Joey Chestnut is Hooters Wing-Eating Champion

Hooters named Joey Chestnut the official Wing-Eating World Champion after his performance at the original Hooters restaurant in Clearwater, Fla., during the culmination of the 10-city Hooters Wing-Eating World Championship tour.

Chestnut, the number one ranked world champion eater from San Jose, Calif., ate 144 wings in 10 minutes to claim the title and take home $7,500 in cash prizes.

Adrian “The Rabbit” Morgan, from Baton Rouge, La., took placed second, finishing 140 wings. The 100-pound Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas, from Alexandria, Va., finished third with 131 wings.

Officially sanctioned by Major League Eating, the Hooters Wing-Eating World Championship is the first time the chicken wing eating discipline has been part of a championship circuit to identify and crown an official world champ, says Hooters.

The competition is part of a weekend celebration of National Chicken Wing Day, which is today, July 29. Today, participating Hooters locations will offer a special promotion, “buy 10 wings, get 10 wings free” for dine-in guests.

Chestnut beat 11 other competitors for the title. Professional eating hopefuls competed regionally throughout the summer as part of a 10-city championship tour to qualify for the event.

Hooters of America, LLC, is the franchisor and operator of over 430 Hooters restaurants in 44 states and 27 foreign countries.