DESTINATION AMERICA SERVES UP A SIZZLIN' SECOND SEASON OF "BBQ PIT WARS"

- Season 2 of BBQ PIT WARS Premieres on Thursday July 23 at 10/9c on Destination America -

(Silver Spring, MD) - With summer in full swing and Americans across the USA firing up their grills, Destination America is back to bring the country the best grilling techniques from expert pitmasters with a brand-new season of everyone's favorite competition series BBQ PIT WARS. Four professional BBQ teams will slather, slice and smoke their finest recipes traveling around the country, hitting the circuit in some of the most difficult conditions yet, attempting to become the next Pit Wars Grand Champion. Robbie Royal, a former Pitmasters champion faces off against his former mentor Myron Mixon the reigning champ of Pit Wars, ready to prove the student has become the master. Michael Character returns from last year with new grilling techniques and feels ready to prove his fare should not be underestimated! Finally, Ernest Servantes, hits the circuit with his Texan taste, planning to utilize an unexpected, secret technique to outshine his Georgia competitors. BBQ PIT WARS season two premieres Thursday, Jul. 23 at 10/9c on Destination America.

This season of BBQ PIT WARS will broil down to one major factor: location. Each venue has different challenges and if the grill masters can overcome these potential setbacks, it will separate the good from the truly great. The competitions this year are tougher and bigger than ever before, with over 50 teams contending for the top spot and vying to take down the King of Q, Myron Mixon.

"We are raising the stakes for our teams on this season of BBQ PIT WARS" says Marc Etkind, general manager of Destination America. "These BBQ experts will set out to compete each weekend at some of the most challenging competitions in the U.S. and they're not just worried about beating each other; they'll be going head-to-head against the hottest teams on the BBQ circuit."

The experts have been mastering their delectable recipes for years, but now it's time for the real test of who will be rewarded for their finger lickin' fare and who will be left packing up their trailers and heading home empty-handed. These backyard warriors are cooking for not only money but pride, and they are devoted to bring the greatest American BBQ to the circuit this year on BBQ PIT WARS.

BBQ PIT WARS is produced for Destination America by Citizen Pictures. For Citizen Pictures, Frank Matson and Tim McOsker are executive producers. For Destination America, Fay Yu is executive producer, Marc Etkind is general manager, and Henry Schleiff is group president.

About the BBQ PIT WARS competitors:

Myron Mixon a three time BBQ World Champion and has been dubbed "the winningest man in BBQ" by the BBQ community. He's been featured as a judge on BBQ Pitmasters and as a competitor on BBQ Pit Wars. Myron is a legend on the professional BBQ circuit and has been competing since 1996. Over the course of Myron's career, he's won over 200 grand championships resulting in over 1900 total trophies, over 40 state championships including wins in Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Virginia, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky, Illinois, South Carolina, and Tennessee, Team of the Year 8 times, and 11 national championships hence the nickname "the winningest man in barbecue".

Michael Character was born in Seattle, Washington and moved to Georgia when he was 7 years old with his family. Like many BBQ competitors, Michael learned the art of BBQ as a child, watching family members cook in his backyard. Michael Character is owner of Character's Famous BBQ in Adairsville, Georgia. He was featured on Season 1 of BBQ Pit Wars and Season 5 of BBQ Pitmasters. Michael is known for his notorious smack talk on the circuit and that's exactly what he plans on doing. Michael finished 4th in last season's standings for BBQ Pit Wars. Despite Michael Character's disappointing finish, he seems confident that he will make a statement this year with his product. He's looking to take down Myron's "Evil Empire."

Robby Royal Hailing from Sycamore, GA, Robby Royal has been making a huge splash on the professional BBQ scene since 2001.To make things a little more interesting, Robby is also a former student of Myron Mixons cooking school and would love nothing more than to beat his former teacher at his own game. Rescue Smokers was named the 2014 BBQ Pitmasters Grand Champion, the 2013 Big Pig Jig Grand Champion, the 2008 Georgia BBQ Association State Champion, 2010 Georgia BBQ Association State Champion and the 2010 Georgia BBQ Association Team of the Year. Robby and his team have racked up a whopping 89 1st place rankings over the last five years among countless other wins. Rescue Smokers is known for their specific Georgia style flavor profile, tweaking their final results with a touch of Memphis sweet to impress the judges.

Ernest Servantes is the owner of the Burnt Bean Company competition BBQ team and Executive Chef for the Sodexo Company at Texas Lutheran University. Ernest learned the art of BBQ at a young age by watching his father cook at family outings. His Mexican-American heritage gave him a unique perspective on BBQ, allowing him to break the rules of traditional BBQ and incorporate Mexican flavors. Ernest competed twice on BBQ Pitmasters, each time falling just short of victory. In 2012, he was crowned champion on Food Network's Chopped: Grill Masters. Cooking against three Georgia cooks in their home state, with local judges and a regional BBQ style that is vastly different from Texas will be an interesting pursuit for Ernest. It will be up to the judges to decide if his Texas style BBQ will hold up against the traditional Georgia BBQ.

About Destination America

Destination America is the only network to celebrate the people, places, and stories of the United States. The inclusive network targeting Adults 25-54 is available in nearly 60 million homes, emblazoning television screens with the grit and tenacity, honesty and work ethic, humor and adventurousness that characterize our nation. Destination America features travel, food, adventure, home, and natural history, with original series like BBQ Pitmasters; A Haunting; Mountain Monsters; Buying Alaska; Buying the Bayou; and Railroad Alaska. For more information, please visit DestinationAmerica.com, facebook.com/DestinationAmerica, or twitter.com/DestAmerica. Destination America is part of Discovery Communications (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), the world's #1 nonfiction media company reaching more than 2 billion cumulative subscribers in 220 countries and territories.