The competitive eating world has been rocked by allegations that Nick Wehry, the fourth-place finisher in this year’s Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest, cheated to inflate his score. Wehry, the husband of women’s division champion Miki Sudo, is accused of using sleight-of-hand tactics to boost his tally from 46.75 to 51.75 hot dogs, surpassing the coveted 50-dog threshold.
According to sources cited by The New York Post, Wehry allegedly “stole plates” from another competitor’s stack, adding them to his own to falsely increase his count. “100% he cheated,” one source told The Post. Another source highlighted the significance of surpassing the 50-dog mark, noting that “for someone to have on the record that they ate more than 50, makes you part of a very small elite club of competitive eaters.”
Footage from the event shows Wehry hovering around the stage after the competition, appearing to move plates, which has fueled the controversy. However, Wehry vehemently denies the allegations, stating, “I would never cheat at a contest, regardless of why. People that know me know that.”
Major League Eating (MLE), the governing body of the contest, conducted an investigation and reviewed the video footage. In a statement to TMZ Sports, MLE said, “Like many other professional sports leagues, it is our policy to not overturn judges’ decisions after the final results have been recorded.” Despite the probe, MLE did not find sufficient evidence to alter the official results.
Wehry’s wife, Miki Sudo, also defended him, asserting, “I was watching Nick the entire time, there is a camera on him the entire time, there’s no way the judges got it wrong.”
The allegations have stirred significant controversy in the competitive eating community, a sport where integrity is paramount. As one individual suggested, “I believe the final score of 46.75 should be his final count, and also believe they should consider this was a deliberate act of cheating and disqualify him from the overall competition.”
