Joey Chestnut proudly waved his gold title belt on the Fourth of July after downing 57 hot dogs in five minutes in a thrilling contest against four Army soldiers at Fort Bliss.
“Having this opportunity was amazing,” Chestnut remarked post-victory. “The audience was pushing me; they were happy … it was great when they started chanting ‘Joey.’ Part of me wanted to cry, and the other part of me wanted to keep pushing.”
The El Paso crowd’s enthusiasm fueled Chestnut’s performance, and he expressed his gratitude for fans support. Reflecting on his feat, Chestnut noted that he could’ve reached 60 hot dogs but “slowed down in the beginning.”
The soldiers ate 49 hot dogs, and the group would have won if they had eaten more hot dogs combined than Chestnut, the New York Times reported.
The contest differed slightly from the typical 10-minute Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog-eating contest in Brooklyn, New York. Since 2005, he has competed against the top competitive eaters in the world. In 2021, he set the current record of 76 hot dogs in 10 minutes.
Chestnut didn’t compete in this year’s Nathan’s competition because of his marketing deal with Impossible Foods, which sells a rival hot dog made from plant-based meat.
Impossible Foods made its presence felt at Fort Bliss by donating $106,000 to the U.S. military non-profit Operation Homefront.
Watch Joey Chestnut (b)eat the competition at Fort Bliss below.
Watch:Joey Chestnut compete in hot dog-eating contest in El Paso, Texas