The advantage is even and faster cooking because the bird is flat and about the same size across the chicken....and you don't have a large air cavity to heat up and cook from the inside. It is multitudes better....I won't smoke another chicken unless I do it this way. I noticed that the legs and breasts get done about the same time too....I run my dark meat to 180 and my breasts to 168.This one turned out pretty good. I wish I would have cooked it a little faster as my skin got tough. I may try spatchcock style. What are the benefits?