Last night, Daily Show reporter Aasif Mandvi delved deep into a hidden danger poisoning the nation's youth: hot dog addiction. According to Science, there's a link between hot dogs and cancer, and hot dogs are as addictive as...somewhere between The Wire and crack. Just ask special guest star and unrepentant addict Takeru Kobayashi, who tries his darndest to scare the kids straight. more ›

We're just a few weeks away from the annual Nathan's Hotdog Eating Contest at Coney Island, and it's time to get serious about placing your bets. There's big money to had with this thing, people! Here's what we're looking at this year. more ›

The epic battle of wills between Major League Eating and major league eater Takeru Kobayashi has not cooled since the hot-dog eater went to jail last July 4. Hidden by the League's announcement of a new ladies-only hot dog eating contest was the fact that Kobayashi, a six-time world champion, has been removed from the league's "Wall of Fame." Worse, he's been replaced by no less than Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas, who has never won the competition (but has eaten a terrifying 41 dogs and buns in ten minutes). more ›

All of us were told at some point in elementary school about the historical context of Thanksgiving: give thanks, blah blah blah, but soon we realized the truth. On Thanksgiving, we sit at a table with family and friends and eat until our jeggings don't fit anymore. Today competitive hot dog eater Takeru Kobayashi, takes the overeating tradition to a whole new level. Just 11 days after he failed to break the Guinness Record for pizza eating, Kobayashi will attempt a new challenge; he will eat an entire turkey by himself. (Who says the holidays are all about sharing?) more ›

When Hot Dog enthusiast Takeru Kobayashi was not allowed to participate in last summer's Nathans Hot Dog Eating Contest due to a contract dispute, he stormed the stage in a bizarre protest and ended up spending a night in jail. After that long night's journey into day, it seems he's decided to temporarily abandon the processed meat which he so dearly loves in favor of a different greasy treat: pizza. Kobayashi plans to eat a 12-inch pie on Saturday in Brooklyn, to try to break the world record, which was set in New Zealand in 2008 and stands at 1 minute, 45 seconds. Kobayashi previously beat his arch-nemesis Joey Chestnut in a pizza eating contest in 2009. more ›

Now that the case against the competitive eating star Takeru Kobayashi has been settled, he wants to get something straight: it was all just a big misunderstanding! In a post on his website, Kobayashi claims his 4th of July arrest for jumping on stage after the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest was a crime of passion. more ›

Hungry for some more details about the most important competitive eating court case in the history of the sport? CNN reports that Takeru Kobayashi may be a free man after his court hearing on Thursday, but that's only provided he stays out of trouble for the next six months. Not too bad considering he was charged with resisting arrest, trespassing, obstruction of governmental administration and disorderly conduct after storming the stage at this year's annual Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Competition on Coney Island. The deal is sitting well with Kobayashi, who declared, "I am very happy. It was a more nervous victory than winning the eating contest." He'll be celebrating with a pizza eating contest in Ontario, Canada later this month. more ›

Takerua Kobayashi just had his day in court... and for some reason TMZ was on the scene in Brooklyn with a live stream of the "action." To recap: Kobayashi was arrested last month at the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest after he refused to compete under the MLE's contract, and stormed the stage as Joey Chestnut received the Mustard Belt. According to TMZ, who has TOTAL COVERAGE of this important hearing, the judge has now dismissed the case. They report, "He was issued an Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal (ACD). Basically the case will be officially dismissed 6 months from now." The competitive eater is now free to shove water-dunked meat slurry down his throat. Mmm... tastes like justice. more ›

Competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi is fresh out of jail after being charged with obstruction of governmental administration, resisting arrest, trespassing and disorderly conduct at this year's Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest. While he usually finds himself behind a stack of hot dogs at the annual event, this year he refused to bend to Major League Eating's contract and wasn't allowed to compete. Instead, the "Tsunami" showed up and stormed the stage. more ›

Here's video of six-time Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest champion Takeru Kobayashi discussing why he jumped onstage after Sunday's event, which led to his arrest on charges of obstruction of governmental administration; resisting arrest; trespassing and disorderly conduct. Kobayashi, who did not compete due to a contract dispute (he claims organizers would limit his participation in other events), said through a translator, "I went as a spectator to cheer on my friends, and everyone was yelling 'let him eat,' so I was hoping they would let me eat and prove I am still the champ." And, yes, he wished he could have had hot dogs because all he had was a peanut butter sandwich and milk! more ›

While this year's Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest threatened to be overshadowed by Takeru Kobayashi's arrest after the event, two people who enjoyed the display for its pure, human endurance-testing, Coney Island-exciting, 100% beef self were Michael Bisberg and Laura Silver. The pair won VIP passes to the contest from us and shared their photographs and observations from the heart of the action. more ›

There are a few more details about the strange arrest of competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi after Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest. Kobayashi, who claimed he was not participating in the event he won six times because of a dispute with Major League Eating organizers (hence the "Free Kobi" shirt), had been watching the event from the crowd. Apparently the crowd's chanting of his name inspired him to rush the stage; he said, "I went as a spectator to cheer on my buddies that I used to eat with. Everyone in the crowd kep chanting 'let him eat, let him eat'. So I jumped onto the stage to prove that I am still the champ, but I was arrested." more ›

After watching Joey Chestnut hold onto the Mustard Belt from the sidelines, thanks to a contract dispute, beloved competitive eater Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi was arrested after Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest. According to the AP, "Kobayashi went on stage after the competition. Police officers grabbed him, and he tried to hold onto police barricades as they took him into custody." more ›

