To be frank, it’s anyone’s game.
This year’s Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island will be “neck and neck” in perennial winner Joey “Jaws” Chestnut’s absence — leaving a seat open for the next generation of Mustard Yellow Belt winners, host George Shea said at Wednesday’s weigh-in.
Chestnut, who has won the chow showdown every year since 2016, will instead be competing against soldiers in Fort Bliss, Texas on Independence Day.
“If he can’t be in Coney Island, we certainly support him being with the troops honoring our armed forces,” Shea told the crowd in Hudson Yards. “Our door is always open … however, that opens up a field of eaters who will be in contention.”
The reigning Nathan’s champ was barred from this year’s competition following his deal to rep vegan meat brand Impossible Foods and subsequent “impasse” with the tournament organizers who run Major League Eating.
Shea told The Post that Nathan’s and MLE even conceded on the rival sponsorship issue in order to get Chestnut back at Coney Island this year, but to no avail.
What we know about the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest scandal
These are definitely dirty water dogs.
A contender in Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest was accused of beefing up his score to secure a spot among the sport’s elite contenders.
Nick Wehry — husband of women’s division champion Miki Sudo — scarfed down an impressive 46.75 hot dogs on the day of the July 4th competition. The 46.75 hot dogs earned him a fourth-place finish, according to footage and reports, including by The Post and ESPN.
But the official Major League Eating (MLE) results website published that Wehry put down 51.75 dirty water dogs, based on the number of empty plates stacked in front of their spot after the allotted time concluded.
Two sources close to the competition have told the Post that Wehry cheated to change the recorded results by “stealing plates” from another competitor’s stack and putting them on his own place setting.
After the scandal broke, Wehry has requested the MLE readjust his score back down to the 46.75, claiming he did not cheat but looking to avoid a re-evaluation.
Competitors relish the accomplishment of eating 50 hot dogs in the allotted time frame – something that separates the casual eater from the professionals.
Wehry was seen loitering around other competitors’ plates after the competition had ended.
Wehry’s wife, Sudo, set a new women’s record with 51 hot dogs, securing her spot as an elite eater.
A chunk of fans have already named a favorite in Australian James Webb — the number one ranked eater in his country and number five eater in the world, Shea said.
Webb, who weighed in Wednesday at 213 pounds, has won six out of 10 MLE events in the last six months and even beat Chestnut in a pistachio eating contest in California earlier this year (fellow contestant Nick Wehry also beat Chestnut in that competition).
The Aussie’s hot dog count was 47 at Coney Island last year, a paltry showing compared to the 62 Chestnut got down the hatch to keep his title.
“I want to be the first Australian to ever eat 50-plus at Coney Island,” Webb told The Post before the weigh-in, adding that he has spent the last 12 months trying to “earn my stripes” ahead of the July Fourth match.
That included breaking records for eating 70 glazed donuts in eight minutes last month for Salvation Army’s National Donut Day and shoveling in a whopping 13.5 pounds of chocolate fudge in eight minutes at the Eating Uranus Fudge Galactic Championship.
Shea said that, although “a lot of people” think Webb will be the winner, the Australian will meet his match in four other male contestants ranked as the world’s top 50 eaters by MLE: Ricardo Corbucci of Brazil; Patrick Bertoletti of Illinois; Nick Wehry of Florida; and Geoffrey Esper of Massachusetts.
All five men are planning to guzzle 50 hot dogs or more in 10 minutes, according to the competition’s host — a far cry from Chestnut’s record of 76 in 2021.
“Three weeks ago, they weren’t going to win. Now they’re going to win,” Shea said.
The men’s contest isn’t the only one with serious beef.
Nine-time champ Miki Sudo will compete against former winner and rival Michelle Lesco, though the latter said earning a medal wasn’t exactly on her mind.
“[Miki’s] got me this year, halfway through a bunch of dental work,” Lesco, weighing in at 105 pounds, told the crowd.
Hailing from Arizona, Lesco said she has to eat “very carefully” due to her condition.
“Don’t die is [priority] number one, and putting up a good number is number two,” she said.
Second-time Coney Island contestant Mayoi Ebihara, of Japan, said via a translator that she cracked the 50-dog mark during training — a number that, if matched on Thursday, will beat Sudo’s 2020 record of 48.5 dogs in 10 minutes.
Ebihara’s count last year was 33.5 dogs, earning her the No. 2 slot just behind Sudo.
“I think Miki Sudo is going to take [first place] running away,” Shea told The Post.
One thing is clear: with Chestnut out of the picture, the other hopefuls will get a chance to shine, Webb said.
“Joey is probably the greatest of all time but to be honest, there’s a few of us that, for the most part, aren’t too far behind,” he said.
“It’s definitely a shake up, but also it’s a massive opportunity … there comes a time in every sport where a changing of the guard happens.”
The contestants will face off in front of the Coney Island Nathan’s Famous location on Surf Avenue. The women’s competition will start at 11 a.m., followed by the men’s contest at 12 p.m.
Fans can catch both events on ESPN.
