A hot-dog eating contest without Joey Chestnut of California is hard to swallow | Opinion

With some breakups, you remember where you were when the news broke.

I was 7, at my grandma’s house with all my cousins, huddled together watching MTV, when it was announced that the boy band, NSYNC, broke up.

At 15, I waited all day to hear LeBron James say he was leaving the Cleveland Cavaliers and taking “his talents to South Beach” in Miami. It was like a bomb.

And now, at the age of 30, came the news on Tuesday that 16-time Nathan’s Hot Eating Champion Joey Chestnut will not compete on the Fourth of July in the competition he made famous.

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“We are devastated to learn that Joey Chestnut has chosen to represent a rival brand that sells plant-based hot dogs rather than competing in the 2024 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest,” the Major League Eating organization, which oversees the event, said in a statement.

For those not familiar with the Vallejo native’s accomplishments, they rival the likes of four-time NBA Finals champ LeBron James, seven-time NASCAR championship winner Jimmie Johnson and even 11-time NBA champ and Boston Celtics legend, Bill Russell. Chestnut first competed in the Nathan’s contest in 2005, when he was a San Jose State University student.

He set a world record in 2021 by tossing back 76 hot dogs and buns in the allotted 10 minutes, beating the record he had set the previous year by one.

And Chestnut hasn’t stopped at hot dogs.

According to the Major League Eating’s website, Chestnut holds multiple eating records:

• 141 hard-boiled eggs in eight minutes (2013).

• 390 shrimp wontons in eight minutes (2012).

• 121 Twinkies in six minutes (2013).

• 53 soft beef tacos from Taco Bell in 10 minutes (2011).

• 45 pulled pork sandwiches in 10 minutes (2007).

Could James eat that many eggs? Could Russell scarf down Taco Bell soft tacos? Don’t think so. Maybe Charles Barkley.

In this breakup between Nathan’s and Chestnut, it’s the equivalent of the Miami Heat being disqualified by plant-based hot dogs.

The hot dog-eating champ struck a deal with plant-based food company Impossible Foods. Nathan’s, the contest’s sponsor, has a strict rule against competitors being endorsed by any rival brands. What says rival more than a brand that is striving to take you out of business with a complete alternative to your product?

An Impossible Foods spokesperson said, “We love Joey and support him in any contest he chooses. It’s OK to experiment with a new dog. Meat eaters shouldn’t have to be exclusive to just one wiener.”

So true.

This is a storyline juicer than whatever James or Kevin Durant could cook up in an NBA off-season. An American hero who set records for eating the most patriotic food on the most patriotic day has now joined the ranks of plant-based foods.

It costs Chestnut a chance of beating his previous. It costs us a chance to see Chestnut scarfing those beautiful cylinder-shaped wieners and hoisting the Mustard Yellow Belt over his head in victory.

The positive is that Chestnut is not banned for life from the contest, according to Major League Eating.

The negative is that Chestnut could spur enough interest in creating a plant-based hot dog eating contest.