In a big upset Saturday, Matt Stonie out-ate reigning champion Joey Chestnut in Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest on Coney Island.
Chestnut had previously taken home the gold for eight years in a row, but this year, Stonie devoured 62 hot dogs while Chestnut only ate 60.
Today I claimed a belt that hasn't changed hands in 8 years. 62 Hot Dogs in ten minutes. #Happy4thJuly pic.twitter.com/0Ao0cXh60R— Matt Stonie (@MattStonie) July 4, 2015
Sixty-two isn't the all-time record, though; that was set by Chestnut in 2013, when he ate 69 hot dogs. Still, it's a lot of food, to say the least. So how do they do it?
"You definitely gotta be in shape to eat in these contests," Stonie told NBC New York on Wednesday. "It's a 10-minute sprint up there."
"I perform better when I'm at a lean, healthy weight," said Miki Sudo, the now two-time women's champ. "I've been spending a lot of time in the gym to prepare."
Stonie, who is ranked second in the world in competitive eating, compared his preparation to other world-class athletes.
The #HotDogEatingContest is like the Super Bowl, World Series, Stanley Cup, and NBA Finals all rolled into onepic.twitter.com/DD0MNffhU1— Wills Fattore (@Wills_McGahee) July 4, 2015
"Competitive eating is like any sport," he said. "A runner runs, a swimmer swims. We practice, we train our bodies to accommodate so much food, and it's just a lot of hard work and dedication."
#July4th means many things: patriotic music, cookouts, parades, fireworks, &@originalnathans #hotdogeatingcontest pic.twitter.com/NPt7qmOepR— Mike Eaves (@mikeeaves) July 4, 2015
In addition to preparation, there are a few tricks of the trade: Stonie, like other competitors, will dip the hot dog buns in water prior to eating them. That makes them easier to swallow, he says. (The competition is to eat the most entire hot dogs, so just the meat doesn't count.)
Matt Stonie (@MattStonie) has won the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest, eating 62 in 10 minutes http://t.co/WGyRwK62cE pic.twitter.com/ieashEiDq4— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) July 4, 2015
.@MattStonie is feeling the energy! pic.twitter.com/jSMB5E5wU9— Nathan's Famous (@originalnathans) July 4, 2015
Who would've thought watching people gag on your product would be great branding #advertising #HotDogEatingContest pic.twitter.com/PB18CnQGjM— Barry Cunningham (@barrycunningham) July 4, 2015
4/6/87 - Ed Moses' 9-year streak ends 4/715 - Joey Chestnut's 8-year streak ends #NathansFamous #HotDogEatingContest pic.twitter.com/WaxAvqveot— Lee Walker (@Lee_BleacherR) July 4, 2015
Other competitive eating records that the new hot dog king @mattstonie owns pic.twitter.com/g8RPiQpp6k— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) July 4, 2015
And when you're eating this fast, chewing is more afterthought than anything else.
Watch the two champs discuss their hot-dog hopes before Saturday's competition: