UPDATE: The Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest saw Joey Chestnut notch his 18th victory, but fall short of setting the all-time record in the contest.
Chestnut ate 66 hot dogs in the contest on Saturday, enough to easily win but short of the world record that he aims for every year. As ESPN reported, it was an easy competition for Chestnut this year.
“Chestnut beat out 13 competitors who came from around the country and world, trekking from the Czech Republic, Australia and South Korea. He handily defeated the second-place finisher, Patrick Bertoletti, who ate 50 hot dogs,” the report noted.
But Chestnut said the heat, which had set records earlier in the week across New York, prevented him from coming close to the all-time record that he already held.
He didn’t approach his record-setting 76 franks, acknowledging a heat wave may have played some role and that ‘there’s room for improvement,’ ” the report noted.
The report added that Chestnut came into the year surrounded by some controversy — and the annual sponsor came in after some major changes.
“Contest sponsor Nathan’s Famous was sold in January to packaged meat giant Smithfield Foods,” the report noted. “A few months later, Chestnut was accused of slapping a man in an Indiana bar and pleaded guilty in April to a misdemeanor battery charge.”
Original story below:
The most famous man in the hot-dog eating world spoke out before Saturday’s event, saying he feels loose and ready. So will Chestnut win the event again, and will he set the all-time record? Fans can tune in to ABC and ESPN at 12:30 ET to watch.
Joey Chestnut Aims for Hot Dog History
Chestnut appeared on “Good Morning America” ahead of Saturday’s contest, saying he felt good and ready to down some hot dogs.
“Feeling good, I’m hungry, and it’s a beautiful day. This is going to be a great Fourth of July,” Chestnut said.
Chestnut added that he went through some preparations as he aims to down at least six dozen hot dogs in the hot Coney Island sun.
“I’m doing my cleanse, I’m empty and I’m loose,” he said.
Chestnut goes into the contest as the favorite, having failed to win only two times in the last 16 years — falling in 2015 to Matt Stonie and sitting out the competition in 2024.
As USA Today’s Josh Peter noted, Chestnut is aiming for history at the Hot Dog Eating Contest and is expected to draw in a huge audience.
“The location is hallowed ground for competitive eaters like Joey Chestnut, who has almost single-handedly turned the contest into a spectacle televised by ESPN,” Peter wrote. He’s expected to help draw a TV audience of more than one million viewers as he attempts to break his own record.
“That would be 76 hot dogs and buns consumed during the 10-minute contest in 2021.”
As Peter noted, the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest started in 1967, with winner Walter Paul eating 17 hot dogs — in 60 minutes. The contest has been just 10 minutes since adopting that as a standard in 2008, he added.
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