Crazy Legs Conti did an interview on Kiss 108 this morning with the following description: "Boston competitive eater #CrazyLegs on @MattyShow about how to beat @joeyjaws at @originalnathans @eatingcontest". (According to the eatfeats database, Conti is winless (0-47) for his career vs Chestnut).
ZBurgerEatingContest.com was not renewed, so the contest held on July 3 in Washington, DC will probably not take place this year.
The NY Daily News has an interview with Joey Chestnut about his rivalry with Matt Stonie, who he calls a "really young, skinny, feminine version of me.†The 8-time Nathan's champion says that one week's training will guarantee him victory in any contest and also makes the claim that he has never lost a "major" eating contest. (Takeru Kobayashi defeated Chestnut in the 2009 Krystal Square Off.)
Patch.com has an article about Steve and Angie Hendry competing in the Nathan's finals.
In a facebook chat for the NY Daily News, Joey Chestnut mentioned the possibility of a competition against Takeru Kobayashi and said Major League Eating has agreed to the event. (direct link to comment). Nathan's President and COO Wayne Norbitz said that talks were underway but nothing definite has been planned. George Shea had no comment about the matchup.
Stephanie Wu won today's hot dog eating contest at Kennywood amusement park near Pittsburgh. The contest went into overtime after a tie at 13 hot dogs. update Pittsburgh.cbslocal.com has an article and video. Tim Cain was the runner up.
Hurricane, WV will hold a hot dog eating contest on July 4 awarding $850 ($500 to the winner).
Hot Dog 148th anniversary / “Little Arlene” photoshop
Today is the 48th anniversary of an event held at Nathan’s Famous Coney Island location on June 30, 1967 to commemorate the centennial of the invention of the hot dog in 1867. The UPI reported that Walter Paul ate 127 hot dogs in an hour at that celebration. This is the first Nathan’s hot dog eating contest that can be found in online news archives.
Research has not been able to turn up any more information about the competition, but a picture taken at that event of a bathing-suit clad model holding a plate of hot dogs has been circulating on social media. I have not been able to determine the name of the model or the original image source.
A modified version of this image was used in ESPN’s documentary about the St. Louis Spirits of the ABA to illustrate big-eating “Little Arlene”, a halftime performer for that franchise. (direct link to image in youtube video.) I doubt the woman was Arlene, but I have never seen a picture of her.
DeadSpin has a post titled "What Happens If Someone Dies During The Hot Dog Eating Contest?" that assumes there would be a cancellation if there was a significant mid-contest health incident (Nathan's PR does not provide a definite answer). In the 2006 Las Vegas Nathan's qualifier, there was no interruption after an competitor passed out and was removed by stretcher. Joey Chestnut would go on to become the first American to eat 50 hot dogs at that event.
All time Nathan’s personal bests
A list of the all time personal bests for people who have eaten 10 or more hot dogs in a Nathan’s contest according to eatfeats database follows:
MLE head to head results 2015 midpoint
The list of head to head comparisons over contests from the past 12 months for people who have results for two or more MLE contests in the database during that time period follows after the jump. The top 10:
| 1 | Joey “Jaws” Chestnut (J Ch) | 96.7% | 178-6 |
| 2 | Matt “Megatoad” Stonie (M St) | 94.4% | 119-7 |
| 3 | Geoffrey Esper (G Es) | 85.7% | 6-1 |
| 4 | Tim “Eater X” Janus (T Ja) | 85% | 17-3 |
| 5 | Adrian “The Rabbit” Morgan (A Mo) | 79.3% | 72-18-2 |
| 6 | Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas (S Th) | 78.6% | 44-12 |
| 7 | Miki Sudo (M Su) | 68.3% | 101-45-7 |
| 8 | Michelle “Cardboard Shell” Lesco (M Le) | 66.8% | 87-43-1 |
| 9 | “The Lovely” Juliet Lee (J Le) | 64.2% | 34-19 |
| 10 | Jeff “The Beast Man” Butler (J Bu) | 63.8% | 30-17 |
Vienna, VA will hold a chili dog eating contest on July 4 awarding $250 to the winner.
"Nacho Extreme", the competitive eater on Wahlburgers, is being sued for failing to deliver a script to Mark Wahlburg after he received $1000 to perform that service.
Yahoo7 has an interview with Nela Zisser, who says she has signed a MLE contract.
Unofficial 2015 Nathan’s finals roster
An unofficial list of people with a spot in the 2015 finals follows. George Shea said that he expects Sonya Thomas at the finals, so that resolves the question if she has received a bye.
Read the rest of this entry »
Takeru Kobayashi has announced his July 4 event for 2015: he will attempt to set a record for eating hot dogs while playing ping pong at SPiN in New York City.
The Mirror Online claims that a Facebook picture of the Haystack burger challenge at The Farmers Arms, in Burscough, West Lancashire has received 2.5 million views.
Observer.com reports Mayor de Blasio will leave tomorrow for a vacation in the western United States. This will make the traditional weigh-in of the Nathan's finalists at City Hall the first I can remember. update The weigh-in will take place at the Brooklyn Borough Hall.
Crazy Legs Conti has a report on the protest that interrupted the Chicago Ribfest eating contest. His Huffington Post blog entry also includes a review of Taco in a Bag.
TimesRecordNews.com has a profile of "Nasty Nate" Biller.
AL.com has an article about 116 year old Susannah Mushatt Jones, who is the considered the world's oldest person. Her family credits her longevity to her big appetite and her caretaker thinks she would do well in a rib eating contest.
The Las Vegas Sun has an article about competitive eating training with quotes from Miki Sudo and Juan Rodriguez. The Las Veags challenge list says that the jackpot for the Pho 87 challenge is now $1,870.
Sonya Thomas did not compete in any 2014-15 Nathan's qualifier. She might be getting a bye (Kobayashi received byes in 2008 & 2009), but did not seem to have one in May when she was announced as an expected entrant in the Charlotte qualifier.
2015 Cleveland Nathan’s qualifier
update Jul 1 Joseph Cerulli has a contest video
update
1) Jeff Butler 22
2) Ronnie Hartman 20
1W) Liz McLurg 8.5
Ronnie Hartman and Scott Thomas appeared on Fox 8 this morning. Jeff Butler also is expected to compete.
2015 Sonoma Raceway Nathan’s qualifier
update Jul 3 SonomaNews.com has an article.
update Rico Ramirez has a video
1) Brian Dudzinski 21
2) Darren Turbeville 13
3) Tony Pirc 11
4T) Joe Pistoia 10
4T) Jon Davis 10
1W) Lesley Ryder 8
Brian Dudzinski is the favorite.
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