Thanks to Matt Rizzetta for providing the answers below (19 answers total):

1. Luther said,

January 20, 2007 @ 3:23 pm

Yes Matt I have a question. Do you have an alternate system for eaters like Don Lernman to accumulate points. Sort of like the golf tees for females I suppose?

Luther, the point system was created in part to reward the eaters that are consistent, but generally don’t place in the top 3. So to answer your question, the system will enable these types of eaters to accumulate points. I don’t think Don should be classified as this type of eater, however. He has put up some of the most prolific numbers in the sport’s history.

2. Anonymous said,

January 20, 2007 @ 3:44 pm

matt i met u at the manhatan datenuts bread competition and thought u were an ass, but i still like the idea of pts. but i dont understand the championship contest, what do the eaters get for the championship contest and how many will qualigfy?

Hopefully I can change your opinion if we speak at a future competition. The championship event is something that has not yet been finalized. We understand the fans’ frustration in this regard, and are working diligently to make this one of the premiere promotions in professional sports. Right now we have slotted the first ten places in the points table as championship spots, however that is subject to change.

3. Anonymous said,

January 20, 2007 @ 4:23 pm

What happens in case of ties? Particularly, what happens if there is a tie for 10th place? Will eaters split the one point (.5 for each if there is a 2-way tie), or will all eaters tied for 10th get 1 point?

Good question. In the case of a tie, the total points at-stake will be divided among the affected competitors. For instance if there is a two-way tie for first in a 50 pt event, a total of 30 points (1st=18 + 2nd=12) would be divided between the two competitors, so each would receive 15. If there was a three-way tie in the same scenario, each athlete would receive 12 points (1st=18 + 2nd=12 + 3rd=6). The same formula would be applied to the bottom point finishers as well, so if there was a two-way tie for 10th place, each would receive 0.5 points.

4. KobyFan said,

January 20, 2007 @ 4:41 pm

Had you based the system on other systems from sports leagues?

Absolutely. While developing the system we studied models from many successful sports organizations. We did our homework on NASCAR’s Nextel Cup, Denny’s PBA Standings and the ATP Rankings. Personally I’m a devout follower of European soccer, and the structure that their governing body (UEFA) uses to determine Champions League and UEFA Cup spots is the standard for all professional sports, in my opinion. So obviously that influenced me as well.

Speaking of European soccer, some of the continent’s most powerful teams were recently penalized for misrepresenting UEFA’s mission. Likewise, our athletes should understand that the point system and championship event is a luxury, not a right. By engaging in practices that are inconsistent with the IFOCE’s mission they are subjecting themselves to point deductions. If I was a professional eater I would certainly hold myself to the standard that the IFOCE has established with regard to safety, media cooperation and sponsor loyalty, in particular. If any athlete is unclear as to where the IFOCE stands on particular policies they should contact our headquarters before engaging in these practices.

5. Way-Too-Sympathetic Wally said,

January 20, 2007 @ 5:09 pm

Matt, what is the point (no pun intended) of the system? It seems like a system that benefits the ifoce but doesn’t help the eaters. I like the idea, but would like it more if I saw how it helps the eaters.

Hi Wally, thanks for your feedback. It’s always good to hear comments (positive and negative) from the competitive eating community. When developing the points system we kept three main objectives in mind: (1) Rewarding the sport’s elite, while still (2) honoring the active and consistent eaters in a just fashion. Finally, and most importantly, we kept in mind (3) the interest of the fans. This points system enables all of these groups to benefit.

The elite eaters would be rewarded with top finishes in the standings. At the same time, we felt the eaters who were extremely active on the circuit, and generally occupied positions 4-7 in a given contest were not being rewarded adequately. The new system will reward these eaters (see Denmark , Conti, etc. in ’06) with a chance to qualify for our championship event.

