Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggity dog!
Joey Chestnut announced on social media on Monday that after a year away, he is “thrilled to be returning to the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest.”
“This event means the world to me,” he shared alongside a picture of him with the words “Eaters live to EAT” written over it. “It’s a cherished tradition, a celebration of American culture, and a huge part of my life.”
As the New York Post reported in June of last year, the 16-time champ was unable to compete in the annual contest due to his partnership with Impossible Foods, a company selling plant-based meat substitutes.
In his post announcing his return to the competition this year, Chestnut clarified, “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,” he continued. “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!”
According to the hot dog brand’s website, Patrick Bertoletti won the Mustard Belt in 2024 by downing 58 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes, while Miki Sudo took home the women’s world record last year by eating 51 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes.
Instead, Chestnut bested Takeru Kobayashi in a Labor Day Weekend hotdog eating competition for Netflix last year co-hosted by Rob Riggle and Nikki Garcia, titled Chestnut vs. Kobyashi: Unfinished Beef. The match marked Chestnut and Kobyashi’s first face-off in 15 years. Ahead of the competition, Chestnut reflected on being barred from the iconic 4th of July competition in an interview with DECIDER.
“Not competing on the Fourth of July Contest in Coney Island, it hurt,” he conceded at the time.”The fans have been going to that contest for years and years and years, and I got tons of messages of people telling me that they’re bummed out that I wasn’t there and and I’m using that as motivation.”