Joey Chestnut is set to return to his rightful place on July 4.
That is, competing at the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, N.Y., where he has won a record 16 championships but was banned last year because of a contractual dispute with Nathan’s.
“It almost doesn’t feel real yet,’’ Chestnut, 41, told USA TODAY Sports. “I was preparing for the worst, but we were able to work it out.’’
Chestnut was banned from the 2024 contest after he signed an endorsement deal with Impossible Foods that called for him to endorse the company’s plant-based hot dogs. Nathan’s said it viewed the hot dog as direct competition with its all-beef product.
With the 2025 contest less than three weeks away, Chestnut said he has agreed to endorse only Nathan’s hot dogs as part of a three-year contract with Nathan’s and International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE) Inc., which runs the annual competition. The contract was signed earlier this month, according to Chestnut.
He declined to disclose the financial terms of the deal and said he still is working with Impossible Foods.
George Shea, the founder of IFOCE and announcer for the Nathan’s contest, confirmed Chestnut is clear to compete.
“We’re very excited to have Joey back and we believe this is going to be the best contest ever,’’ Shea told USA TODAY Sports.
With Chestnut absent last year, Patrick Bertoletti won the men’s competition by eating 58 hot dogs and buns during the 10-minute contest. That was 18 shy of Chestnut’s record of 76.
Chestnut, who had won 16 of the past 17 men’s competitions until last year, said he began training in May for the upcoming contest.
“It’d be great to make a new record,’’ he said. “If I can get close to 80, that’d be amazing.’’
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