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Miki Sudo won the women's competition for a 10th with a new record
liz roscher · kari anderson
For the first time in his career, Patrick Bertoletti has won the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog eating contest with a total of 58 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. The number is a new personal best for Bertoletti, who took a 10-year hiatus from the event before returning in 2022. Geoffrey Esper came in second with 53 hot dogs and buns.
Miki Sudo became a 10-time champion of the women's event with 51 hot dogs and buns, setting a new women's world record and smashing the competition.
Missing from this year’s edition of the Coney Island Independence Day spectacle was 16-time champion Joey Chestnut, who missed the event due to a contract dispute.
Instead, Chestnut competed in his own event in El Paso, Texas, the "Fort Bliss Meat and Greet." During the five-minute competition, Chestnut handily out-ate four U.S. Army soldiers combined, chowing down 57 hot dogs and buns while his competitors only totaled 49. Chestnut's total was notably only one off of Bertoletti's, despite competing in half the time.
Here's how the hot dog eating contests played out.
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Kari Anderson
JoeyWatch: Joey Chestnut very nearly beats today's Nathan's champion...in half the time
Chestnut's 57 dogs is just one off of Pat Bertoletti, the champion of today's Nathan's Hot Dog Competition, who finished with 58. Even more notable, Chestnut did it in half the time, clearing out those franks in just five minutes, while Bertoletti had 10.
Even without passing the total, Chestnut's point is made: He's still the greatest in the sport, ban or no ban.
Kari Anderson
The competition also has a counter: For every hot dog consumed — seemingly by both parties — Impossible (of the Impossible Burger) will donate $1000 dollars to Operation Homefront. Considering that Joey's ban at the Nathan's competition was caused by a partnership with Impossible, it's a notable move.
With 106 franks in total, Impossible is donating $106,000. Apparently it's more than they expected to pay: The Impossible representative said that they already filled out the giant check with the wrong amount ($100,000), a testament to the sheer number of franks that Joey and his competitors cleared through today.
Kari Anderson
JoeyWatch: Joey Chestnut easily handles the competition
Joey Chestnut is as strong as ever, casually eating 57 hot dogs in five minutes and easily passing his competition. The four soldiers, who ended with a combined 49 hot dogs and buns, slowed down considerably in the final minute and a half, while Chestnut continued with what he said was a record pace.
Chestnut said that he thought he could've hit 60, adding that the most he's done in five minutes before was 55.
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Kari Anderson
It's a tighter race than expected, but Joey Chestnut is still outeating these four people combined, with half the time left. Bonkers.
Kari Anderson
JoeyWatch: Joey Chestnut takes on four members of the U.S. Army in a hot dog eating competition
The moment we've been waiting for: Joey Chestnut is now going to take on four members of the U.S. Army in what the emcee describes as the "sprint" of hot dog eating competitions. In the five-minute competition, Chestnut will try to out-eat all four soldiers combined.
Chestnut gets a table to himself, while the other four are crowded on the other side. Plenty of franks and water to go around.
The crowd at Fort Bliss is admittedly small, but there's a small crowd online, with more than 19,000 viewers on Chestnut's YouTube livestream.
Kari Anderson
Well, the amateur pizza competition is over, with specialist Lucas White taking the crown with the most analytical of tiebreakers — a crowd vote, by cheering. White and specialist Chandler Pitts both ended with four slices, though extra pieces of crust made that result a little more questionable. (The emcee clarified — multiple times — that crusts must be eaten as well to count.)
The four-slice count is much lower than even the organizers seemingly expected: No contestant finished off a whole pizza, with several extra pies hanging out in the back. Still, all in good fun.
Kari Anderson
The event has opened, with about the quality you'd expect from an event thrown together in a few weeks. The stage is set up for the pizza eating competition: It looks like six soldiers will be competing, with stacks of extra Sbarro pizzas behind the individual stations.
