Major League Eating announced Tuesday that Joey Chestnut will not compete in the 2024 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest.
Competitive eating fans will relish this news -- Joey Chestnut and Takeru Kobayashi will face off against each other in a live hot-dog-eating competition on Labor Day.
Netflix announced the live event on Wednesday afternoon in a social media post.
"A rivalry simmering for 15 years. CHESTNUT VS. KOBAYASHI: UNFINISHED BEEF — the ultimate hot dog eating competition — will air LIVE on Netflix, Monday, September 2," the post said.
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Netflix said the event will take place Monday, Sept. 2. No time was announced.
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Chestnut said he was '"gutted" by Major League Editing's decision to remove him from this year's competition.
Major League Eating said in a statement: "MLE and Nathan's went to great lengths in recent months to accommodate Joey and his management team, agreeing to the appearance fee and allowing Joey to compete in a rival unbranded hot dog eating contest on Labor Day," the statement read. "For nearly two decades we have worked under the same basic hot dog exclusivity provisions. However, it seems that Joey and his managers have prioritized a new partnership with a different hot dog brand over our long-time relationship."
Kobayashi, the six-time Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest champion, recently announced he is retiring from competitive eating over concerns of the damage he is doing to his body, he announced in a new film.
In "Hack Your Health - The Secrets of Your Gut" on Netflix, Kobayashi expressed concern about the damage his career had on his health, and in particular his brain and his cut.
"Ever since I started this career, I've wondered what damage I've done to my body," he said. "I want to know how it is damaging my brain and my nervous system."
Kobayashi said he thinks he's eaten 10,000 hot dogs during his career.
Chestnut and Kobayashi last competed against each other in 2019's hot dog eating competition at Coney Island.