In an interview with the Post, three-time Mustard belt champion Joey "Jaws" Chestnut attempts to intimidate anyone looking to claim the title. Apparently the competitive eater has only gotten sick once in his career, during a Vienna sausage-eating contest. He said, "They had the gelatinous little nasty ones, the ones that come in a can. That's when I figured out I needed to practice with the food." He also says he prepping for a surprise appearance by arch-rival Takeru "The Tsunami" Kobayashi, who said he will not compete due to contractual issues. Chestnut says, "I don't trust him. This is not too different from his ploy three years ago—he said he had a hurt jaw and might not compete." more ›

Today, the contestants for Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest weighed in at City Hall. While Joey "Jaws" Chestnut, the reigning champ for three straight years, showed off his Mustard Belt, it wasn't the same without his archrival, Takeru "The Tsunami" Kobayashi, the Japanese phenom who has won the contest six times. Kobayashi claimed that a contract dispute with contest organizers was keeping him out of the July 4th event, Mayor Bloomberg stepped into the fray, saying, "Well, you know what they say: If you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen." more ›

Earlier this week we learned that this year's Nathan's Famous July Fourth Hot Dog Eating Contest would be lacking in both vuvuzelas and Takeru Kobayashi, meaning Joey Chestnut is a shoe-in for winning the competitive eating contest (this would be his fourth consecutive title). But why no Kobayashi? Early rumors mentioned a problem in contract negotiations, and now the Daily News reports on the finer details. more ›

The 4th of July is canceled, everyone! Not really, but it might as well be. According to a press release Major League Eating president Richard Shea just sent out: “Takeru Kobayashi is currently not scheduled to compete in the 2010 Nathan's Famous July Fourth Hot Dog Eating Contest. In recent weeks, Major League Eating has sought to arrive at an agreement with Kobayashi, but contract negotiations have reached an impasse. MLE remains hopeful that Kobayashi, who won the contest from 2001-2006, will decide to compete this July 4th in Coney Island, when Joey Chestnut will seek his fourth consecutive title.” Also: competitive eating is a very serious sport with very serious contract negotiations? more ›

Right now history is going down (one man's throat) at Fulton Ferry Landing, as champion eater Takeru Kobayashi attempts to break the world record in meatball eating. How many meatballs can one human eat in one minute? Until now that answer has been 26. Our man Tien Mao is on the scene and we'll update as soon as we hear where the new record stands, that is, if Kobayashi doesn't buckle under the pressure of television cameras (it's being filmed). more ›

Joey Chestnut is now well on his way to a Kobayashi-like dynasty after winning his third consecutive Nathan's Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest. Chestnut jumped out to an early lead on his archrival Takeru Kobayashi and never looked back on his way to a new record of 68 hot dogs in 10 minutes. Kobayashi did everything he could to hold pace with Joey Jaws, setting his own personal record with 64 1/2 dogs—both men eclipsing the mark of 59 they both hit to send them into overtime a year ago. Chestnut even broke the 2007 record of 66 dogs that he set back when the old rules gave competitors an extra two minutes in regulation. more ›

Yesterday the top dogs of competitive eating faced off at the scales. Reigning champ Joey Chestnut and six-time winner Takeru Kobayashi were weighed in prior to their annual July 4th Nathan't Hot Dog showdown tomorrow. Chestnut, 25, came in at 218 lbs, to his 31-year-old competitor's 132 lbs. The two have faced off four times, with each taking home the belt twice, so this year will be a tie-breaker. Chestnut currently holds the world record, with his 2007 performance of eating 66 hot dogs in 12 minutes more ›

The holiday weekend has all but started, which means the countdown is on to the 94th Annual Nathans Hot Dog Eating Contest. Tens of thousands will be watching Takeru Kobayashi and reigning champ Joey Chestnut shove the sticks of mechanically recovered meat down their throats. The current record stands at 66 hot dogs, and analysts have posted odds on the contest, in case you're, like, betting on this or something.

Odds for the Winner of the 94th Nathans Annual Hot Dog Eating Contest more ›

As previously mentioned, competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi went to town on a bunch of fruitcake this morning, all in the name of fighting hunger for the Food Bank of NYC. Word has come in that he had 4 pounds 8 ounces of the holiday "treat" in 10 minutes—more than any human should ingest, but still shy of Sonya Thomas' record (4 pounds 14 ounces). He told the Daily News, "It was very difficult to eat because it was so dense." more ›

Competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi will do what no one wants to do: eat all the leftover holiday fruitcake! This is all part of the Major League Eating’s Holiday Food Bank Giving Initiative; the MLE tells us that "Kobayashi will attempt to break the fruitcake-eating world record, seeking to consume all fruitcake leftover from the holidays. The event is designed to benefit the Food Bank For New York City and to raise awareness of the crisis faced by food banks across the nation in the current economic environment." more ›

Yesterday's Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest had a lot to live up to after last year's heavily-hyped and record-breaking victory that saw Joey Chestnut bring the Mustard Belt back to America by snapping the six-year victory streak of legend Takeru Kobayashi. How did they manage to top it? Overtime! more ›

The air at Coney Island is charged as the annual Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest will be underway in moments. Contributor Billy Parker is on the scene and tells us the Nathan's "Franksters" (hot dog mascots) had a dance "to the death": "The old Frankster had serious moves, while a newer Frank was booed." Tien Mao, hot dog enthusiast, and I will also be chiming in. more ›

Tomorrow's big showdown is set, with reigning Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Champions Joey Chestnut facing off against six-time champ Takeru Kobayashi in the battle of who can devour-and keep down-more hot dogs in 10 minutes. The two, along with other contestants, were weighed in today. Kobayashi is 165 pounds while Chestnut is 230 pounds. Last year, Chestnut set the new world record by eating 66 hot dogs--66 hot dogs equal to about about 14.5 pounds (Kobayashi ate 63 hot dogs, a new personal best for him, equal to 13.8 pounds). more ›