On one afternoon in 2015, the stars, planets, hot dogs and buns aligned for Matt Stonie.
The corner of Surf and Stillwell has become Joey Chestnut's personal playground. With about 1,200 hot dogs consumed at the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest after the 2023 edition, Chestnut has never finished lower than second since his first appearance, and has won 16 of 17 tournaments dating back to 2007.
But, Chestnut does have a single blemish on his otherwise Undertaker-esque dominance at the tournament, and his name is Matt Stonie. In 2015, Stonie did the unthinkable, ending Chestnut's streak of eight consecutive Mustard Belts to secure one of his own.
MORE: Full list of Joey Chestnut's competitive eating records
In defeat, Chestnut was graceful and thankful for a new challenger entering the fray who pushed him to his limits.
"I've been looking for competition for a long time and I finally have it," he said following his first defeat in eight tries. "He made me hungry."
Here's what happened on that fateful summer day in 2015:
Who beat Joey Chestnut?
At the 2015 Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating contest, Matt Stonie upset Joey Chestnut, eating 62 hot dogs to Chestnut's 60, breaking the champ's streak of eight consecutive Mustard Belt victories. As far as how Stonie unseated Chestnut: It was just a matter of training and a deep stomach.
"I trained hard for this. This is actually amazing," Stonie said after the win. … "We don't just go up there and eat hot dogs. We practice for this. We prepare our bodies. It was a tough contest. Joey brings it all. I had to push really hard to beat him. But I feel great."
Stonie flirted with defeating Chestnut in prior years, finishing in second place with 51 hot dogs in 2013 and 56 hot dogs in 2014. Chestnut finished those contests in dominant fashion, with 69 and 61 hot dogs, respectively.
It wasn't the first time that Stonie beat Chestnut. Stonie also won in competitions involved Twinkies, poutine, gyros and pumpkin pie.
Chestnut had made easy work of of his opponents in the eight contests prior, with his only brush with failure coming in 2008, when he and rival Takeru Kobayashi headed to an eat-off after both were tied with 59 dogs in regulation.
While Chestnut has been otherworldly in the tournament, he hasn't been infallible. Prior to Chestnut's first win at the hot dog eating contest in 2007, he was defeated by reigning, legendary champ Kobayashi in 2005 and 2006.
MORE: What happened to Takeru Kobayashi?
Stonie hasn't competed in a Nathan's hot dog eating contest since 2019, and hasn't captured the gastrointestinal highs of winning the tournament either. Between 2016 and 2019, he finished second, third, fifth and fourth, respectively.
"Megatoad" has had some success away from the plate, however. He's opened Stonie Bowls, a virtual restaurant chain with home delivery. The chain specializes in rice and poke bowls.
He also holds a number of records, including most silver dollar pancakes consumed in eight minutes, most Moon Pies eaten in eight minutes and most strips of bacon eaten in five minutes, among others.
Joey Chestnut hot dog eating contest results
Now 40 years old, Chestnut has competed in the Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest every year since 2005, winning 16 tournaments and finishing no lower than third (his rookie appearance).
He will not compete in the 2024 contest, however, since he is is banned from the competition for his contract with Impossible Foods.
Here's a list of Chestnut's tournament finishes and hot dogs consumed:
| Year | Hot dogs | Place |
| 2005 | 32 | Third |
| 2006 | 52 | Second |
| 2007 | 66 | First |
| 2008 | 59* | First |
| 2009 | 68 | First |
| 2010 | 54 | First |
| 2011 | 62 | First |
| 2012 | 68 | First |
| 2013 | 69 | First |
| 2014 | 61 | First |
| 2015 | 60 | Second |
| 2016 | 70 | First |
| 2017 | 72 | First |
| 2018 | 74 | First |
| 2019 | 71 | First |
| 2020 | 75 | First |
| 2021 | 76 | First |
| 2022 | 63 | First |
| 2023 | 62 | First |
| 19 years | 1,219 | First (16), second (two), third (once) |
*Chestnut beats out Kobayashi in an untimed eat-off, consuming five hot dogs in 50 seconds for the win. Total includes the five hot dogs in the eat off.
