Patrick Bertoletti, Geoffrey Esper and other contestants compete in the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July 2024 International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island in New York, USA, July 4, 2024.
Jeenah Moon | Reuters
There’s a new top dog in the Frankfurt world.
Patrick Bertoletti won the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, the annual contest held on the Fourth of July, marking the end of an era after 16-time winner Joey Chestnut’s feud with the event’s organizer, Major League Eating.
Bertoletti, 39, of Illinois, consumed 58 hot dogs in this year’s 10-minute event, earning him the mustard yellow belt in the men’s division. Miki Sudo set a new record in the women’s division with 51 wins to break. After the beef between Chestnut and MLE, the contest was seen as much more open than in recent years.
MLE announced last month that it was parting ways with Chestnut, citing a rule that participants cannot enter into endorsement deals with competitors of hot dog maker Nathan’s. MLE then claimed that Chestnut had partnered with a plant-based meat alternative company. Chestnut, also known as “Jaws”, recently launched posting pictures on Instagram featuring Impossible Foods.
“For nearly two decades we have operated under the same basic hot dog exclusivity provisions,” MLE said in a statement in June. “However, it appears that Joey and his managers have prioritized a new partnership with a different hot dog brand over our longstanding relationship.”
Miki Sudo reacts as she wins the women’s division of the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July 2024 International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island in New York, USA, 4 July 2024.
Jeenah Moon | Reuters
Kastanos replied to a statement at the time he was “gutted to learn from the media” about his exile after 19 years. The 40-year-old claimed he was not under contract with MLE or Nathan’s and said the endorsement ban was a departure from the organisation’s rules on partnerships in previous years.
“I love competing in this event, I love celebrating America with my fans across this great country on the 4th and I’m training to defend my title,” he said last month.
While the relationship appears to be simmering for now, MLE called Chestnut an “American hero” and said he would “love” to return when he wasn’t representing his rival Nathan. The chestnut holds the record for consumption in 55 categories, including eggs, chicken wings and apple pies. MLE told NBC News.
Nathan’s site also still rewards Chestnut. In a Unity Announcing his 2023 victory, the New York-based company wrote that “there is no doubt in our minds who the king is.”
People wear hot dog outfits as they watch the famous Nathan’s International Hot Dog Eating Contest 2024 at Coney Island, New York, USA, July 4, 2024
Kent J. Edwards | Reuters
During ESPN’s broadcast of the 2024 contest, the channel made several references to Chestnut and how the contest looks without him. In one report, Chestnut was referred to as the “Warren Buffett of the buffet.”
Chestnut fans can still see him in action this holiday season.
He is broadcasting a hot dog eating contest live from the Fort Bliss military base in Texas as a fundraiser for charity, according to a recent Instagram post. The show starts at 5 p.m. ET on Thursday.
“The 4th wouldn’t be the same if I didn’t celebrate by eating lots of beef hot dogs,” she wrote.
