We Have a Wiener! Joey Chestnut Eats 71 Hot Dogs for Title

We Have a Wiener! Joey Chestnut Eats 71 Hot Dogs for Title
Joey Chestnut reacts after winning the men's competition of Nathan's Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest in Coney Island, New York, on July 4, 2019. (Sarah Stier/AP Photo)

New York—Joey “Jaws” Chestnut ate 71 wieners and buns to secure his 12th title at Nathan’s Famous annual July Fourth hot dog eating contest on July 4, just a few hot dogs shy of breaking the record he set last year.

In front of a crowd of fans and facing 17 opponents, the California native far exceeded his nearest competitors, but didn’t quite make or pass the 74-dog mark he reached in 2018.

When asked how he felt after the contest, Chestnut said “I feel like I should eat a couple more.”

Joey Chestnut reacts after winning
Joey Chestnut reacts after winning the men’s competition of Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest, on July 4, 2019, in New York’s Coney Island. (Sarah Stier/AP Photo)

Miki Sudo had already won the women’s competition by chomping down 31 hot dogs. She said she felt “wonderful” as she walked off the stage.

Competitors consume hot dogs
Competitors consume hot dogs during the women’s competition of Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest, on July 4, 2019, in New York’s Coney Island. (Sarah Stier/AP Photo)
NTD Photo
Miki Sudo, right, reacts after eating 31 hot dogs to win the women’s competition of Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest, on July 4, 2019, in New York’s Coney Island. (Sarah Stier/AP Photo)

The 33-year-old fell short of her total last year of 37 frankfurters but earned her sixth consecutive title by easily beating runner-up Michelle Lesco, who wolfed down 26 hot dogs.

Michelle Lesko reacts after receiving her second-place trophy
Michelle Lesko reacts after receiving her second-place trophy after the women’s competition of Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest, on July 4, 2019, in New York’s Coney Island. (Sarah Stier/AP Photo)

Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas holds the all-time women’s record of 45 hot dogs in 10 minutes.

Chesnut and Sudo will each take home $10,000.

Juliet Lee, left, and Miki Sudo, right, compete in the women's competition
Juliet Lee, left, and Miki Sudo, right, compete in the women’s competition of Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest, on July 4, 2019, in New York’s Coney Island. (Sarah Stier/AP Photo)

Spectators with foam hot dog hats, plastic noisemakers and homemade signs descended on Coney Island’s famed boardwalk for the contest.The annual eat-off started in 1972, though the company has long promoted the event with a theatrical backstory that places its start date in 1916.

Chestnut has only lost once since 2007, when he pulled ahead of longtime foe Takeru Kobayashi for the first time. An ESPN documentary released Tuesday features the two former rivals and their extreme training regimens.

Hot dogs are displayed
Hot dogs are displayed before the annual Nathan’s Famous July Fourth hot dog eating contest, on July 4, 2019, in New York’s Coney Island. (Sarah Stier/AP Photo)

“It’s not something that there’s books written about,” Chestnut says in the film, which shows him lifting his head up and down with a weight dangling from his mouth. “There’s not trainers. Everything’s trial and error.”

Kobayashi no longer takes part in the event.

By Ali Swenson

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