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San Jose resident and competitive eater extraordinaire Joey Chestnut claimed victory again Wednesday at the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest in New York, downing 74 franks in 10 minutes for a new world record.
For the 11th time in 12 years, Chestnut ate more hot dogs and their buns than any other competitor, beating second place finisher Carmen Cincotti, who turned 26 the day of the Fourth of July competition, by 10 franks.
Originally, the judges thought Chestnut ate 64 hot dogs. But a review showed counters missed a plate and the final tally was updated to 74.
In an interview with this news organization Tuesday, the 34-year-old former construction manager turned full-time competitive eater said he prepared in the days leading up to the contest by fasting — subsisting on water with lemon, amino acids and a few caramels.
He’d been in New York since last Thursday, he said, acclimating to the oppressing East Coast summer humidity.
That appeared to pay off Wednesday, as Chestnut outpaced his 20 challengers in the competition’s 102th year.
As crowds donning hot dog hats packed Coney Island, Chestnut alternated between shoving two hot dogs and two buns into his mouth for the duration of the competition.
“If I’m going to get up on stage to eat hot dogs,” Chestnut told ESPN, which broadcast the competition, “I’m not going to do it to get third or fourth.”
Hot dogs aren’t the only food the professional eater is known for eating in massive quantities. According to Major League Eating, the body that oversees professional eating contests, Chestnut once ate nearly 13 pounds of deep-fried asparagus in 10 minutes and 55 glazed donuts in the same amount of time. In 2013, he inhaled 141 hard-boiled eggs in eight minutes.
After Chestnut beat Takeru Kobayashi in 2007 for the title of top dog, winning the coveted Mustard Yellow Belt, he remained undefeated for eight straight years. His one and only loss came in 2014 at the hands of fellow San Jose resident Matt Stonie, but Chestnut reclaimed victory in 2015 and has maintained champion status since then.
In the women’s competition, Miki Sudo defended her title, becoming just the third competitor to win five titles and downing 37 franks in 10 minutes.
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