Hot dog eating champ Joey Chestnut has decided to part ways with the annual hot dog eating contest in Brooklyn, officials at Major League Eating announced Tuesday.
Instead of competing in the 2024 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest, he has decided to represent a rival brand that sells plant-based hot dogs, according to the MLE.
“MLE and Nathan’s went to great lengths in recent months to accommodate Joey and his management team, agreeing to the appearance fee and allowing Joey to compete in a rival unbranded hot dog eating contest on Labor Day,” the agency wrote.
In response to the MLE, Chestnut said in a statement on Instagram that he was "disappointed" to learn that he was "banned" from the contest after almost 20 years.
Chestnut said he doesn't have a contract with MLE or Nathan's and that "they are looking to change the rules from past years as it relates to other partners I can work with."
"This is apparently the basis on which I'm being banned, and it doesn't impact the July 4th contest," he wrote. "Sadly, this is the decision Nathan's and Major League Eating are making and it will deprive the great fans of the holiday's usual joy and entertainment."
Chestnut is a 16-time champion of the contest in Coney Island.
According to the MLE, Chestnut and his managers prioritized the new partnership over the “long-time relationship” he had with the agency.
At last year’s event, he downed 62 hot dogs and buns within 10 minutes. In 2021, he hit his high score of eating 76 hot dogs and buns.
“We would love nothing more than to have him at the Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest, which he has dominated for years. We hope that he returns when he is not representing a rival brand,” the MLE wrote.