The 4th of July usually means a time for celebration and parties across the United States of America, but for us, it means Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest is back for another edition in 2024.
Ths year however the legendary Joey Chestnut won’t be competing due to a sponsorship conflict leaving him ineligible, meaning we will have a new champion for the first time since 2015.
So who is going to be the man to step up and claim victory in his absence? We’ll take a look at the contenders for the title and provide you with our best free betting picks to try an earn you some extra cash for the holiday.
| Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest 2024 |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geoffrey Esper | -110 | -200 | -200 |
| James Webb | +175 | +220 | +220 |
| Nick Wehry | +300 | +400 | +400 |
| Bartley Weaver IV | +1000 | +2500 | +2500 |
| Gideon Oji | +3300 | +2500 | +2500 |
Below you’ll find a list of favorites to win the 2024 edition of Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.
Geoffrey Esper is a 49-year-old, hailing from Oxford, Massachusetts and he is the favorite heading into the 2024 contest with Joey Chestnut not involved.
He already has a host of records to his name including 83 slices of pizza in 10 minutes in April 2018 281 Hooters’ chicken wings in September 2019, 293 Jack’s Donut Holes in eight minutes and 36 4.5oz Brats in ten minutes too. He is a machine who would have dominated the scene had it not been for the freak of nature Chestnut.
In fact, the last three editions of this contest have seen Esper finish behind Chestnut as the runner-up. He ate 50 hot dogs in 2021, 47 hot dogs in 2022 and 49 hot dogs in 2023 and will be expecting that a similar total in 2024 will actually earn him the crown.
His own record for hot dogs is 51, but bearing in mind he came second with 47 last year he may not even need to break that record to match the achievement. His ability to eat a lot in a short amount of time is phenomenal, and he deserves to have the victory on his resumé after finishing as runner-up so many times.
It’s undoubtedly a more open competition than before without Chestnut. In the past, if you were betting on Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest odds then your best value came from the ‘Without Joey Chestnut’ market such was his dominance.
But with no Chestnut, Esper is the bet to make. He is the only one competing to have ever hit the 50 mark before, so as long as there are no unexpected issues on the day he is the man to beat.
Check out our review for BetOnline sports betting here.
James Webb is a 35 year old male from Sydney, Australia and he was the first Australian to compete in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.
He consumed 41 hot dogs in 2022, to finish third behind Chestnut and Esper, before improving hugely in 2023 with 47 dogs, but that could only maintain his third-place spot on the podium. As a relative newcomer to competitive eating in the United States, the Aussie has definitely proved that he belongs in this space.
You would expect that he now has a better idea of the techniques and timings of the competition, and can put that to use this year in his next attempt, and he has records that will help him in his goal to reach 50 dogs.
He ate 70 glazed donuts in eight minutes just last month while he has previously eaten 224 chicken wings in ten minutes, with all his records coming in 2024.
He’s constantly improving his totals and with no Chestnut pulling away in the distance, he may be able to run Esper close for the title this year. At +220, there is excellent value in backing him to get the job done although he is rightly an underdog.
Check out our review for Bovada sports betting here.
Nick Wehry is a 34-year-old from Tampa, Florida who has go competitive eating running through the family.
Wehry is married to Miki Sudo, the legendary women’s champion in this contest who has also won nine Yellow Mustard Belts in her career. In fact, the only time she didn’t win this competition was in 2021 when she didn’t compete due to pregnancy, but she has won the last two editions since returning.
Nick is also a bodybuilder who finished 10th way back in 2018, eating 31 hot dogs without training. He improved to third with 44 hot dogs in 2021, fourth in 2022 with 40.5 hot dogs, and fourth in 2023 with 45 hot dogs.
He is clearly learning an improving as he takes the sport more seriously, but pushing on to victory in Chestnut’s absence seems like a bridge too far on this occasion.
Check out our review for BetUS sports betting here.
About the Author
Daniel is a football writer who has a great thirst for the Premier League and other major European leagues. A lover of the beautiful game and a firm believer that the eye test is better than statistics. Also an avid MMA fan.
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