(NOTE: Video in the player above is from previous reporting in 2024)
Famed competitive eater Joey Chestnut returned to Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest for yet another victory following a debacle that saw him unable to compete in 2024, but how many hot dogs did he eat this year and was it a record?
The Indiana native scored his 17th win in 20 appearances at the televised competition, marking a celebratory return after missing last year’s contest due to a contract dispute.
Here’s what happened:
How many hot dogs did Joey Chestnut eat?
Chestnut, 41, consumed 70 1/2 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes.
The victory didn’t mark a record, however, as he fell short of his 2021 record of 76 wieners and buns.
“I wish I ate a couple more. Sorry guys,” a smiling Chestnut told the crowd, many chanting his name. “I’ll be back next year.”
A large crowd, peppered with foam hot dog hats, turned out to witness the annual eat-a-thon, held outside the original Nathan’s Famous restaurant in Coney Island, Brooklyn, since 1972. Many fans showed up to see Chestnut’s much-awaited return to an event he has called “a cherished tradition, a celebration of American culture, and a huge part of my life.”
“I love being here,” Chestnut told ESPN after his win. “As soon as I found out I was coming, my body — it was easy to train. I love doing it. And love pushing myself and beating the heck out of people.”
Chestnut bested 14 fellow competitors from across the U.S. and the world, including Australia, the Czech Republic, Ontario, England and Brazil.
Last year’s winner, Chicago-native Patrick Bertoletti, came in second place after gobbling up 46 1/2 hot dogs and buns, falling short of the 58 he ate to earn the 2024 men’s title.
Who else won the contest?
Defending champion in the women’s division, Miki Sudo of Tampa, Florida, won her 11th title, downing 33 dogs, besting a dozen competitors. Last year, she ate a record 51 links. She also was apologetic for her performance.
“I feel like I let the fans down a little bit. I heard people in the crowd saying, ‘Go for 52,’” Sudo told ESPN. “Obviously, I’m always setting my goals high, but the hot dogs weren’t cooperating. For some reason, the buns felt larger today.”
Was Joey Chestnut ‘banned’ from the competition and why?
Last year, Major League Eating event organizer George Shea said Chestnut would not be participating in the contest due to a contract dispute. Chestnut had struck a deal with a competing brand, the plant-based meat company Impossible Foods.
But when asked if Chestnut was banned from the event, Major League Eating said he was not.
“There is no ban,” Shea told NBC News at the time. “Major League Eating wants him there. The fans want him there. Nathan’s wants him there.”
Shea said the dispute came down to exclusivity, not money.
“It would be like Michael Jordan saying to Nike, ‘I’m going to represent Adidas, too,’” Shea said.
Chestnut told The Associated Press last month that he had never appeared in any commercials for the company’s vegan hot dogs and that Nathan’s is the only hot dog company he has worked with. But Chestnut acknowledged he “should have made that more clear with Nathan’s.”
For their part, Impossible Foods said in a statement “we love Joey and support him in any contest he chooses. It’s OK to experiment with a new dog. Meat eaters shouldn’t have to be exclusive to just one wiener.”
Last year, Chestnut ate 57 dogs — in only five minutes — in an exhibition with soldiers, at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas. He said that event was “amazing” and that he was pleased to still have a chance to eat hot dogs — a lot of them — on July Fourth.
“I’m happy I did that, but I’m really happy to be back at Coney Island,” he said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)