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Uncle Carl’s BBQ Showdown fires up in downtown Fayetteville

By Faith Hatton, posted Mar 17, 2026 on BizFayetteville.com

All barbecue enthusiasts, hobbyists, and lovers of good food are being summoned to downtown Fayetteville from March 27–28 for Uncle Carl’s BBQ Showdown.

Sponsored by the Fayetteville Dogwood Festival, Uncle Carl’s BBQ Showdown is the idea of Flip Flop Sauce Founder, Carl Pringle, and is being done in partnership with Fayetteville’s VFW Post 670, who is providing the meat for competitors.
The event is also serving as a fundraiser for local nonprofit We Are One Big Family.

The event is being built off of the success of the Ribs and Butts Festival, a past BBQ competition event also founded by Pringle that took place at the Crown Event Center in fall 2024.

“I wanted to at least bring that idea to everybody to get them exposed to what a cook-off could be. Every great event started with one,” shared Pringle. “I don't care if I got two or 200 [guests], I'm gonna make sure those two have a good time so next time they bring in somebody with them. We're starting to get a lot more buzz now for this.”

Now, in the same spirit, competitors will be coming back to fight for the right to call themselves Fayetteville’s “sauced and smoked champions.”
The Showdown will be taking place at Sol’s Arcade and Taproom on the patio and will feature four categories for competitors: chicken, pulled pork, ribs, and brisket.
Only those who are competing in all four categories can be eligible for the “Grand Champion” title.

“We’re up to about nine teams now, which is huge, in my opinion, for a first official event,” shared Kaylynn Suarez, executive director of the Fayetteville Dogwood Festival. “We are definitely excited, because some of these teams are coming from out of town, and some of them are from here. This is definitely a lot of dads and grandpas and uncles getting together. They're competing, and we will have trophies and bragging rights.”

Organizers are working to bring in a group of local and outside judges to determine a winner. The community is being asked to provide their feedback in a pay-to-vote system with one dollar equalling one vote, with teams being eligible for a "People's Choice Award” based on who raises the most money.

Registration for teams is expected to remain open until March 20. More information about registration for the event and more details can be found here. 

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