Joey Chestnut wrote on social media “thrilled to be returning” to the competition that was “a huge part of my life.”

Joey Chestnut will return to Coney Island for the 2025 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest this Fourth of July. The legendary competitive eater announced Monday in a series of posts on X that he will return to the annual event after he was banned from it last year due to his affiliation with Impossible Foods.

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. Though in the case of Joey Chestnut, it may be that absence makes the heart grow hungrier.