Johnnie Excel reports that he reversed 75 minutes into the attempt at the 54 inch pizza challenge at Big Mama's & Papa's Pizza in Hollywood. $2000 would have been awarded to a four person team if the pizza was completed in under two hours. Don Sturdy has a picture of the unfinished pizza. (via Stephanie Wu twitter)

March 12, 2011 at 10:41 pm by ojrifkin · More posts about:Big Mama's and Papa's, Los Angeles, Team Challenges | Permalink * Comments (43)

43 Comments »

  1. stephanie_wu said (Registered August 17, 2010)

    March 12, 2011 @ 10:51 pm

    I’m really impressed on how close everyone was. It looks like Steph and Matt each had only around 10 pieces left, assuming I got the seating correct from the other pics from Don Sturdy. I hope this team tries again, as I am sure they would do it next time, knowing what all is involved. Thanks to Don Sturdy and Johnnie Excel for quick reporting!

  2. anonymous said

    March 13, 2011 @ 12:00 am

    a legend like stephanie wu would have made the difference right there. Shame she couldnt have taken over while Excel puked

  3. NReda said

    March 13, 2011 @ 3:00 am

    The “Gang of Four” doesn’t have anything to be ashamed of… they gave it a hellacious effort, and I was glad to witness them get so close. In the end, every individual has a physical limit. That’s as simple as it is sometimes. Who knows, they may get a second shot soon. A rematch will be exciting.

  4. Amazed said

    March 13, 2011 @ 5:24 am

    Johnnie’s a good eater. Had the contest continued at least one more person would have likely reversed.

  5. Anonymous said

    March 13, 2011 @ 7:38 am

    That Don Sturdy is one ce news reporting machine, machine I say!

  6. Larell Marie Mele said

    March 13, 2011 @ 8:23 am

    I think this was a huge effort on everyone’s part. Good try, guys!

  7. Stallion Italian said (Registered August 27, 2010)

    March 13, 2011 @ 9:07 am

    All are to be commended for their huge effort and especially Johnnie who reported his own taking one for the team, as it were. Yes, a rematch would be so exciting, all the more so because they came close the first time.

  8. Whitetrash said

    March 13, 2011 @ 12:14 pm

    Add one more to the team and go at it again 10 lbs is still a great amount

  9. NReda said

    March 13, 2011 @ 12:27 pm

    Johnnie was left in a terrible spot: either he keeps pushing, or just stops eating. If any of the four stopped, I think the psychological impact on the others would have been really harsh.

    I agree with Amazed. Johnnie’s proven his high capacity on several occasions. The fact that he hit a tipping point means that he went to the edge. Maybe we can start calling him “Johnnie Extreme.” If this thing went on, it is likely that someone else would have reversed too. Or maybe they would have slowed down or stopped. Who knows.

    As a four person challenge, it couldn’t be carried by a single individual. Everyone needed to do 25% or thereabouts. This isn’t like one of those 28″ or 24″ pizzas where you can have one person eat 70-75%.

  10. CLOSE??????????? said

    March 13, 2011 @ 12:44 pm

    are we all looking at the same picture here? That looks like at least 12-15lbs left of pizza, hard to tell by the two huge piles in the lower part of the picture, obviously Excell was maxed out (hence the reverse), there is no way the other 3 (who am i’m sure were close to maxed out as well) could divide the remander up and finish with the 45mins left on the clock.

    It was an excellent effort no doubt, all 4 are really good eaters, but close? I don’t see it….

  11. Eater supported said

    March 13, 2011 @ 1:53 pm

    hahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha……………………….. So much for the west coast pukes…. did i say puke,…………………………………

  12. Stephen Obar said

    March 13, 2011 @ 3:16 pm

    I went down and checked out the action, they put a hurtin on that pizza by the time i showed up and they were only 25 minutes in. After the 45 minute mark, they obviously slowed down and could tell it was hurtin a few of them. Very thick pizza and bigger than most people think. The thing is no joke, I don’t even know what would happen in a rematch but i’ll tell you one thing…Goose is a MONSTER!

  13. anonymous said

    March 13, 2011 @ 5:03 pm

    I tell you one thing none of them are MLE material

  14. NReda said

    March 13, 2011 @ 5:08 pm

    The pizza that was left on the table when the challenge ended would have proven tough for even a fifth person to take down. I called it close because it was only a four-person effort. I was being relative.

  15. Anonymous said

    March 13, 2011 @ 5:29 pm

    I disagree! Each of those four could be in the top 20 MLE.

  16. Cutter said (Registered November 9, 2010)

    March 13, 2011 @ 5:44 pm

    LOL at anon@503. I am going to assume it was sarcasm.