It's currently 96 degrees in El Paso, with no word on how long the pizzas have been sitting out.
Kari Anderson
More than 12,000 have tuned in to the Chestnut livestream, with the number rising.
Kari Anderson
Chestnut's event has started, but for now the only thing the livestream is offering is a hype video of Chestnut going around El Paso — spending time with folks at the fort and paying a visit to the El Paso Chihuahuas, a San Diego Padres minor league affiliate.
We’re going to take a guess and say @joeyjaws in an El Paso Chihuahuas jersey was not on your 4th of July Bingo card… pic.twitter.com/h13eohKDiq
— El Paso Chihuahuas (@epchihuahuas) July 4, 2024
Kari Anderson
JoeyWatch: Joey Chestnut's alternate competition is about to begin
Joey Chestnut's Fort Bliss Meat and Greet, an alternative hot dog eating competition in the wake of his Nathan's ban, is set to begin soon. The event will start with a pizza-eating contest among Fort Bliss soldiers, then move on to the main event: a hot dog eat-off between Chestnut and a group of four soldiers. The competition will feature "all-beef hot dogs" — no word yet on the brand.
Kari Anderson
JoeyWatch: Joey Chestnut promotes his own hot dog competition
Minutes before the men's hot dog eating contest kicked off, Joey Chestnut took to social media to wish everyone a happy holiday and promote his own competition. The 16-time champion will be taking on four soldiers at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, with the goal of out-eating all four soldiers combined. The competition will raise money for military families.
HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!! I'm getting ready to eat hot dogs against soldiers at Fort Bliss Army base!! Live stream starts at 5pm ET!https://t.co/rFc85ymZR0
— Joey Chestnut (@joeyjaws) July 4, 2024
Liz Roscher
Liz Roscher
'Always the bridesmaid' no more
Bertoletti's key to taking the belt today? Hot water and relentlessness. "I wasn't going to stop eating until the job was done," he said.
"I was able to unlock something that I don't know where it came from, but I'm not complaining," Bertoletti added in a post-contest interview.
Coming into today, Bertoletti was the No. 9 ranked eater in the world. But starting tomorrow, that will change.
Liz Roscher
It's over! Pat Bertoletti is the champ!
James Webb of Australia comes in third place with 52 dogs and buns consumed.
Geoffrey Esper lands in second place with 53 dogs and buns consumed.
But Chicago's Pat Bertoletti has done it! The results are official! With 58 dogs and buns consumed, a personal best, he has won the 2024 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest!
58 GLIZZYS 😱
PATRICK BERTOLETTI WINS THE MEN'S NATHAN'S FAMOUS HOT DOG CONTEST 👏 pic.twitter.com/1CKtp4Xmxd
— ESPN (@espn) July 4, 2024
Liz Roscher
We're still waiting for the official results, but if it holds, it'll be Bertoletti as the winner.
Liz Roscher
Bertoletti has the late lead!
One minute left! Bertoletti has reached 50 dogs and he has a consistent three-dog lead!
Liz Roscher
Bertoletti has jumped out to a two-dog lead and continues to hold that. His cheeks are stuffed full like a chipmunk and he is in the zone.
Liz Roscher
With four minutes left Wehry has slowed down considerably. Webb and Bertoletti have been knotted at the top for the last minute, matching each other dog for dog. But Esper is making a late play!
Liz Roscher
It's still anyone's contest...
With seven minutes remaining, everyone is still bunched up. No one has staked out a clear lead yet, but Bertoletti, Webb, Whery, Esper, and Yamamoto have consistently been in the top five. The winner will be one of them.
Kari Anderson
The top competitors are going to for the "dunk-and-shove" method, where you dump the dogs — bun and all — into liquid before shoveling into your mouth. Most use water, but Esper, the world No. 2, is seemingly using a violently red beverage (strawberry lemonade? cherry soda? red Gatorade?) to help facilitate his eating.
