It’s a split decision.
Joey “Jaws” Chestnut downed 62 wieners in 10 minutes at Coney Island yesterday, but the victory was upstaged by his hot-dogging arch-rival.
Chestnut gulped his way to a fifth consecutive — and official — victory at the Nathan’s International Hot Dog Eating Contest.
But the not-so-undisputed Mustard Yellow Belt champion’s limelight was gobbled up by bitter rival Takeru Kobayashi.
Former champ Kobayashi, who was banned from the Nathan’s competition due to a contract dispute, downed 69 dogs at a protest event at a rooftop bar in the Flatiron District.
Chestnut, 27, scoffed at Kobayashi’s antics, saying he didn’t scarf down wieners in the dog-eat-dog heat of battle.
“That wasn’t a competition; that was just him eating,” said Chestnut. “I’ve done 71 practicing by myself.”
But Kobayashi, who downed the dogs while the official Coney Island event played on a big-screen TV, shot back, saying his 69-wiener effort would have beaten Chestnut’s 68-dog world record.
“I’m very happy about winning today . . . I’m the champion,” he said.
Yesterday’s contest also included the first-ever women-only event. It was won by Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas, who ate 40 hot dogs.
Additional reporting by David K. Li