  17. NReda said

    March 13, 2011 @ 6:36 pm

    Not every eater is suited for long-distance eating. Stonie and Excel made their names with speed eating. Seeing as how MLE is really a speed eating organization (and not a who-can-eat-the-most-in-two hours club), I’d say that all four who participated on this challenge are MLE material. Look up their results in speed contests, and compare them with the results of all the names of the MLE Top 50 roster. They definitely deserve a spot. Where they fit in exactly is a point of debate.

  18. Anonymous said

    March 13, 2011 @ 7:12 pm

    I am sorry my voice is not heard on this site, yeah, like you’ll even see this.

  19. Anonymous said

    March 13, 2011 @ 7:38 pm

    Top 10!

  20. Damn said

    March 13, 2011 @ 9:54 pm

    I was really hoping to see this done

  21. stephanie_wu said (Registered August 17, 2010)

    March 13, 2011 @ 10:41 pm

    What I want to know is how my capacity is only around 4.5 to 5 lbs., maybe 6 lbs. max., plus liquids, if I really pushed myself, while those of the people on this team are at least 11 lbs. each, plus liquids. The ironic thing is they are skinny, and I am…well…not so skinny, meaning I have more life experience eating lots of food than they do. I mean I can understand someone having a capacity of a few more pounds, but having more than double someone’s capacity is remarkable and insane!

  22. Anonymous said

    March 13, 2011 @ 11:27 pm

    this just shows how dumb they are….y not get other guys to join them instead of risking what did happen…..I hope it was fun paying for it

  23. NReda said

    March 14, 2011 @ 1:12 am

    When I began this craziness my max was around 5 lbs, but over time it increased… I’ve gotten to a point where I can handle around 10 lbs. A lot of it was mentally pushing myself, some physical pushing, but I bet some of it is genetic. I’m not saying it’s necessarily a good thing to distend your stomach to its max!

    But let’s put 10 lbs to the side. Guys like Chestnut, Monson, Bertolleti, Janus can put away 14-15 lbs of solid food.

  24. Eater supported said

    March 14, 2011 @ 4:20 am

    Why . you ask stephanie_wu……….. Because you do not know how to train…………………………….

  25. Matt Cohen said (Registered April 12, 2010)

    March 14, 2011 @ 11:38 am

    @eater supported. Every post from you makes no sense and looks like it was typed by a 4 year old. You have no valid points and nothing positive to say. Who or what are you supporting?

  26. stephanie_wu said (Registered August 17, 2010)

    March 14, 2011 @ 12:10 pm

    Thanks for the advice and support! I definitely am not cut out to be a top eater, but I have fun anyway. Haven’t been doing too much lately. Maybe I’ll leave the serious training for the younger ones haha.

  27. Cutter said (Registered November 9, 2010)

    March 14, 2011 @ 4:10 pm

    15 lbs is not uncommon to be what top eaters can eat as Reda pointed out, however the stomach actually loses its ability to elastisize to the smaller versions, it is called permanent elasticity. phsyiologcal differences occur with after a while between the stomach of a competitive eater and the stomach of someone that does not eat competitively. I don’t see the downside but my friend who is a doctor and says the effects on long term health are a large unknown. I spend so much time sleeping and working that i generally squeeze in one large meal a day which has helped my capacity. I guess if i had kids and both my wife and i worked a regular schedule i would not have acquired this habit as we would restructure our lives to spend time with multiple meals. Like Steph i too am no spring chicken, the more i eat the more i would go downhill. unless my full time job became working out.

  28. Matt "Mega Toad" Stonie said (Registered June 22, 2010)

    March 14, 2011 @ 6:00 pm

    You make a great point cutter, but i gotta disagree with one thing your saying (at least on my personal experience)

    My capacity has proven consitant around 18-20lbs food + liquids (12lbs solids)… but when im not competitivly eating, I find I still get full off eating something as small as a taco bell burrito lol….

    again i speak for myself, i dunno how other peoples bodys react, maybe since ive been only at it for say 3/4 a year vs others around 6 years i havnt seens any side effects but my belly seems to be like a really stretchy rubber band, it always goes back haha….

    but i would agree with your doctor, the long term effects are pretty unknown and i’d only assume that there must be some since it is so abnormal…

    maybe that can be one of my fields of research as a to-be nutritionist!! =]

  29. Cutter said (Registered November 9, 2010)

    March 14, 2011 @ 6:38 pm

    Yes as a nutritionist in training i am sure you will go far by having your hobby so close to your vocation. Everybody is certainly different. That is what makes following competitive eating pretty fun. Some people have foods that are easier for them. I thought i was good at some things only to be beaten like a rented mule, and never thought to be able to conquer spicy challenges. Your stomach will always come back LOL. I think my doctor friend was referring to the density of the lining and the fact that the normal stomach looks far different than a competitive eaters stomach under film.

