Locals Gearing Up to Compete in World Championship BBQ Cookoff

W hat’s a better way to start the new year than with world championship barbecue? For Jason and Nicole Vasut and their Fayette County Go Texan team, that dream will soon be a reality.

The opportunity comes after the team claimed the overall championship title at the Fayette County Sheriff’s Posse Go Texan BBQ Cookoff contest held in April, earning them the chance to represent Fayette County on barbecue’s biggest stage, the 2026 Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo World Championship BBQ Cookoff, set for February 26–28.

The Vasuts will compete alongside as many as 250 elite teams from all over the world. “The best of the best is there,” said Nicole. “We will compete in the core meat categories: brisket, ribs, and chicken. We will also be cooking in the Chef’s Choice category, where you can cook any entree of your choice, and in the Dutch Oven Dessert category.”

Judging is intense and highly competitive. In a typical year, approximately 225 judges are used across all competition categories, with 85 judges seated for each major meat category. As Jason put it, “One bite, one chance, that’s it… no pressure,” said Jason.

Along with the Vasuts, the team, consisting of Johnnie Vasut, Justin Margist, Brad and Toni Olenick, Randall Bryant and Julia Breland, is in full preparation mode.

“We prepare by entering local contests, like the Fayette County Fair BBQ Cook Off, where we won first place in ribs,” said Nicole. “With a whole new recipe,” added Jason.

The Vasuts are no beginners in the barbecue arena. They operate their own side catering business called Vasut BBQ and catering and compete under the name “You Kill it, We Grill it,” because they have been known to pretty much cook anything and make it taste good.

“If you wanted to, every weekend, you could go to a competition,” said Nicole. “We are always trying new products, techniques, and competing in other cookoffs around the area. It is very hard to put all of the top-tier three meats, chicken, ribs, and brisket together and do well in them all at the competitions. Practice makes perfect.”

As for Jason, he said, “It’s luck and talent. In Houston, you gotta have something good but lots and lots of luck.”

For the Vasuts and their team, we hope luck and talent are on their side, but two other things they have on their side are experience and their love for barbecue.

Jason, who has been competing for over 30 years and has worked at Peters BBQ in Ellinger for the past 11 years, learned to understand the bond that barbecue can bring at an early age.

“I don’t really know. I just got into it a long time ago, and I learned from my dad, honestly. He liked barbecue, and I just kind of picked it up from him. And he saw these local little contests and said, ‘Hey, let’s just try it, and we did well,’” said Jason.

On a similar note, Nicole fondly remembers her earlier days with her dad competing in one of The Best Little Cowboy Gathering in Texas, along with other cookoffs. And what makes competing at this year’s Houston Rodeo Cookoff even extra special for her is that exactly 30 years ago, in 1996, her dad and his team competed and represented Fayette County Go Texan.

Another thing to make this Houston Rodeo Cookoff even more special for the Vasut family is that their daughter, eight-year-old Reeanna, will be representing Fayette County in the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo Kids Cookoff, making it the first time a youth competitor from Fayette County will compete.

As they compete on the big stage, they will carry their family’s heart and love for barbecue. “We don’t have a bunch of fancy BBQ pits. We like to cook over charcoal, and we cook on homemade pits. We let our results speak for themselves. It’s not always about winning, but competing and trying to do your best,” said Nicole. “We love to see the smile on our friends’ and families’ faces when we BBQ and eat our food. We take pride in our finished product, and we hope the judges do too at every competition.”

Along with preparing for the big cook-off, they are also raising funds to help offset the cost by seeking sponsorships and in-kind donations, as well as holding a raffle. The raffle drawing will be held on Jan. 31 at the annual Fayette County Go Texan Shrimp Boil at the KC Hall in La Grange.

If you would like to fuel the fire, serve the community, and represent the Fayette County Go Texan team on a global stage by sponsoring or buying a raffle ticket, then you can contact Jason Vasut at (979) 250-1269, Nicole Vasut at (979) 966-3651, or by email at nicolevasut@gmail.com. So as the Vasuts and their team prepare and head to Houston, they not only take their passion for barbecue, but also the heat of Fayette County with them.