Champion Hot Dog Eater Weighs In On Whether A Hot Dog Is A Sandwich
"To compare Kobayashi to Tiger Woods is a slight against Kobayashi."
The trailer for ESPN's upcoming 30 For 30 documentary, The Good, the Bad, The Hungry, opens with this truly wild voiceover. In the next minute, though, ESPN does a pretty solid job of convincing you the hot dog-eating-contest rivalry between Joey Chestnut and Takeru Kobayashi is as intense as any other in the world of sports.
On July 2, fans will be able to watch that rivalry play out in the ESPN episode, which features both the competitive eaters and the rise of the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest (which Chestnut has won 11 times, BTW). In an interview with Fansided, Chestnut said he was "shocked" to learn the documentary was happening.
In a statement to Rolling Stone, director Nicole Lucas Haimes said this of the slightly unorthodox choice:
In making The Good, The Bad, The Hungry, I realized that beyond the rivalry between Kobayashi and Chestnut, there were greater themes at play than just who could eat the most hot dogs. The film ultimately became a classic American tale exploring the notion of personal fulfillment, as well as touching on greater ideas around nationalism, truth, and power.
Chestnut also answered an age-old question: Is a hot dog a sandwich or not? Thankfully, he gave the answer we all know in our hearts to be true.
No, it’s separate. If you consider a hot dog a sandwich, then you have to consider other things, like a burrito, a sandwich, or…just because it’s wrapped…or it’s a bun, it’s not really sliced bread. It’s encased meat. There are just so many differences. Like if you go to a sandwich shop, you’re not going to get a hot dog. It’s pretty rare to get a hot dog at a sandwich shop.
Personally, I'm taking that as case closed on the debate. The man has eaten 74 hot dogs and buns in one sitting! He knows what he's talking about. Also, in case you were wondering, his usual baseball game order is three hot dogs. Sometimes four.
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