Hot Dog Eating Champion Joey Chestnut Pleads Guilty to Hitting Man at Bar, Will Be on Probation for 2026 Contest
“My client took full responsibility for this misunderstanding and resolved the matter by pleading guilty," Chestnut's attorney said
Joey Chestnut on Aug. 20, 2024. Credit: Manny Carabel/WireImage NEED TO KNOW Competitive eater Joey Chestnut was sentenced to 180 days of probation after pleading guilty to misdemeanor battery following a bar altercation in Indiana He will be on probation during the annual Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest, which Chesnut has won 17 times His legal team said in a statement that he “regrets engaging and the interaction being misinterpreted" Hot dog eating champion Joey Chestnut will be on probation while seeking to defend his crown on the Fourth of July.
Chestnut, 42, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery last month following an altercation at a bar, and he was sentenced to 180 days of probation, according to CBS Sports and USA Today . Despite the sentence, Chestnut has been granted a petition to travel outside of the state of Indiana where he lives and where the altercation took place. He told USA Today that he is free to return to New York City, where the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest occurs each year in Coney Island.
"I have no restrictions,'' Chestnut told the outlet. Competitive eater Joey Chestnut on Sept. 9, 2023 in Georgia.
Credit: Brandon Sloter/Image Of Sport/Getty Chestnut’s criminal charge stems from an altercation that took place on March 21 in Hamilton County, Indiana, according to the outlets. According to court records obtained by USA Today and CBS Sports, the competitive hot dog eater exchanged a handshake with someone who recognized him at a bar before striking the man on the side of his face “with an open hand. ” When Chestnut was questioned about the incident by police, he told them that he had been "pretty drunk and didn't remember" the altercation, per CBS Sports.