“It was a crazy contest. I was happy I was able to come through on top,” Chestnut said in the aftermath of the contest.
Joey Chestnut wins his 1️⃣5️⃣th Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating championship 🏆 pic.twitter.com/oyk84XEa0z
— ESPN (@espn) July 4, 2022
During the contest, as seen in a clip shared on Twitter, a protester moved in front of participants on the stage. Chestnut quickly put the trespasser in a chokehold and took the person down. Security then removed the individual from the stage, according to SB Nation.
Chestnut just obliterated him🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/dry7Oy8KZK
— jonah block (@JonahBlock05) July 4, 2022
The 38-year-old professional eater has won 15 of the last 16 Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contests, only losing in 2015 to Matt Stonie by two hot dogs and buns.
Miki Sudo won the women’s contest by eating 40 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes, 14 more hot dogs and buns than the second-place finisher. Sudo fell 8.5 hot dogs and buns short of the women’s world record, which she set in 2020.
The contest dates back to 1916, when “legend” says four immigrants held a hot dog eating contest to determine who was the most patriotic. The formal contest has been held every year since 1972.
The Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest was held at the Nathan’s Famous restaurant in Brooklyn, New York, for the first time since 2019. The 2020 and 2021 editions were held at different venues to accommodate social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.