As far as the fans are concerned, they will benefit from the system arguably more than any other group. Potentially our top 4-5 eaters could be fighting for the first spot, with eaters 6-8 jockeying for poll position in the championship event. Then you will probably have around a dozen eaters battling for the remaining 3 ‘championship spots.’ Once the title event is complete, you will have an undisputed champion of competitive eating, which is something that will help competitive eating garner the same recognition that most major professional sports have. Picture being an MLE fan, sitting in your office on an idle Tuesday in late 2007. With all of this excitement surrounding the points positions it will create for a great deal of so-called ‘water cooler discussion.’ The points system is something that a true fan can appreciate.

6. Anonymous said,

January 20, 2007 @ 5:27 pm

What will the points be used for, and how will kobayashi accumulate points from afar?

Assuming Kobayashi wins the same events he won last year, he would finish in a championship position. Also by winning a Major (Nathan’s, Krystal, etc.)he would automatically qualify for the championship contest.

7. Not Luther said,

January 20, 2007 @ 5:45 pm

Matt I have a question similar to anonymous above. What if there was a points tie for the last spot in the championship contest? How would the final spot be determined and who would it be given to? I know this is a stretch but the eaters should still know what would happen if something like this ever went down.

NL, Another good question. We have a tiebreaker policy. The first tiebreaker would be overall wins. If the two competitors are still tied after this, the next tiebreaker rule would be average points per contest. If still tied after this, we would take the athlete with the higher IFOCE ranking. Ideally we would like to avoid these tiebreakers and develop a one-contest playoff to determine the final spot, instead. But there are a lot of variables that would prohibit us from developing this event (geographic restrictions, time restrictions, etc.).

8. agitated eater,

January 20, 2007 @ 5:45 pm

It’s bullshit that the IFOCE is banning eating challenges.

IFOCE eaters are professionals and are asked to carry themselves in such a way. By engaging in an eating challenge, an eater is participating in a competition that has not been overseen by IFOCE personnel. Our eaters are well aware that we prohibit at-home training and speed-eating without the presence of an EMT. The eater is also providing free promotion to non-affiliated sponsors. Our sponsors provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in prize money last year, and they deserve the loyalty of our athletes.

9. KevinRoss said,

January 20, 2007 @ 6:46 pm

My question is:
Do you plan to list the full results for each contest, as well as points acheived, on the IFOCE website? Not just in news stories/recaps, but an entire seperate section for this? I noticed the first news story for pretzels only lists the results for the top 3 eaters as of now. I know I speak for a lot of eaters and fans alike when I say that we hope this new points system will allow a precise historical record of the results for every eater who participates.

Hi Kevin, good luck on the circuit in your rookie year. To answer your question, points will be distributed from positions 1-10 in every contest, so obviously those totals will need to be recorded after each event. We hope to have a page on our website dedicated to this shortly, which will include the most recent results. And speaking of recent results congratulations to everyone who competed in the MLE season opener yesterday, including a surprising newcomer, Pat Bruss, who will debut in a championship position in the points table.

10.anonymous said,

January 20, 2007 @ 8:10 pm

What is the break down for 100 pt events, 25 pt events and 15 pts? What contests are going to be 15 pt?

The breakdown for these events will be made public when they are officially announced on our site. But I can say that they will be pretty similar (proportionately) to the 50 pt events. A 15 point event will probably be announced in the near future, so you’ll just have to stay tuned.

11.anonymous said,

January 21, 2007 @ 2:41 am

Anonymous that was a pretty shitty remark you made about Matt calling him an ass. He is the nicest person you could ever want to meet. Why dont you give out your real name . I think i saw you at the chock full of nuts contest and your breath smelled like shit

Thanks for that, anonymous.

12. RalphMalph said,

January 21, 2007 @ 10:03 am

Who do you invision winning the standings this year? Also will there be a presentaton or trohpy for the eventual winner of the points system each year?

It’s impossible to predict, but I think the race for the final few championship positions will be great theatre, as you could potentially have dozens of eaters vying for a select few remaining spots.

13.Hal said,

January 21, 2007 @ 11:17 am

And lastly how will mini-contests be evaluated, such as Kobyashi’s lobster contest in boston last year?

Kobayashi’s lobster-roll challenge in Boston was more of a demo than an actual contest, so probably would not have been deemed a points event. But in general mini-competitions and promos will be given 15 points.

