It's Independence Day, which means fireworks, flags, parades and grown men and women inhaling as many hot dogs as possible in 10 minutes. The Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island will pit defending champ Joey Chestnut, aiming for his 10th title, against Matt Stonie, who won the event in 2015. But yet again, there will be no Takeru Kobayashi on the stage.
For the eighth straight year, the eccentric Japanese competitive eater and six-time Nathan's champ known as "The Tsunami" won't challenge Chestnut -- though he will be in New York, where he has lived for the last seven years.