NEW YORK (AP) — This Saturday, the Nathan’s Famous hot dog eating contest returns to mark the United States’ 250th birthday with a fittingly competitive celebration, following a turbulent year for the iconic eating competition and one of its biggest names.
The contest’s longtime sponsor, Nathan’s Famous, was purchased in January by packaged meat giant Smithfield Foods. Then, just a few months later, reigning men’s champion and record-holder Joey Chestnut found himself in legal trouble after being accused of slapping a man at an Indiana bar. He pleaded guilty in April to a misdemeanor battery charge.
Despite the offseason drama, the competition presses forward. Both Chestnut and Miki Sudo are expected to return Saturday to defend the titles they each claimed last year in the men’s and women’s divisions.
The rules are straightforward: competitors have 10 minutes to eat as many hot dogs and buns as they possibly can. Most contestants dunk the hot dogs in water beforehand to make them easier to get down.
Sudo is no stranger to the winner’s circle — she has claimed the women’s title 11 times and holds the women’s record with 51 hot dogs consumed. Chestnut has been even more dominant, winning the men’s title 17 times and setting the men’s record at 76 frankfurters.
Chestnut remains on probation stemming from the battery case but is permitted to travel outside of Indiana. His attorney has maintained that the bar incident was a misunderstanding and that Chestnut took responsibility for what occurred.
Major League Eating, the organization that runs the Nathan’s Famous contest, stated that the criminal case had no bearing on Chestnut’s ability to compete.
The contest has been a Coney Island tradition since 1972 and is held outside the original Nathan’s Famous restaurant in New York.
