Kobayashi: From Competitive-Eating Champion to Jailbird
Call it the dark side of competitive eating. Back on July 4, at the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, Brooklyn, some fans were disappointed to not see ex-frankfurter-stuffing champ Takeru Kobayashi up on the stage. Due to a contract dispute with Major League Eating, Kobayashi was barred from competing in the event. But he was still there on the sidelines, watching rival Joey Chestnut gorge himself to victory, and at some point the spectacle became too much for the world-class chomper to bear. He jumped to the stage in a hungry rage, and was later charged with resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. There is no telling if he will get to compete in next year's contest, but he'll now likely be known as the Bobby Fisher of stuffing hot dogs in your face.