The Biggest Beef In Competitive Eating: Chestnut vs. Kobayashi

of all the rivalries in competitive eating none is more stored than the one between takeru Kobayashi and Joey Chestnut four years they duked it out to determine who is the true champ of Chom but all beef has an expiration date and it looks like Chestnut and Kobayashi is coming up fast today we're gorging ourselves on the gluttonous history of the Joey Chestnut too Kobayashi [Music] rivalry but before we start knocking back facts like we're chain eating hot dogs be sure subscribe to the weird history Foods Channel and let us know what other famous food rivalries you would like to hear next okay time to suck back some Chilly Dogs like John melan Camp well Kobayashi and Chestnut may be two of the biggest names in the scene today competitive eating existed long before either of them downed their first hot dog somewhat surprisingly watching people scarf down in human amounts of food in a condensed time frame was not thought up by an American the first ever recorded eating competition actually took place in Ontario Canada the city of Toronto hosted a pie eating contest in January of 1878 as a way to raise money for charity papers across North America reported on the strange event and the public devoured the news pretty soon eating competitions were popping up in bars gentleman's clubs and state fairs all over the United States and they just weren't limited to pies anymore as Legend has it the movement really got going in 1916 when the first Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest was allegedly hosted at Coney Island in New York City Nathan which is still held annually on the 4th of July was said to bring four American immigrants together in a bid to see which one of them was the most patriotic and for some reason they decided to settle that argument by chowing down on a bunch of Nathan's famous hot dogs while patriotic Americans stuffing themselves full of mystery meat on Independence Day makes for a great story it never actually happened in a 2010 New York Times article press agent morer matz admitted to making up the 1916 story as a way to Market Nathan's Famous Hot dogss and their upcoming eating contest the first real Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest was held in 1972 And while it isn't as inspiring as the fake marketing story it did Kickstart a whole new era of competitive eating one that aimed to turn the snackish Pastime into a full-blown sport enter the major league eating organization also known as the International Federation of competitive eating the mle was founded in the early 90s by Brothers George and Richard Shia the Shia took over the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest marketing efforts in 1991 with George claiming the title of Master of Ceremonies he introduced each competitor with a level of dramatic flare usually reserved for pro wrestlers and referred to them as athletes across multiple interviews with a straight face the strategy worked by the early 2000s mle events were being covered by ESPN a fan community formed and the top contestants became celebrities in their own right today Nathan's is the largest recognized competitive eating contest in the nation but Major League eating has its greasy fingers and all sorts of competitive pies from Buffalo Wings to oysters M yum prospective athletes are expected to take the events as seriously as the mle does contestants have to learn proper speed swallowing techniques and are bound to strict diets of regimented fasting to expand their stomach capacity and while many brave souls committed themselves to the lifestyle in those early years one man stood Head and Shoulders Above the Rest teu kobayashi's competitive eating career began in the year 2000 when he appeared on two Japanese game shows and handily won both competitions the following year he made his Western debut at Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest there Kobayashi slammed down 50 hot dogs in just 12 minutes winning him the competition and doubling the previous world record of 25 dogs if that wasn't impressive enough Kobayashi would win the competition six consecutive times between 2001 and 2006 and break his own record three of those times he achieved this feat by wigg in his body to better solidify the food in his stomach and by developing his own eating technique dubbed the Solomon method Kobayashi removed the hot dogs from their buns and dunk the buns in water to help wash it all down quickly and smoothly this technique was so effective that it became standard practice for every subsequent Hot Dog Eating competition over the years Kobayashi won multiple eating competitions and broke various records taking his fill of the spotlight and helping Major League eating become a worldwide sensation as the sports first big star he was named the Godfather of competitive eating but as kobashi piled his plate higher and higher another fresh-faced athlete was next in line at the buffet and he was hungry for a challenge Joey Chestnut from San Jose California Rose to Fame in 2005 by winning the first competition he ever entered beating out the previous winner of the deep fried asparagus eating championship by eating a hefty 6.3 lb in 11 1/2 minutes in July of that year Chestnut entered Nathan's Hot Dog eting contest for the first time and placed third behind Teo kobashi and second place winner Sonia Thomas just a few months later in October of 2005 Chestnut broke his first world record by eating 32 and a half grilled cheese sandwiches at the Arizona State bear presumably he celebrated with a deep fried pickle before barfing it all up on the tilta Whirl like Kobayashi before him Chestnut quickly gained Traction in the competitive eating scene by racking up wins and world records and