Protester Crashes NYC Hot Dog Eating Contest [VIDEO]

The New York Daily News reports:

Joey Chestnut won a record 15th Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest on Monday, scarfing down 63 hot dogs and 63 buns in 10 minutes. The Major League Eating champ’s final tally perhaps could have been higher had he not been interrupted by an animal rights activist in a Darth Vader costume who briefly stood between him and the camera in the middle of the contest.

The protester learned the hard way not to get between Chestnut and a plate of food. Chestnut grabbed him around the neck in his best wrestling move takedown while George Shea, the straw-hat wearing longtime event host, helped tackle the protester. The protester held a sign reading “Expose Smithfield’s Deathstar” — a reference to Nathan’s supplier Smithfield Foods.

Read the full article. The first clip has 4M views already.

Chestnut just obliterated him?? pic.twitter.com/dry7Oy8KZK

— jonah block (@JonahBlock05) July 4, 2022

Joey Chestnut takes down heckler during anual hotdog eating contest. pic.twitter.com/MAehwRFqjc

— coh (@coh_doodle) July 4, 2022

Joey Chestnut wins his 1️⃣5️⃣th Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating championship ? pic.twitter.com/oyk84XEa0z

— ESPN (@espn) July 4, 2022

Joey Chestnut’s victory was briefly paused by an apparent protester who bumped the dude mid-competition, and paid for it dearly. https://t.co/HCSC3klfJ7

— TMZ (@TMZ) July 4, 2022