Joey Chestnut reclaims Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest title with 70.5 hot dogs

Competitive eater Joey Chestnut made his return to the Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest on the Fourth of July, taking back his title with 70.5 hot dogs, with buns, eaten. This marks Chestnut's 17th Mustard Belt, the award given to the first-place winner at the annual eating competition in Coney Island.

Patrick Bertoletti came in second with 46.5 hot dogs, while James Webb ate 45.5. Chestnut was shy of his record set in 2021 of 76 hot dogs.

Bertoletti was defending his title this year, after winning the 2024 contest with Chestnut being absent. Since 2007, Chestnut has lost just twice.

Chestnut was absent from the 2024 competition due to a sponsorship deal that he signed with Impossible Foods, which makes plant-based meat substitutes such as hot dogs, per CBS News. The sponsorship resulted in Chestnut being banned from the 2024 competition.

Major League Eating, which sanctions the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, said in a statement at the time, "MLE [Major League Eating] and Nathan's went to great lengths in recent months to accommodate Joey and his management team, agreeing to the appearance fee and allowing Joey to compete in a rival unbranded hot dog eating contest on Labor Day. For nearly two decades, we have worked under the same basic hot dog exclusivity provisions. However, it seems that Joey and his managers have prioritized a new partnership with a different hot dog brand over our longtime relationship."

In place of an appearance at the annual American tradition, Chestnut competed against Takeru Kobayashi in a hot dog eating contest that was streamed on Netflix, which Chestnut won.