Joey Chestnut may not be allowed to participate in the Nathan’s July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest, but he has something else cooking.
Netflix announced on Wednesday that Chestnut will face fellow competitive eater, Takeru Kobayashi, in a live hot dog eating competition that will be streamed on the service on September 2.
A rivalry simmering for 15 years.
CHESTNUT VS. KOBAYASHI: UNFINISHED BEEF — the ultimate hot dog eating competition — will air LIVE on Netflix, Monday, September 2. pic.twitter.com/MeVQP1lQuS
— Netflix (@netflix) June 12, 2024
Kobayashi helped popularize the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest well before Chestnut came along. In 2001, Kobayashi won the competition by eating 50 hot dogs, which was nearly double the previous record. He won the competition six times and drew huge TV ratings. However, he stopped competing in the Nathan’s contest in 2010 after a contract dispute with Major League Eating (sound familiar?).
Kobayashi was recently featured in a Netflix documentary, so that may have been an easy starting point for organizing the competition between him and Chestnut.
Joey Chestnut and Kobayashi will go one-on-one in a hot dog eating contest in a Netflix live event on September 2nd pic.twitter.com/DCJ06ac3Jn
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) June 12, 2024
The 46-year-old Kobayashi had previously retired from competitive eating, but he will be coming out of retirement to face Chestnut.
Kobayashi was beaten by Chestnut in the 2007 Nathan’s contest. Chestnut was also declared the winner of the 2008 contest after beating Kobayashi in a tiebreaker after the two tied with 59 eaten.
