First call Bates County BBQ State Championship

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+14.8	Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest	May 6, 2016
+13.3	36th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbeque- Open	Oct 3, 2015
+11.9	Anchor City Cook Off	Oct 9, 2015
+11.9	Racing for the BBQ	Jul 24, 2015
+11.8	37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN)	Oct 29, 2016

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.9	The Best Dam BBQ Contest at Smithville Lake	Apr 11, 2014
-5.7	Anchor City Cook Off	Oct 11, 2013
-4.4	Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge	Jul 8, 2016
-3	Bates County BBQ State Championship	Oct 25, 2013
-2.7	Bates County Barbecue State Championship & Festival	Sep 5, 2014

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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)
2016	9	1	5	2	67%	top 33%	95.9%	93.3%
2015	9	0	3	1	67%	top 36%	96%	92.8%
2014	5	0	0	0	40%	top 56%	93.8%	90%
2013	2	0	0	0	50%	top 68%	88.7%	88.2%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Oct 29, 2016	37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue (OPEN) Kansas City, KS	51 / 557 (682.7768)	109 (170.8228)	51 (173.1428)	181 (168.5256)	103 (170.2856)
Oct 28, 2016	37th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue (INVITATIONAL) unrated Kansas City, KS	137 / 180 (666.2288)	49 (174.2744)	172 (154.8344)	77 (169.6800)	102 (167.4400)
Oct 14, 2016	Anchor City Cook Off Centralia, MO	6 / 34 (677.6572)	19 (165.0856)	1 (179.4400)	21 (163.9772)	12 (169.1544)
Sep 23, 2016	Smoking in the Golden Valley Clinton, MO	8 / 22 (669.0628)	10 (168.5600)	14 (165.1200)	5 (175.4056)	13 (159.9772)
Sep 16, 2016	Butler Chambers Barbeque & Huckster's Day Butler, MO	6 / 21 (645.0056)	5 (166.8228)	12 (157.6684)	13 (158.2172)	8 (162.2972)
Jul 29, 2016	Racing for the BBQ Lee's Summit, MO	11 / 54 (684.5484)	33 (167.4400)	10 (174.8572)	18 (171.4056)	15 (170.8456)
Jul 8, 2016	Johnson County Fair BBQ Challenge Warrensburg, MO	27 / 40 (653.6116)	17 (169.1200)	20 (165.6916)	24 (164)	31 (154.8000)
Jun 3, 2016	5th Annual Smokin on the Lake Monroe City, MO	8 / 22 (675.9428)	13 (163.9772)	2 (176.5944)	7 (170.8456)	10 (164.5256)
May 6, 2016	Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest Columbia, MO	1 / 32 (690.8228)	8 (171.9772)	10 (168.5600)	3 (175.4400)	1 (174.8456)
Oct 9, 2015	Anchor City Cook Off Centralia, MO	4 / 20 (690.8572)	10 (169.1200)	6 (169.7028)	3 (177.1544)	1 (174.8800)
Oct 3, 2015	36th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbeque- Open Kansas City, MO	69 / 606 (678.7884)	87 (172.5484)	142 (169.6800)	178 (168)	155 (168.5600)
Sep 11, 2015	Butler Chamber of Commerce BBQ & Huckster's Day Butler, MO	3 / 14 (661.6804)	3 (165.7144)	6 (167.4288)	10 (161.6800)	2 (166.8572)
Aug 14, 2015	BBQ and Fly In on the River Excelsior Springs, MO	31 / 67 (663.9428)	22 (167.9656)	10 (172.5600)	25 (167.4400)	46 (155.9772)
Jul 24, 2015	Racing for the BBQ Lees Summit, MO	11 / 63 (683.9200)	35 (165.0856)	4 (177.7028)	2 (177.1544)	32 (163.9772)
Jul 10, 2015	Johnson County Fair BBQ Warrensburg, MO	9 / 33 (670.8116)	9 (170.2628)	5 (171.4172)	10 (170.8572)	27 (158.2744)
Jun 5, 2015	Hott Butts BBQ Contest Boonville, MO	15 / 32 (662.7660)	17 (163.9772)	13 (165.1316)	17 (166.2400)	9 (167.4172)
May 1, 2015	Columbia Elks Lodge #594 BBQ Contest Columbia, MO	25 / 37 (647.3260)	36 (155.4172)	17 (162.2400)	20 (165.6916)	22 (163.9772)
Apr 10, 2015	The Best Damn BBQ Contest Smithville, MO	32 / 52 (650.1368)	39 (159.9656)	22 (166.2400)	24 (165.7028)	33 (158.2284)
Oct 10, 2014	Anchor City Cook Off Centralia, MO	11 / 27 (675.3716)	11 (168.5372)	2 (177.7372)	12 (168.5256)	18 (160.5716)
Sep 5, 2014	Bates County Barbecue State Championship & Festival 🏅 Butler, MO	29 / 43 (634.0796)	24 (162.2628)	25 (161.0856)	16 (164.5256)	37 (146.2056)
Jul 25, 2014	Racing for the BBQ Lee's Summit, MO	21 / 54 (658.7200)	48 (159.3828)	26 (163.9656)	22 (166.2516)	13 (169.1200)
Jul 11, 2014	Johnson County Fair BBQ Warrensburg, MO	17 / 36 (650.7652)	22 (163.4284)	22 (157.1084)	4 (170.8228)	23 (159.4056)
Apr 11, 2014	The Best Dam BBQ Contest at Smithville Lake Smithville, MO	47 / 54 (621.6340)	51 (145.0972)	45 (153.7484)	35 (161.6684)	23 (161.1200)
Oct 25, 2013	Bates County BBQ State Championship 🏅 Butler, MO	21 / 33 (630.7428)	25 (151.9428)	20 (158.8228)	10 (166.8228)	23 (153.1544)
Oct 11, 2013	Anchor City Cook Off Centralia, MO	21 / 29 (638.7312)	13 (166.2512)	18 (161.7028)	25 (156.5028)	22 (154.2744)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

BACKFIRIN' BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (14 found in their record)

Against the odds

On the rise

Giant slayer

Happy hunting ground

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

The drought

A strong matchup

Pork nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

A standing appointment

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)