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Joey Chestnut is back competing in a hot dog eating contest after being banned from competing in the Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Competition, held annually on the Fourth of July.
On Monday, September 2, Netflix aired a special titled Unfinished beef Co-hosted by Rob Riggle and Nikki Garcia, Chestnut competed against his former rival Takeru Kobayashi. Similar to Nathan's contest, the two had to eat as many hot dogs and buns as possible in 10 minutes using only their hands to win $100,000.
Chestnut and Kobayashi have competed against each other for years. Chestnut's first hot dog eating contest was in 2005, where Kobayashi won. He didn't defeat him until two years later in 2007. In total, Chestnut has won Nathan's hot dog eating contest 16 times, while his competitor has only won six times and was banned from competing in 2020 over a contract dispute.
It was announced earlier this year that Chestnut, who has won the traditional Coney Island boardwalk contest every year since 2016, would not be able to compete in 2024 due to a recent branding deal with Impossible Foods, which launched a plant-based hot dog option.
A representative of Major League Eating (MLE), who Nathan authorizes to host the event, said The Independent Nathan's previously made adjustments to the contest specifically for Chestnut, but the final straw was his choice to represent a hot dog brand other than Nathan's.
However, he agreed to allow her to compete in a hot dog eating contest on Labor Day that would be recorded by Netflix, as long as no hot dog brands were mentioned.
“We are devastated to learn that Joey Chestnut has chosen to represent a rival brand selling plant-based hot dogs instead of competing in the 2024 Nathan's Famous 4th of July Hot Dog Eating Contest,” said MLE Statement saying.
“MLE and Nathan's went out of their way to accommodate Joey and his management team, agreeing to pay the appearance fee and allowing Joey to compete in a rival off-brand hot dog eating contest on Labor Day.”
The statement concluded: “For nearly two decades, we have worked under the same basic hot dog exclusivity clauses. However, it appears that Joey and his representatives have prioritized a new partnership with a different brand over our long-term relationship. Joey Chestnut is an American hero. We would love nothing more than to have him in the Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest. We look forward to having him return when he is not representing a rival brand.”
The competition continued as normal, with Patrick Bertoletti winning the men's competition and Miki Sudo winning the women's competition, breaking a record in the process.
During the Labor Day competition, Chestnut was able to break his own personal record and finish 83 hot dogs in 10 minutes, compared to Kobayashi's 66 hot dogs, which also broke his personal record.
After being crowned the winner, Chestnut admitted that he had always wanted to successfully eat at least 80 hot dogs and credited his rival for helping him achieve that goal.
“This is amazing. I’ve been trying to hit 80 hot dogs for years and without Kobayashi, I would have never done it,” she said. “He motivates me. We weren’t always nice to each other, but I love that we push each other to do our best.”
