Joey Chestnut to compete in Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest after being forced to miss 2024 event
Joey Chestnut announced on Monday he will return to the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest next month following his absence from the event in 2024.
Chestnut, who holds the competition's record for most hot dogs eaten with 76 in 2021, wrote on social media that he and the organizers of the contest found common ground on his sponsorships. Chestnut's partnership with Impossible Foods caused an issue for Nathan's Famous last year, and it kept the champion out of the competition.
Come July 4, he will be back in Coney Island.
"I'm thrilled to be returning to the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest. This event means the world to me. It's a cherished tradition, a celebration of American culture, and a huge part of my life," Chestnut wrote on X.
"While I have and continue to partner with a variety of companies, including some in the plant-based space, those relationships were never a conflict with my love for hot dogs. To be clear: Nathan's is the only hot dog company I've ever worked with.
"I respect that there were differences in interpretation, but I'm grateful we've been able to find common ground. I'm excited to be back on the Coney Island stage, doing what I live to do, and celebrating the Fourth of July with hot dogs in my hands! Stay hungry!"
Last year, Chestnut ate 83 hot dogs in a Netflix special event dubbed "Unfinished Beef" as he went up against competitive-eating rival Takeru Kobayashi.
It was the most hot dogs ever eaten in the history of competitive eating without being dunked in water.
Patrick Bertoletti won the competition last year with 58 hot dogs eaten in 10 minutes.
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Joey Chestnut to return to Coney Island for hot dog eating contest after contract dispute
The champ is coming back to chomp. Competitive eater Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut announced Monday he will return to compete in this year's Nathan's Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest after skipping last year's gastronomic battle for the coveted Mustard Belt. 'This event means the world to me,' Chestnut, 41, said in a message posted on X. 'It's a cherished tradition, a celebration of American culture, and a huge part of my life.' It will mark the 20th appearance for the Indiana eater at the Coney Island contest. Last year, Major League Eating event organizer George Shea said Chestnut, who has won the 10-minute eat-a-thon 16 times, would not be participating due to a contract dispute. Chestnut had struck a deal with a competing brand, the plant-based meat company Impossible Foods. In a phone interview Monday, the competitive eater made it clear he 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.' 'There was a little bit of communication that we could have improved on last year,' he said. 'And I, yeah, I think we figured it out. It took a little bit of finessing.' Chestnut is still working with Impossible Foods and said 'clarifications' have been made to his respective contracts. Richard Shea, president of Major League Eating, said he did not want to rehash what happened last year because he found it 'dispiriting,' but said he's happy 'everything is resolved' now. 'I think it's the return of the greatest competitive eater of all time to the biggest competitive eating event of all time. So I don't think it gets much bigger in any sport,' Shea said. 'I mean, this guy is the greatest performer we've ever seen in Coney Island and in competitive eating.' Chestnut said he heard from fans over the past year who wanted him to return to the Coney Island event, which is broadcast live on ESPN and even shown overseas. Last year, he opted to compete against soldiers in Fort Bliss, in El Paso, Texas, in a 5-minute hot dog eating contest. Back in New York, Patrick Bertoletti gobbled up 58 hot dogs to win his first men's title while defending champion Miki Sudo won her 10th title in the women's division, downing a record 51 links. Chestnut holds the world record of eating 76 hot dogs. 'Over the last year, I ran into a lot of people who said that it wasn't the same without me. And I told many people that I was going to work really hard to make sure I got back there,' Chestnut said. 'And I'm really happy that Nathan's and Major League Eating, we were able all to figure it out.' Chestnut said he been prepping for the big event and has a couple practice sessions left before the July Fourth holiday. 'My body's in tune right now,' he said, explaining how he has to build tolerance for consuming so many hot dogs and 'get all those muscles used to working together.' He likened the process to boxer getting in practice rounds before a big fight. Chestnut made it clear his business relationship with Impossible Foods does not mean he has become a vegan, an assumption he said some fans made last year. Chestnut said he was surprised by the 'weird blowback' he received about it, explaining he eats a plant-based diet during his recovery from competitive eating events. 'I love meat. I'm going to continue to eat meat. But when I recover from a contest, I have to eat super clean in order to get my body to try to get back to normal,' he said. 'I can't eat pounds of meat every day.'
