Nathan's Annual Hot Dog Eating Contest Crowns Winner Who Swallowed 71 Hot Dogs in 10 Minutes

There are many talented people around the world, but only a few are capable of eating as many hot dogs as Joey "Jaws" Chestnut, who recently defended his hot dog-eating title.

The 35-year-old was one of the participants of the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest, which took place in Coney Island, in the New York City borough of Brooklyn.

Chestnut had an amazing performance and proved he is the absolute best by eating a total of 71 hot dogs, falling a little short of the 74 he managed to swallow last year.

AN INCREASINGLY POPULAR ATTRACTION

Thousands and thousands of fans rushed to Coney Island to attend the 2019 edition of the contest, which has a history that goes all the way back to 1972.

The event's popularity has grown as the decades went by, drawing massive crowds every year, and started being televised by ESPN in 2004. According to TV By the Numbers, last year the contest was seen by 1.141 million viewers.

MAKING A POINT BY DEFEATING THE BEST OF THE BEST

As aforementioned, Chestnut successfully defended his title, winning by a large margin. He was able to eat 13 more hot dogs than Darron Breeden, who snagged the second place with 48 hot dogs.

He seemed to be on his way to break his own record but started slowing down as time went by

But although he ate way more than his closest opponent, Chestnut still faced some strong competition, such as Geoffrey Esper, the World Pizza Eating Champion and current No. 2-Eater in the World by Major League Eating.

Former champion and No. 3-Ranked Eater in the World Matt Stonie, who won the Contest in 2015, was also among the contestants but wasn't a threat to Chestnut's crown.

THE EPIC FACE-OFF WITH MATT STONIE

The two men met at the Empire State Building before the competition during the required weigh-in and posed for a photo facing each other while holding hot dogs.

Last year Chestnut set a record for eating 74 hot dogs. At one point during this year's contest, he seemed to be on his way to break that record but started slowing down as time went by.