Matt Stonie has won the Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest, sponsored by food producer Nathan's Famous. Also known by his nickname, Megatoad, the 23-year-old took his victory after consuming 62 hot dogs, complete with buns.
Joey "Jaws" Chestnut, 31 years of age, came in second, eating 60 frankfurters during the contest. Chestnut had previously won eight of the showdowns in row, a record shattered by the performance of Stonie. In 2013, Chestnut broke a world record, eating 69 frankfurters in just 10 minutes, faster than one every nine seconds. Following this feat, he claimed he would not stop until he consumes 70 frankfurters at a single sitting.
Legend holds that on July 4, 1916, four immigrants on Coney Island held a hot dog eating contest, in an effort to settle an argument over which of them was the most patriotic. Most accounts record that Jim Mullen won the contest, although the name of the victor is uncertain.
Promoter Mortimer Matz later stated he, along with an accomplice, Max Rosey, developed and spread the false story in the early 1970's, as part of a publicity stunt.
The Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest has been held nearly every year on Independence Day since 1972. The only exception was 1978, when a one-on-one showdown between Orio Ito and Michael DeVito was held beneath the Brooklyn Bridge.
"In recent years, an estimated 35,000 fans have made the pilgrimage to Surf and Stillwell avenues in Coney Island to watch the contest in person. The ESPN telecast of the event routinely draws an audience of millions of viewers," Major League Eating reported on its Web site.
Stonie, a resident of San Jose, California, is currently the second-ranked competitor in Major League Eating, as well as the youngest competitor in the league. His first win on the competitive eating circuit came in 2010, coming in first in a lobster roll-eating contest held on Hampton Beach, New Hampshire. His Major League Eating debut came one year later. He also holds records in eating birthday cake, pumpkin pies, bacon, frozen yogurt, and Twinkies, among other foods. His nickname Megatoad comes from a character in the video game Super Mario Brothers. Oddly, Stonie is enrolled as a nutrition major at Mission College in Santa Clara, California, and intends to work as dietitian.
Chestnut trains by fasting, and stretching his stomach with milk, protein supplements and water. His current food consumption records include matzoh balls, bratwurst, steak, and hard boiled eggs.
Coming in third in the 2015 contest was Tim "Eater X" Janus, who consumed 35 hot dogs during the allotted time. Miki Sudo ate 38 hot dogs, more than any other woman in the contest.
Nathan's Famous donates 100,000 frankfurters to the Food Bank for New York City each year on conjunction with the annual contest.