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
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Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut to return to Coney Island hotdog eating contest after contract dispute
The champ is coming back to chomp. Competitive eater Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut announced Monday he will return to compete in this year's Nathan's Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest after skipping last year's gastronomic battle for the coveted Mustard Belt. 'This event means the world to me,' Chestnut, 41, said in a message posted on X. 'It's a cherished tradition, a celebration of American culture, and a huge part of my life.' It will mark the 20th appearance for the Indiana eater at the Coney Island contest. Last year, Major League Eating event organizer George Shea said Chestnut, who has won the 10-minute eat-a-thon 16 times, would not be participating due to a contract dispute. Chestnut had struck a deal with a competing brand, the plant-based meat company Impossible Foods. In a phone interview Monday, the competitive eater made it clear he 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." 'There was a little bit of communication that we could have improved on last year,' he said. 'And I, yeah, I think we figured it out. It took a little bit of finessing.' Richard Shea, president of Major League Eating, said he did not want to rehash what happened last year because he found it 'dispiriting,' but said he's happy 'everything is resolved' now. 'I think it's the return of the greatest competitive eater of all time to the biggest competitive eating event of all time. So I don't think it gets much bigger in any sport,' Shea said. 'I mean, this guy is the greatest performer we've ever seen in Coney Island and in competitive eating.' Chestnut said he heard from fans over the past year who wanted him to return to the Coney Island event, which is broadcast live on ESPN and even shown overseas. Last year, he opted to compete against soldiers in Fort Bliss, in El Paso, Texas, in a 5-minute hot dog eating contest. Back in New York, Patrick Bertoletti gobbled up 58 hot dogs to win his first men's title while defending champion Miki Sudo won her 10th title in the women's division, downing a record 51 links. Chestnut holds the world record of eating 76 hot dogs. 'Over the last year, I ran into a lot of people who said that it wasn't the same without me. And I told many people that I was going to work really hard to make sure I got back there,' Chestnut said. 'And I'm really happy that Nathan's and Major League Eating, we were able all to figure it out.' Chestnut said he been prepping for the big event and has a couple practice sessions left before the July Fourth holiday. 'My body's in tune right now,' he said, explaining how he has to build tolerance for consuming so many hot dogs and 'get all those muscles used to working together.' He likened the process to boxer getting in practice rounds before a big fight. Chestnut made it clear his business relationship with Impossible Foods does not mean he has become a vegan, an assumption he said some fans made last year. Chestnut said he was surprised by the 'weird blowback' he received about it, explaining he eats a plant-based diet during his recovery from competitive eating events. 'I love meat. I'm going to continue to eat meat. But when I recover from a contest, I have to eat super clean in order to get my body to try to get back to normal,' he said. 'I can't eat pounds of meat every day.'
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an hour ago
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Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut to return to Coney Island hotdog eating contest after contract dispute
Associated Press The champ is coming back to chomp. Competitive eater Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut announced Monday he will return to compete in this year's Nathan's Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest after skipping last year's gastronomic battle for the coveted Mustard Belt. 'This event means the world to me,' Chestnut, 41, said in a message posted on X. 'It's a cherished tradition, a celebration of American culture, and a huge part of my life.' It will mark the 20th appearance for the Indiana eater at the Coney Island contest. Last year, Major League Eating event organizer George Shea said Chestnut, who has won the 10-minute eat-a-thon 16 times, would not be participating due to a contract dispute. Chestnut had struck a deal with a competing brand, the plant-based meat company Impossible Foods. In a phone interview Monday, the competitive eater made it clear he 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." 'There was a little bit of communication that we could have improved on last year,' he said. 'And I, yeah, I think we figured it out. It took a little bit of finessing.' Chestnut is still working with Impossible Foods and said 'clarifications' have been made to his respective contracts. Richard Shea, president of Major League Eating, said he did not want to rehash what happened last year because he found it 'dispiriting,' but said he's happy 'everything is resolved' now. 'I think it's the return of the greatest competitive eater of all time to the biggest competitive eating event of all time. So I don't think it gets much bigger in any sport,' Shea said. 'I mean, this guy is the greatest performer we've ever seen in Coney Island and in competitive eating.' Chestnut said he heard from fans over the past year who wanted him to return to the Coney Island event, which is broadcast live on ESPN and even shown overseas. Last year, he opted to compete against soldiers in Fort Bliss, in El Paso, Texas, in a 5-minute hot dog eating contest. Back in New York, Patrick Bertoletti gobbled up 58 hot dogs to win his first men's title while defending champion Miki Sudo won her 10th title in the women's division, downing a record 51 links. Chestnut holds the world record of eating 76 hot dogs. 'Over the last year, I ran into a lot of people who said that it wasn't the same without me. And I told many people that I was going to work really hard to make sure I got back there,' Chestnut said. 'And I'm really happy that Nathan's and Major League Eating, we were able all to figure it out.' Chestnut said he been prepping for the big event and has a couple practice sessions left before the July Fourth holiday. 'My body's in tune right now,' he said, explaining how he has to build tolerance for consuming so many hot dogs and 'get all those muscles used to working together.' He likened the process to boxer getting in practice rounds before a big fight. Chestnut made it clear his business relationship with Impossible Foods does not mean he has become a vegan, an assumption he said some fans made last year. Chestnut said he was surprised by the 'weird blowback' he received about it, explaining he eats a plant-based diet during his recovery from competitive eating events. 'I love meat. I'm going to continue to eat meat. But when I recover from a contest, I have to eat super clean in order to get my body to try to get back to normal,' he said. 'I can't eat pounds of meat every day.' recommended in this topic