though he was bested by Kobayashi in their first contest together Chestnut would eventually prove to be a fierce rival for The Godfather of competitive eating with each win Kobayashi stuffed under his belt Chestnut was close behind always placing just behind the world eaing champion in the 2019 ESPN documentary The Good The Bad The Hungry Chestnut even confessed to hating Kobayashi and was driven to train harder to beat the best in the business but for a brief moment in 2007 it looked like Chestnut would never have the chance to officially beat his his rival in Hot Dog Eating combat after Kobayashi lost his mother to cancer he considered retiring from the sport altogether then in a Tempe Arizona qualifier for Nathan's Chestnut shattered kobayashi's record by eating 59 and a half hot dogs Kobayashi knew that if he retired now people would think he was afraid of his upand cominging competitor and so he started to train for the July 4th event and he trained hard so hard in fact that Kobayashi injured his jaw just weeks before the contest Chestnut cast out on the injury telling the press that he thought Kobayashi was lying and just trying to save face in case he lost unsurprisingly this attack on kobayashi's character infuriated him and only added heat to their simmering competitive tension on the day of the event the two raced neck and neck to smash the record yet again surpassing 60 hot dogs each during the 12-minute competition but for the first time in 7 years Kobayashi would not take home the gold he stood on the second place Podium with a total of 63 hot dogs three shy of chestnuts disgustingly impressive 66 with that Chestnut officially became the world eating champion and proved that Kobayashi was not an invulnerable eating machine but their rivalry was only beginning the following year Nathan's contest ended in a tie between Kobayashi and Chestnut on the fly it was decided that the tie would be settled in a five dog death match with no hard rules Chestnut was the first to clear his plate though he admitted to raising his hand before he was actually through with his final hot dog while he took home the title that day it was a controversial win to say the least over the next year the pair essentially snatched titles back and forth setting new records and breaking them in turn as they traveled across the country on the mle competitive circuit meanwhile the league was spinning this newfound rivalry as an Olympic level battle between America and Japan which unfortunately turned huge sections of the American audience against Kobayashi he began to feel unwelcome during Live Events until eventually even mle itself turned on the Godfather of competitive of eating to participate in American speed eating contests Kobayashi signed a contract with major league eating that stated he wasn't allowed to take part in any competitions outside mle's jurisdiction Kobayashi had a problem with that he wanted to expand the sport and realize his full potential as a competitive eater outside the bounds of a single American organization a legal battle ensued and Kobayashi was barred from entering the 2010 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest to compete against Joe Chestnut but that didn't stop him from showing up wearing a free kobai t-shirt as the event began fans started chanting and demanding mle let Kobayashi compete he decided to rush the stage which the New York Police Department did not take kindly to he was immediately taken into custody for trespassing and escorted off the premises and handcuffs hot dogs are serious business Kobayashi is no longer affiliated with major league eating and instead participates in non mle events across the globe earning non-sanctioned titles and breaking records outside official recognition while Chestnut participates within the league as such Chestnut has become the world's most decorated competitive eater and a 16-time winner of Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest but only because Kobayashi doesn't compete in 2024 14 years after Kobayashi Scandal Chestnut found himself embroiled in his own dispute with mle apparently he has to compete with Kobayashi and Scandals too Major League eating announced they were Banning Chestnut from that Year's Nathan's Hot Dog Eating contest as it turned out the World Champ had accepted a sponsorship from one of Nathan's biggest competitors impossible foods not only had he betrayed the league but he betrayed the meat ml would not stand for it but the community actually backed their American hot dog hero fans were outraged by mle's decision and in response to the backlash the league tried to retract their ban but the damage had already been done with both Chestnut and Kobayashi feeling scorned by mle the stage was was set for a combat outside the restrictions of the league but who would be brave enough to step on the toes of the biggest competitive eating organization to make it happen on September 2nd 2024 Netflix is set to host a live event featuring the two most accomplished eaters in history on Chestnut versus Kobayashi unfinished beef the par will face off to finally answer the question who is the speediest Eater of them all after 15 years countless world records and two scandals their long-standing rivalry will be settled in a nail-biting hot dog eating contest just like the last time they competed against each other except without the Coney Island venue only time will tell which of these food focused Champions will take his place on the hot dog Throne which is a lot like the Iron Throne just more delicious so what do you think who really deserves the title of world eating champion or does competitive eating gross you out let us know in the comments below and while you're at it check out some of these other weird history Foods videos