The REPORTER & WISH-TV
Competitive eater Joey Chestnut successfully munched and crunched his way to a new world record Tuesday night at Victory Field.
Chestnut had eight minutes to eat more than 28.5, 24-ounce servings of popcorn – equal to nearly 43 pounds of the buttery, salty stuff – as part of the World Record Popcorn-Eating Challenge.
Preliminary results show that Chestnut ate more than 29 servings. Verification of these results will be performed by the Guinness Book of World Records before being accepted and finalized.
It was a tall order, but Chestnut has history on his side. He already holds more competitive eating records than any other athlete in history. His records include eating 76 Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs and buns in 10 minutes, and 18 pounds, 9.6 ounces of St. Elmo shrimp cocktail in eight minutes.
The competitive eater, who lives in Westfield, stopped by Daybreak on Tuesday to discuss his strategy for the popcorn-eating challenge.
“I have a plan of attack on how I’m gonna go in and attack it. It’s actually really hard to eat fast,” Chestnut said. “So, I’m drinking water during it to get it down. You can’t really dunk popcorn, but it’s definitely faster when I’m drinking water. I’m taking the right size handful, squeezing it just a little bit, too, but really I’m depending on the water to wash it down.”
Joey Chestnut signs an autograph at Victory Field on Aug. 16. (Photo provided / WISH-TV)
A week ago, Chestnut popped by Victory Field and devoured items from $2 menu during the Indianapolis Indians game against the Iowa Cubs. He says there were also two popcorn-eating practice sessions – one just for technique and one for technique and capacity.
Practices – and the competitions themselves – are better when the food is good, according to Chestnut.
“It’s so much better when I enjoy the food. I mean there are times where I’m like, ‘All right, I have to ignore the taste. It’s been sitting out too long.’ But popcorn…salty and buttery. They make it themselves, so it’s really good, and I’m excited for it.”
After the game, fans exiting Victory Field received complimentary bottles of Chestnut’s very own Creamy Green Hatch and Jalapeno Wing and Dipping Sauce.
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