Mudville BBQ (Thomas Gearhart)
Nashville, Tennessee
Originally from Northern California, pitmaster and US Army Veteran Thomas Gearhart has been barbecuing for family and friends for more than 25 years.
In 2015, he created Mudville BBQ and started competing on the professional barbecue circuit. Since then, he has won countless awards including Grand Champion of the 32nd American Royal Invitational Contest in 2019. The rest is history.
Today, Mudville BBQ competes around the country in professional BBQ events sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS).
Accolades
- 2019 American Royal Invitational World Champion (with a top 20 finish in every category)
- Multiple Grand Championships and 10 category first place finishes, including 1st place pork at the 2017 National Capital BBQ Battle in Washington, DC
- 70 category top ten finishes and 19 overall top ten finishes
- Multiple 180 perfect scores and 700+ scores
- 2020-2021 California BBQ Association Rib Team of the Year - AKA “California Rib King”
- 4th place overall 2020-2021 California BBQ Association Team of the Year
- Second team ever to win the American Royal hailing from west of Oklahoma (an honor shared with Big Poppa Smokers)
- 11th Best Rub on the Planet in 2020 by the American Royal World Series of Barbecue
