Joey Chestnut

Joseph Christian Chestnut (born November 25, 1983) is an American competitive eater who holds 55 world records across 55 disciplines, and is currently ranked first in the world by Major League Eating. He has won the Mustard Yellow Belt a world record 18 times. Chestnut is widely considered to be the greatest competitive eater in history. On July 4, 2007, Chestnut won the 92nd Annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest held in Coney Island, Brooklyn. He defeated six-time defending champion Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi by consuming a world record 66 hot dogs and buns (HDB) in 12 minutes, after losing to Kobayashi in 2005 and 2006. Chestnut would go on to win eight consecutive titles from 2007 to 2014, setting a Nathan's record of 69 HDB in 2013. Chestnut lost the 2015 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest to Matt Stonie. On July 4, 2016, he regained the championship belt from Stonie by eating 70 HDB. Chestnut would win the title from 2016 to 2023, setting the current contest record in 2021 with 76 HDB. Chestnut was banned from participating in the 2024 contest due to a competing sponsorship with Impossible Foods. In September 2024, he competed against Kobayashi in a live-streamed Netflix event titled Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef, setting a new world record by consuming 83 HDB in 10 minutes. He returned to the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest in 2025, winning his 17th title by eating 70.5 HDB, and won his 18th title in 2026 with 66 HDB.