Joey Chestnut overcame a crowded field and an injured right leg on Monday en route to his 15th career win at the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest. He also took down an unexpected obstacle mid-contest in the form of a stage-crashing protestor.
Shortly after downing his 17th dog, protestors stormed the platform dressed in Star Wars garb and holding signs reading “Expose Smithfield’s Death Star,” an apparent protest against pork producer Smithfield Foods. Chestnut was uninterested in being thrown off his stride. Rather than seek the help of event security, he handled the situation himself.
Chestnut put the protestor in a headlock and quickly threw him aside before carrying on with the hot dog eating procedures. He eventually finished the day with 63 hot dogs downed.
Chestnut has now won the annual frank fest for the seventh consecutive season and 15th time in the past 16, but this is the first time he’s had to deal with a stage intruder (and an injured leg). Let’s see what obstructions he’ll have to overcome in 2023.
