Bryan Beard denied Coney spot despite qualifier win
Bryan “Big Sexy” Beard commented that he has been denied a slot in the July 4 Nathan’s finals despite winning a qualifier Saturday at San Jose State with 18 hot dogs. A minimum of 20 hot dogs was listed in confirmation emails, but does not appear on the IFOCE or Nathan’s website.
Previous qualifier winners who ate less than 20 hot dogs have appeared in the finals (since 2005)
| 2006 Jun 24 | 1st | 19.5 | 12 min | “Jalapeno” Jed Donahue | Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest qualifier | San Francisco, CA |
| 2008 Jun 21 | 1st | 19.25 | 10 min | Peter “Pretty Boy” Davekos | Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest qualifier | Atlanta, GA |
| 2005 Jun 11 | 1st | 19 | 12 min | Kenji Oguni | Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest qualifier | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2006 Jun 17 | 1st | 19 | 12 min | Kenji Oguni | Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest qualifier | Tokyo, Japan |
| 2010 May 8 | 1st | 18 | 10 min | Bryan “Big Sexy” Beard | Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest qualifier | San Jose, CA |
| 2008 Jun 28 | 1st | 17.75 | 10 min | Kevin Ross | Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest qualifier | San Bruno, CA |
| 2009 Jun 27 | 1st | 9 | 10 min | Bob Cocadrillo | Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest qualifier | Brooklyn, NY |
(The 2009 qualifier was restricted to New York City police and firefighters.)
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Mega Munch said
May 13, 2010 @ 4:09 pm
I’m only restating what was already said in the other Bryan Beard post, but this whole thing stinks like crap. You were robbed, dude. It’s stuff like this that forces good, honest, hard-working eaters like yourself to jump ship and do their own thing on the independent circuit.
WingKong said (Registered December 19, 2006)
May 13, 2010 @ 4:09 pm
I’m really sorry to hear that this is the case…He won it he should be allowed to go.
Big Sexy Fan said
May 13, 2010 @ 4:15 pm
Sexy will show up in Arizona and TEAR IT UP!!!!!!!!!!! Possible first “qualifier” in Nathan’s history to have 2 trophies to carry to the table. 😮
BigWillTheChamp said (Registered February 1, 2009)
May 13, 2010 @ 4:50 pm
This is a bad look for IFOCE. If Conti won with his 16, he would have been in the finals. That’s a fact.
A win should be a win.
What the ... ? said
May 13, 2010 @ 5:14 pm
This arbitrary rule is so bad on so many levels. Yeah we all know Joey and Koby are the stars, but you also need to recognize contributions made by the supporting cast which play a big part in making any eating competition fun. Some call them “table enders,” but they are hard working people who deserve a beni or two now and than. Getting the chance to go to Nathan’s is one of the fewy benefits that below top-10 eaters have a shot for, and in this case it is taken away from a big-hearted, decent guy. I would of liked to have seen them try to enforce this rule in 2009: “So Mr. Cocadrillo, you only ate nine dogs? What’s that you say? You represent fire fighters and the police who risk their lives for the public every day? Well sorry you can’t go because you didn’t eat 20 hotdogs. Have a nice day! And f-you very much!”
Anonymous said
May 13, 2010 @ 5:14 pm
if you really want to piss off the IFOCE, eaters should race to 19.5 HDB’s and just stop.
anonymous said
May 13, 2010 @ 5:37 pm
As long as people still want to compete and sign contracts the shea can call th shots do what they desire and get away with it. As far as byeard next time eat 20 you fool and stop bitchin
Anonymous said
May 13, 2010 @ 5:41 pm
It was stated clearly in the emails you got saying you have a spot that has a eater you must eat at least 20 dogs .So with that said stop crying and just grow some dude.Yes you won great but not enough to be at the big stage i mean its a joke youd finish dead last anyways..
Tweets that mention Bryan Beard denied Coney spot despite qualifier win | EatFeats -- Topsy.com said
May 13, 2010 @ 6:01 pm
[…] This post was mentioned on Twitter by eatfeats and Sadie and Jamie, Josh Heald. Josh Heald said: This is an outrage. RT @eatfeats: Bryan Beard denied Nathan's finals spot due to sub 20 hot dog qualifier total http://eatfeats.com/?p=12424 […]
Anonymous said
May 13, 2010 @ 6:13 pm
Anonymous 5:41 pm. It is obvious you are not a competitive eater. How many times do you see people eating 30 plus Hot Dogs &
Buns in the Qualifiers and get crushed in the finals. Therefore, please take your medication and go to sleep. 🙂
anonymous said
May 13, 2010 @ 7:09 pm
Don’t forget Kevin Ross with 17.75 in 2008
A-Bomb said (Registered May 7, 2009)
May 13, 2010 @ 7:20 pm
That really sucks.
The IFOCE is their fiefdom so the Sheas can do whatever they want.
I guess they decided this because they are pissed that their golden boy was beaten so their plan to get CLC to the Coney table has back fired.
If Mr. Conti is the good guy everyone says he is then he’d use his considerable pull with the IFOCE to get Bryan what he earned by winning the qualifier.
When in the hell does any rule – let alone any IFOCE rule – matter? Sheas, get real here and do what’s right!
A-Bomb said (Registered May 7, 2009)
May 13, 2010 @ 7:46 pm
So will the same “rule” apply in the Ft. Bragg contest?
If the contest is on base and therefore limited to members of the military or dependents thereof, it’s probably safe to say that the winner will not hit 20 HDB.
