Major League Eating insists it was Joey Chestnut’s decision not to vie for his 17th Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating title in 18 years in Brooklyn, New York, this Fourth of July.
What’s not in dispute is that Chestnut’s absence stems from a new sponsorship deal he has with Impossible Foods, which makes a plant-based hot dog. That’s sacrilege to Nathan’s, apparently, but it’s not like Chestnut’s gone vegan. To wit, he’ll rekindle his rivalry with six-time Nathan’s champ Takeru Kobayashi on Sept. 2 in a one-on-one Netflix competition in which the pair will consume all-beef franks.
Only once since 2001 has someone other than those two competitors walked away from Coney Island a winner on Independence Day. That was in 2015, when Matt Stonie defeated Chestnut by two dogs, 62-60. Chestnut would later go on to set the all-time event record, consuming 76 wieners in 2021.
No Chestnut’s a bummer, for sure. But the silver lining for DraftKings — at their peril.)
This year’s men’s favorite, Geoffrey Esper (-120), mowed down 47 dogs in 2022 to finish second. He finished third in 2019, consuming the same amount of tube steaks.
James Webb (2/1), Nick Wehry (+550), and Patrick Bertoletti (8/1) have also been on the podium before. It’s been a minute, however, since Bertoletti reached such heights, having seemingly hit his prime in the early twenty-teens.
Here are @DKSportsbook's splits on Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest (men's division) thus far. pic.twitter.com/X4khtRYaNo
— Sports Handle (@sports_handle) July 1, 2024
Esper’s over/under on dogs consumed is set at 50.5, with Webb at 48.5 and Wehry at 45.5. Meanwhile, Sudo’s total is 40.5, while DraftKings is offering a Sudo-Wehry combo special of 85.5, with early wagering favoring the over.
Stadium Scores CarJitsu Rights 4w4d5r
When Sports Handle last spoke to Bill Yucatonis, the co-founder of Pro League Network, he said that PLN had received interest from “the likes of ESPN and all of the usual suspects” in broadcasting some of its niche sports, like CarJitsu and SlapFIGHT.
On Tuesday, PLN announced it had reached a deal with the interactive broadcasting network Stadium for exclusive U.S. broadcast rights for those two sports.
“We’re big fans of SlapFIGHT Championship and CarJitsu Championship and we know Stadium viewers will love watching both sports,” Stadium executive David Scott said in a press release. “PLN has shown a unique ability to produce broadcast-first sports that catch the attention of fans across the world. We’re excited to showcase their sports exclusively on our network.”
CarJitsu was recently approved for wagering in Wyoming.
