Battle at the Independence Hot Dog Eating Contest

The Fourth of July is the time to haul out the greatest of American traditions...competitive eating.

Ever since George Washington chopped down and subsequently devoured an entire cherry tree (bark included), Americans have proudly out-consumed each other at every possible opportunity. But the impressive feats of early heroes (including the famous consumption by Abraham Lincoln of political rival Stephen Douglas) have become a distant memory as Japanese phenomenon Takeru Kobayashi annually takes home the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating crown. Hoping to reassert American dominance, patriot Joey Chestnut was pegged as having the best chance to unseat the champion.

Kobayashi's strongest competition was Joey Chestnut, a 220-pound civil engineering student from San Jose, Calif., who set an American record by eating 50 hot dogs during a recent qualifying tournament in Las Vegas.

But it was not meant to be. Not only did Kobayashi win the contest, he bested the over/under of 50 hot dogs (in 12 minutes) and beat the odds to set a new world record of 53 3/4. Chestnut turned in an impressive performance of his own, downing 52 dogs. After the contest he outlined his plan to devour the 160 pound Kobayashi as part of his training regimen for next year's big event.

Champ Breaks Record at Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest [Fox News]

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