I see the June 19th contest is not on the IFOCE contest page. CLC will be there to ‘entertain the troops’ and he’ll win. That’s his in.
Hando said
May 13, 2010 @ 7:49 pm
Bunch of little bitches. As long as they can get morons to show up for TV shows and promote the contests for free then screw them over only to have them show up for more then why not?
Shay Bros & Their Golden Cash Cow said
May 13, 2010 @ 9:08 pm
Anonymous 5:41 pm – you were not refering directly to Bryan “Big Sexy” Beard were you? Seriously? This conversation is between fellow eaters and fans… I don’t see a single post from Bryan here, no whining, no crying… so who are you talking to pal? Bryan ia a gentleman, a competitive good sport who got screwed – you, well your sorry behavior tells all of us what you are.
We support him and I am personally not happy with how the whole situation the power & money hungry Shay-bros have become. They have a slice of Americana & a tradition that they are exploiting for the almighty dollar. Wonder if the Nathan’s folks know who they are dealing with & what this contest has become… They could take back their ball from MLE and easily run it in a way that is fair to everyone. No carefully planned qualifiers so that their golden children always win, and a real opportunity for non ranked eaters to have a chance. Who knows how many stars are out there who are not getting a chance because of the Shay’s milking their golden cash cow to death…
Bryan – I hope you get there one way or another. Heck – I wanna buy you a ticket to NYC and a bucket full of Nathan’s HDB’s so that you can compete from the crowd. 😉
Shea Bros & Their Golden Cash Cow said
May 13, 2010 @ 9:22 pm
Sorry – Shea… See I am a fan – so my bad. spelled it like it sounded. :O
Mixed feelings said
May 13, 2010 @ 9:39 pm
I have mixed feelings about this. Bryan would have ended very low, but (1) would have gotten money for being in the final. And based on his accomplishment, he deserved that. But (2) the Shea brothers do not follow rules. For years and years and years, the Shea brothers publish IFOCE rankings based on NOTHING but their own preferences. Based on how they think they can make the most money. IFOCE is supposed to be the most “official” organisation in the world dedicated to competitive eating. But the Shea brothers don’t EVER base the IFOCE rankings on ANYTHING like wins, 2nd places, 3rd places, and so on. The Shea brothers are even bigger cheaters than Dale Boone…
A-Bomb said (Registered May 7, 2009)
May 13, 2010 @ 10:35 pm
Doesn’t sound like you have mixed feelings. Nobody can here. Either you are for Bryan or you are against him.
Anonymous said
May 13, 2010 @ 10:46 pm
this is dumb. a winner of a qualifier should get an automatic bid. i have an idea for the next poll. do you think he deserves to be at the final table or not.
Knows it all -can't do much said
May 14, 2010 @ 12:02 am
Standard A-Bomb: No ability, no experience, but really happy to fan the flames about nothing that concerns him. There’s a good reason he’s no longer with MLE. This is only one of them.
anonymous said
May 14, 2010 @ 1:39 am
First of all i agree with knows it all. A bomb gives me the creeps with his morbid photos from his blog. He cant eat for shit but takes pleasure in posting photos stuffing his face with all kinds of crap just to prove that he some type of credibility as an eater . For a guy that cant even crack half a tre’ in dogs he is such a huge expert in hot dog consumption like his twin brother Dave Shofner. Both have all the answers . Nobody cares about either of your opinions because you both suck in the eating dept
Anonymous said
May 14, 2010 @ 4:53 am
I finished 27 HDB”s at pratice and was ready to compete until I read this. I may not win my qualifier but now we will never know. I will just not show up to my qualifier out of protest. What would of hapened if the winner was announced to the crowd and sponsors at a qualifier and then the announcer said, to the crowd, these eaters you just saw are not good enough. That they wasted your time by not eating enough. So none of them qualified for the finals. But IFOCE wil not do that because they want the crowd to think they are legit. It sounds more and more like Dale Boones is running this contest and that is NOT GOOD.
SPBBBBMBBB said
May 14, 2010 @ 8:32 am
Big and Sexy…yet gets no love! Sorry to hear the news Bryan…send your Mafia after them
Anonymous said
May 14, 2010 @ 8:36 am
It doesn’t sound like Bryan Beard read his confirmation email very carefully, but a lot of you guys knew about the rule and didn’t gripe about it until now. If you guys all had such a problem wiith it, you should have spoken up earlier. Hey, I sympathize with Bryan Beard’s surprise and disappointment at learning of the rule, but if the guy had eaten 20 hot dogs, none of you would be talking about this and cursing the “Shays.”
Anonymous said
May 14, 2010 @ 10:39 am
Shea… they corrected it. :-O
Calling it a rule created by “Nathan’s” is also BS. The WHOLE Nathan’s contest is contracted out to the SHEA Brothers. Nathan’s has *nothing* to do with it except for owning the name – the brand – the dogs & the tradition. ALL decisions were made by the SHEA’S – all rules were created by the SHEA’S. Saying is was a “Nathan’s rule” in the email to was a bunch of buck-passing.
BS.MLE/IFOCE represents Nathan’s. Wonder how much money they were paid by Nathan’s to have a non-qualifying contest in San Jose…
That being said – time to move on!
Mr. and Mr. $hea said
May 14, 2010 @ 11:25 am
Man, screwing a person out of an incredible experience sure is fun!
Rhonda Evans said (Registered March 6, 2008)
May 14, 2010 @ 1:25 pm
We may soon see minimum required totals to qualify for money placings in many, if not all contests.