Eating superstar Joey 鈥淛aws鈥� Chestnut shook off a rain delay and gobbled his way to another win at Nathan鈥檚 Famous Fourth of July hot dog eating contest, downing 62 franks and buns in 10 minutes.

Chestnut out ate runner-up Geoffrey Esper and the rest of an international field of 15 competitive eaters by double digits to clinch his 16th title. Esper, of Oxford, Massachusetts managed to ingest 49 hot dogs and buns.

In the women鈥檚 contest, defending champion Miki Sudo forced down 39 1/2 hot dogs and buns to collect her ninth Mustard Belt. But before the men could compete, stormy weather moved over New York City鈥檚 Coney Island and delayed the competition for two hours.

鈥淲hat a roller coaster, emotionally,鈥� Chestnut said after riding out the rain and wondering whether the famed contest would go on at all. The 39-year-old from Westfield, Indiana first competed for the Nathan鈥檚 title in 2005 and hasn鈥檛 lost it since 2015.

His best finish was in 2021 when he tallied 76 hot dogs, but Tuesday鈥檚 weather disruption made a repeat impossible.

鈥淓verybody got messed up,鈥� Chestnut said.

Sudo beat Mayoi Ebihara鈥檚 33 1/2 hot dogs in 10 minutes in a women鈥檚 event that appeared to be much closer until the final count was announced. The unofficial real-time counter showed the two leaders tied throughout much of the competition. A final count of plates settled the score.

Sudo, 37, was disappointed in her winning total, which was nine hot dogs short of her all-time high. She said competition from the 27-year-old Ebihara had thrown her off.

鈥淭he first couple minutes, I found myself watching her, which I never want to do. I never want to be distracted by the other competitors,鈥� Sudo, of Port Richey, Florida, said after the competition. 鈥淲atching her, I fumbled my hands. I got stuck with a big burp early on but was able to correct.鈥�

The annual contest on New York City鈥檚 Coney Island drew competitors from England, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Brazil and Australia, according to ESPN.

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