26 GBA teams descended on Griffin GA for a full weekend of BBQ – the 2023 Doc Holliday BBQ Championship, the 2023 Georgia State Brisket Championship, and 2023 GBA State Championship. This is truly a one-of-a-kind event – it’s the only one where you can see recreations of the famous Shootout at the OK Corral – and has some of the most sought after trophies on the GBA circuit.
Southern Hogs walked last for their first ever GBA Grand Championship, which also crowned them as the 2023 GBA Georgia State Champion.
319Q was the most consistent team of the day, continuing their successful season and being named as the Reserve Grand Champion.
319Q took top honors in the Loin Category. Big Butts BBQ was second, followed by Real-Licious Q in third – who was also awarded a perfect 600 score for their preliminary Loin entry!
Southern Hogs won the Pork category, with Bubba Grills in 2nd and Shark Bite BBQ in 3rd.
Rescue Smokers was once again top Rib team, while 319Q placed 2nd and Flyin Pig Bar-B-Que landed in 3rd.
Off the Chain was named the 2023 Georgia State Brisket Champion, 2nd was Flyin Pig Bar-B-Que, and 3rd Real-Licious Q.
The Doc Holliday BBQ Championship Organizers team also created a special award to honor the memory of Tony Thurston and his commitment to the Doc Holliday BBQ Championships. Tony was always present, always ready to help out, a man who stood for what competition barbecue and the Georgia Barbecue Association was all about. The 2023 Tony Thurston Award went to the Rescue Smokers BBQ Team!
Bite My Butt won the People’s Choice award. This is voted on by the festival patrons, and it’s often the only chance those patrons get to taste competition barbecue! A HUGE thank you to all the teams that take the extra time to participate in the People’s Choice category at these events. It’s a big draw and helps to keep these events coming back every year!
Now on to Team of the Year! In the Team of the Year points race, Rescue Smokers took over the top spot for overall Team of the Year, pushing Off the Chain down to 2nd by a single point over Posse BBQ. Shark Bite BBQ and Real-Licious Q traded spots to make up 4th and 5th places for Overall.
Off the Chain kept their top spot in Loin, but Posse BBQ closed the gap to 4 points in 2nd place. 319Q moved into 3rd.Off the Chain stays on top of the Pork category, with Rescue Smokers still hanging onto 2nd and Shark Bite BBQ in 3rd
Rescue Smokers holds on to first in the Rib category, and 319Q jumped over Real-Licious Q by a single point to take second.
Huge Congrats to Shark Bite BBQ on a great year as the 2022 Doc Holliday Grand Champion & GBA State Champion!
The next GBA event is the Byron BBQ Fest on Sept 30. This is an In Association With event, but it’s a great way to keep those competition skills shard. After that we’ll be in Donalsonville GA on Oct 14 for the Firehouse BBQ Cookoff, then the Modern Gas Ribs Showdown in Albany, GA on Oct 21. The Albany event has both a Professional and a IAW event, so cooks of any skill level are welcome to sign up and test your skills. The Red, White, and Blue BBQ in Canton, GA will finish out our season on Oct 28.
Team of the Year Points:https://www.bbqga.org/team-of-the-year-2/