INDIANAPOLIS — There was a big upset at the St. Elmo Shrimp Cocktail Eating Championship on Saturday.
Joey "Jaws" Chestnut hoped to stay undefeated in the ninth year of the event held in Indianapolis, but in the end, the world's greatest eater was not number one.
It was Geoff Esper who took home the $3,000 top prize.
He ate a staggering 16 pounds, 6.4 ounces of shrimp cocktail in 8 minutes to become the new World Famous St. Elmo Shrimp Cocktail Eating Champion.
In 2018, Chestnut set a shrimp cocktail-eating world record by devouring 18 pounds, 9.6 ounces. Until Saturday, he had won every event since the inception of the St. Elmo Shrimp Cocktail Eating Championship.
At last year’s championship, Chestnut ate 17 pounds, 1.6 ounces. Esper came in second, eating 14 pounds, 4.8 ounces.
This year Esper came back with vengeance to break Chestnut's eight-time winning streak.
He and Chestnut were among seven other top names in Major League Eating who were vying for the title.
Full results:
- Geoff Esper: 16 pounds, 6.4 ounces
- Miki Sudo: 14 pounds, 14.4 ounces
- Nick Wehry: 11 pounds
- Joey Chestnut: 10 pounds, 9.6 ounces
- Derek Jacobs: 6 pounds
- Matthew Raible: 4 pounds, 8 ounces
- Holly Titus: 2 pounds, 8 ounces
The annual contest was held at the Big Ten Tailgate Party in downtown Indianapolis ahead of the Big Ten Football Championship game between Purdue and Michigan.
There was some good news for Purdue in the undercard cocktail eating contest.
John Gebhard, representing Purdue, beat Andrew Kogutkiewicz in a matchup meant to predict the outcome of Saturday night's football game.