Joey Chestnut is a world-renowned competitive eater who gained fame from the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest. The contest is an annual competition held on the Fourth of July at the original Nathan's on Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York.
Takeru Kobayashi was the king of competitive eating in the early 2000s, winning six straight contests from 2001 to 2006. In 2005, when Kobayashi won with 49 hot dogs, Chestnut first turned heads with a third-place finish after eating 32 hot dogs. In 2006, Kobayashi finished with 53 3/4 hot dogs, with Chestnut finishing second with 52. In 2007, everything flipped for Chestnut. The Kentucky native set a new U.S. and world record with 66 hot dogs, defeating Kobayashi's 63.
© Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
Since 2007, the Vallejo High School graduate has dominated the event. The 42-year-old won the next seven Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest titles before falling to Matt Stonie, who ate 62 hot dogs in 2015, with Chestnut eating only 60.
The San Jose State University graduate came back with a first-place finish in 2016 after eating 70 hot dogs and has won every year he has participated since. He set the contest world record in 2021 when he consumed 76 hot dogs in 10 minutes. Chestnut did not participate in the event in 2024, when Patrick Bertoletti finished first with 58 hot dogs.
On Saturday, Chestnut finished first in the 2026 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, consuming 66 hot dogs. This is his 18th first-place finish and 18th Mustard Yellow Belt as the No. 1-ranked competitive eater by Major League Eating. The top 10 finishers are as follows:
- Joey Chestnut — 66
- Pat Bertoletti — 51
- James Webb — 47.5
- Nick Wehry — 45.5
- Max Stanford — 42.5
- Geoffrey Esper — 40.5
- Cameron Meade — 35.5
- Gideon Oji — 30
- Derek Hendrickson — 30
- Radim Dvoracek — 28
With temperatures above 100 degrees across the country and 23 states under extreme heat warnings, Athlon wants to remind readers to stay safe and hydrated over the July 4 weekend.
