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Joey Chestnut was sentenced to 180 days of probation after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of battery, court records show.
Us Weekly was the first to report that the 17-time Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest champion was at Joe’s Grill in Hamilton County, Indiana, Chestnut’s home state, when he slapped a drunk man in the face around 2 a.m. on March 21.
The victim allegedly recognized and approached Chestnut at the bar and exchanged a handshake just before Chestnut “slapped” him on the left side of the face, the outlet reported.
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Joey Chestnut grabbed a protester by the neck who interrupted the 2022 Nathan’s Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, New York, on July 4, 2022. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“The accused fired [the victim] moves forward, gets closer and uses his right hand to strike [the victim] on the face with an open hand. [The victim] is observed reacting to the blow and lowering his head and holding it there while the accused stands over him and [his friend]” the officer said in an affidavit obtained by Us Weekly. “[Chestnut] is heading towards [the victim] again and again [the victim] moves away from the accused.
“The touching was naked, insolent or angry because the open hand strike was not consensual to the victim in a way that caused pain while the defendant allegedly used provocative language towards the victim to provoke a reaction.”
The police officer added that the slap “resulted in bodily injury to [victim] in that he complained of pain on the left side of his face.
Defending champion Joey Chestnut competes in the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July 2023 International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York on July 4, 2023. The men’s competition was postponed due to thunderstorms, but then took place without spectators in the arena. (Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
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Chestnut, who said he was “pretty drunk and didn’t remember” what happened, pleaded guilty to battery resulting in bodily injury and was sentenced April 20.
The situation was quickly defused, however, and Chestnut took “full responsibility for this misunderstanding,” his lawyer told Us Weekly.
Chestnut has filed petitions to travel outside of Indiana, as the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest takes place at Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York, on July 4. He has been granted permission to travel, so as long as he performs well, he will fight for his 18th title in his last 19 attempts in less than two months.
Joey Chestnut wins the men’s competition at the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest in New York on July 4, 2025. He returned to compete for a 17th victory after missing the 2024 event due to a sponsorship dispute with Major League Eating. (Adam Gray/Getty Images)
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Chestnut was left out of the 2024 competition after signing a deal with Nathan’s rival Impossible Foods. Chestnut was still on the sidelines a few months before last year’s event when he announced that he and organizers had found common ground on sponsorships.
