We've addressed the history of competitive eating, but what is the state of the "sport" now? There are really only two current superstars among competitive eaters, and they are Joey Chesnut and Takeru Kobayashi. Chesnut has won the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 16 times, and holds the world record for eating hot dogs. He also holds championships in other eating contests. Chesnut is ranked the #1 competitive eater in the world by Major League Eating. Kobayashi is the top eater in Japan, referred to as "the godfather of competitive eating." He has won the Nathan's competition six times, and also holds world's records in eating tacos and other foods.
Neither Chesnut nor Kobayashi competed in the 2024 hot dog eating championship, but they will face off against each other for a Netflix special on Labor Day called Unfinished Beef. Weird History gets us up to speed on each eater just ahead of the event, which will be the first time the two champions have faced each other in competition since 2009.