Joey Chestnut set another hot dog-eating world record on Labor Day against his rival, Takeru Kobayashi. The competitors faced off for the first time in 14 years for Netflix’s “Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef” special, where Chestnut took down 83 hot dogs while Kobayashi finished 66.
Chestnut bested himself on Monday, after most recently setting the world record in 2021 when he ate 76 hot dogs in 10 minutes. This time around, he hit the 76-sausage mark after only eight minutes and 45 seconds.
The Labor Day special was a big one for fans of the niche sport, which typically is a big deal around the 4th of July. For one, it marked a rematch between these two legends — though Chestnut and Kobayashi are known to be two of the top names in the game, it had been 14 years since they competed against each other. The duo reunited at the HyperX Arena Las Vegas.
“I’ve been trying to hit 80 hot dogs for years and without Kobayashi, I was never able to do it,” Chestnut said after accepting his $100,000 prize, a championship title belt and a trophy that was — naturally — shaped like a hot dog. “He drives me. We weren’t always nice to each other but I love the way we push each other to be our best.”
The event hosted by Rob Riggle and Nikki Garcia also marks the last time Kobayashi plans to eat competitively. Earlier this year, the six-time champion of the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest discussed his retirement at the age of 46.
“I hear people say they’re hungry, and they look very happy after they’ve eaten … I’m jealous of those people because I no longer feel hunger,” Kobayashi said in the Netflix documentary “Hack Your Health: The Secrets of Your Gut.” The competitive eater also wondered in the documentary about “what damage I’ve done to my body.”
“Unfinished Beef” also serves as a welcome return for Chestnut. A longtime staple of Independence Day weekends with 16 titles under his belt, Chestnut didn’t appear in this year’s competition because of a new frank partnership with a plant-based company. This swap from Nathan’s all-beef to no-beef made him ineligible to compete because it violated the exclusivity contract for the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July competition.
“We are devastated to learn that Joey Chestnut has chosen to represent a rival brand that sells plant-based hot dogs rather than competing in the 2024 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest,” Major League Eating said in a statement at the time.
“Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef” is now streaming on Netflix.
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