14.Wild Bill said,

January 21, 2007 @ 4:36 pm

Matt – what about contests that everyone can’t get in, like the lobster roll contest, the axia invitational, and the mince pie contest in England ? They shouldn’t be counted as points events because everyone does not have an equal chance of competing. Also, I noticed that this is now being called the Axia 3 Points Chase or something to that effect. Does this mean that the points will just be used to determine the invitees to the Thanksgiving Invitational?

Bill you bring up some good points. I alluded to the lobster roll challenge above. That contest was more of a demo since we did not observe the guidelines of a normal competition, so that event would not be deemed a points event.

As far as international competitions such as the UK event, it would be unfair to foreign competitors if we denied them the opportunity to compete for points, simply because our US members are not able to travel overseas. So the solution would be to make events such as Wookey Hole 15 point competitions. This would give the foreign competitors and sponsor-chosen athletes (eg Sonya) the opportunity to compete for points, while still not penalizing the domestic athletes too harshly.

As far as the Thanksgiving Invitational, the MLE’s everybody in the MLE is on equal ground right now, and if you perform well over the coming months you will earn a spot in the Invitational. So with regard to the Invitational, everyone does have an equal chance of competing, and thus will be a points competition.

15.Anonymous said,

January 21, 2007 @ 5:57 pm

Please don’t allow someone to accrue points by competing in multiple Nathan’s and/or Krystal qualifiers. I assume that if an eater finishes second in one Nathan’s qualifier, second in another, and first in another, he will only receive points for the qualifier that he won. Am I correct? If I’m not, then maybe I’ll tank two qualifiers and try to win the third

We felt the best way to approach circuits with multiple qualifiers (eg Nathan’s, Krystal) was to take the average points earned in those contests. For instance let’s say you were to compete in three separate Nathan’s qualifiers, and finished 2nd, 2nd, and 1st. We would take the total points you earned and divide it by three to give you your final points total for qualifiers. Quite frankly this is not a perfect system, but we felt it was important to take in the entire scope of an athlete’s qualifying performances as opposed to his/her best number. I don’t think it would be fair to just use your top qualifying number and forget about the other performances.

16.anonymous said,

January 21, 2007 @ 6:49 pm

Is this all you care about? If someone finishes second in nathans or what have you? When all is said and done noone is getting shit except for the top 6 or 7 eaters . Have fun adding up your points at the end of the year which comes to GATZ! Wait for double coupon day at your local supermarket . You better off

Anon, you must know more about the inner workings of the system than I do! I can say with certainty that the points system will reward more than the top 6 or 7 eaters. I can’t go into detail about the proposed championship event, but trust me when I say that it will be well worth it to qualify. And that’s an understatement.

17.thunderingherd said,

January 21, 2007 @ 7:56 pm

wut is the bikini contest going to be?

The Bikinis event will be a 50 point event. While we’re on the subject, Doug Guller and the rest of the Bikinis management has done a great job organizing this championship contest. It promises to be a great contest!

18.MEGA MUNCH said,

January 21, 2007 @ 8:00 pm

Agree with Kevin Ross. This isn’t really a question for Matt Rizzetta.more of just a suggestion for the IFOCE. I assume we’ll be recording the totals for ALL competitors since, if there are 15 eaters, you’ll need to tally the totals for the 11 through 15 finishers to be sure than they didn’t place somewhere in the 8, 9, 10 range. And so, since we’ll now be recording the totals for all competitors (which is HUGE), it would be great if the IFOCE reported these results with the post-contest write-ups on IFOCE.com (instead of the top two or three).

Thanks MM. As I mentioned above all totals will be recorded on our website. You have to understand that the write-ups are posted immediately after contests to give fans a brief summary of the top finishers. More thorough results will be added as soon as the points table page is created.

19.thunderingherd said,

January 21, 2007 @ 8:02 pm

this is going to be a disaster 3 yrs from now.

I wonder what your response will be when you open up USA Today and see the 2010 Major League Eating Points Standings beneath the MLB Standings 😉

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