  30. Matt "Mega Toad" Stonie said (Registered June 22, 2010)

    March 14, 2011 @ 6:52 pm

    ahhh, i see… haha
    yeah, if a CE’er belly never went back to its normal size, thatd be preetttty ugly XP

  31. stephanie_wu said (Registered August 17, 2010)

    March 14, 2011 @ 10:24 pm

    Updated photos by Johnnie Excel have been posted!

    http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=188160561225487&id=100000946337691&aid=35833

    Man that pizza looks tempting, but I’m glad I didn’t have to eat it.

  32. 5, not 4 said

    March 14, 2011 @ 11:51 pm

    If you guys had done this with 5, instead of 4, you probably had succeeded. But, at this point, there are probably only 4 or 5 people in the world who could have done this with a 4 people team

  33. Matt "Mega Toad" Stonie said (Registered June 22, 2010)

    March 15, 2011 @ 12:09 am

    haha yeah ill have pictures soon too… i got some good ones of it being made, not just all chewed up hahah

    and actually thinking about it, not to complain or whine, but i think myself and johnnies side was undercooked, cuz i remeber seeing the under crust part looking “translucent” but i thought it was just from the oils…

    later opinion on this from my dad beckons to wonder undercooked-ness… cuz we all realized that the cheese on our size didnt look done eather….
    W/e =]

  34. J-joe said

    March 15, 2011 @ 11:05 am

    I’d go for the 5 person team AND I would ask for it well done. well done means less moisture = less weight, it also won’t ball up in the tummy

  35. NReda said

    March 15, 2011 @ 12:15 pm

    The fifth person still needs to be a beast!

  36. Randy Santel said (Registered June 2, 2010)

    March 15, 2011 @ 1:07 pm

    I have got some training to do!… But if you guys are thinking about maybe trying it in the summer again, I would be interested in representing the midwest as a 5th or 6th. lol I have never been west of Colorado yet!

  37. stephanie_wu said (Registered August 17, 2010)

    March 15, 2011 @ 4:36 pm

    The fifth person still needs to be a beast!

    Go Naader!

  38. Matt "Mega Toad" Stonie said (Registered June 22, 2010)

    March 15, 2011 @ 4:52 pm

    Naader can’t do it again sadly =[
    hed be a beast teammate tho, dont think he wasn’t considered in this lol!!!

    here some picture BTW

    http://www.facebook.com/#!/album.php?aid=117588&id=1436888207&fbid=1907746420163

  39. NReda said

    March 15, 2011 @ 5:27 pm

    While I appreciate the nod, this is a challenge I’d almost rather not do again. Both times I participated before, I felt the effects of all the salt and grease for two days afterward. It also pushed my consumption to new limits – roughly 17 lbs of solids and liquids – but pizza’s a harsh way of doing it.

    Besides, the manager of the pizza place remembers how I ate solidly for the duration of the challenge. There’s no way he’d let me in on a new team. As much as he said he wants a smaller team to win, something very basic about finances tells me he’d rather not risk actually paying out another $1000 or $2000.

  40. stephanie_wu said (Registered August 17, 2010)

    March 15, 2011 @ 5:55 pm

    Ahh I see. But maybe Naader could convince them that this would be a different contest, as there would only be 5 people instead of 7.

    Nice pics, btw! Here is the album link:

    http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=117588&id=1436888207

  41. Long distance? said

    March 15, 2011 @ 11:31 pm

    NReda: I think you are very wrong. Matt Stonie did NOT make his name doing speed eating. He does long distance eating. In fact, I don’t think he made any 6, 8, 10, 12 major accomplishments. The best he did, as I recall, was against you, doing a long distance thing and finishing much faster than you. But that was NOT a speed feat either.

  42. Matt "Mega Toad" Stonie said (Registered June 22, 2010)

    March 16, 2011 @ 1:58 am

    not to be defensive,
    but i dunno where your getting your info cuz ive never competed against Naader in anything, much less long distance…

  43. West coast winger said

    March 16, 2011 @ 6:07 am

    has anyone considered asking beautiful brian seiken? He is the one eater who has time, experience, determination and can promote this effort unlike anybody else with the highest quality of pictures and videos. come on matt, stephanie(s), nreda, team. invite a legend because eventually he will make this about him anyhow.

    5,4, 3, 2 1………..

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