Kobayashi Suffering From "Jaw Arthritis"

Japanese competitive eating phenom Takeru ‘Tsunami’ Kobayashi has been sidelined from his “sport” by a crippling case of “jaw arthritis.” “My jaw refused to fight anymore,” Kobayashi explained. “I feel ashamed that I couldn’t notice the alarm bells set off by my own body…but with the goal to win another title…I couldn’t stop my  training so close to the competition.” Kobayashi will be notably absent at the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest on Coney Island, where he has won 6 titles, and set the current world record last year with 53 and a half hot dogs consumed in a twelve minute span. Kobayashi also holds the world record for eating cow brains. Gross. Eating 53 and a half hot dogs in one sitting is one thing, but cow brains! That’s just nasty.

--Ben Richardson