Joey Chestnut | Bud Fox News

Joey Chestnut, left, and Matt Stonie compete in Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest men's competition Saturday July 4, 2015 in the Coney Island section in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Stonie came in first eating 62 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. Chestnut came in second eating 60 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. (AP Photo/Tina Fineberg)

Eating a duodenum-affronting 62 dogs in ten minutes, Matt “Megatoad” Stonie edged out 8-time champ Joey Chestnut. (AP Photo/Tina Fineberg)

It is as American as it gets. On this most important of days, our nation’s anniversary…there they were: On stage, four regular-looking guys (think of them as the Four Horsemen of the Esophagus given their dedication to their avocation), from various walks of life, pushing themselves past their limits, giving it everything they have, striving for greatness in front of the adoring crowd, one of them finally reaching the pinnacle of success from relative obscurity, in the process proving that in this country, hard work does indeed pay off. In this fairy tale of the American dream, there was only going to be one winner, and that was the edacious Matt “Megatoad” Stonie, who won the annual Nathan’s Hot-Dog-Eating Contest and defeated defending champion Joey Chestnut by inhaling 62 dogs in ten minutes. Chestnut, who ate 60 wieners, has nothing to be ashamed of: He held the contest’s Mustard Belt, indisputably the Holy Grail of the competitive eating circuit, for eight consecutive years, certainly putting him in the conversation for greatest athlete of all time, regardless of sport (he has been called “the Bill Russell of competitive eating“).

“I trained hard for this,” Stonie told ESPN, which televised the contest earlier today, a curious move for the network because the event doesn’t glorify violence and poor sportsmanship, the promotion of which seems to be the network’s raison d’etre.

With great confidence, Bud Fox News had reported that Chris Christie would participate in today’s contest. According to sources close to Nathan’s, Christie decided to withdraw after an explosive training regimen. One of Christie’s campaign advisors, who asked to remain anonymous, told Bud Fox News: Continue reading →

This July 4th, Joey Chestnut will look to win a mind- and stomach-blowing 9th consecutive “Mustard Belt,” but… (Photo: Monika Graff/Getty Images)

…upstart Chris Christie can’t be taken lightly. (Photo: http://www.pennpoliticalreview.org)

He is known for having a big mouth. He appears to be suffering the consequences of an even bigger appetite. And in the face of personal all-time low approval ratings and his state’s nine credit rating downgrades, his presidential aspirations seem the biggest of pipe dreams. In what can only be viewed as a desperate bid for non-Bridgegate-related media attention while trying to stay relevant in the Republican presidential primary conversation, the New Jersey Governor, known back in his early teen years as “Chicken Bone” Christie for how quickly he could gnaw down a chicken bone to nothing more than a splinter, has announced that he will participate in the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, held every July 4th on Coney Island, NY. Last year, Joey Chestnut, indisputably the Lebron James of the competitive eating circuit, ate 61 dogs in 10 minutes to win the Mustard Belt for the eighth consecutive year. If Christie or legitimate challenger Matt “Megatoad” Stonie, who played Mantle to Chestnut’s Maris last year by ingesting 56 dogs in a battle royal that competitive eating fans still haven’t stopped analyzing, can’t beat him this summer, then Chestnut will have collected a whopping nine Mustard Belts, a herculean achievement certainly comparable (or perhaps superior given the individual nature of Chestnut’s potential exploit) to the nine World Series rings Joe DiMaggio won with the New York Yankees.

Anthony Cacciatore, 47, of Bayonne, NJ, who recently attended a Republican fundraiser where he saw Christie in action, thinks the governor has a good shot at taking down Chestnut: Continue reading →