In case you missed the action yesterday, Takeru Kobayashi has been defeated.

NEW YORK -- In a gut-busting showdown that combined drama, daring and indigestion, Joey Chestnut emerged Wednesday as the world's hot dog eating champion, knocking off six-time winner Takeru Kobayashi in a rousing yet repulsive triumph.

I've actually been following Kobayashi's career for a number of years now. It started when I happened to catch a special on him, and they were interviewing him at this sushi bar. One of those ones with the boats that float past the tables on the little river conveyor belt deal. Kobayashi, who looked to have maybe a 24 inch waist, just kept taking plates off the boats and munching. He stacked the plates on the table as he finished each portion. At the end of the interview, he got up and stood on the table and the stack of plates came up to his chin. As they left the restaurant, he mentioned that he would probably be hungry "in a few hours," since it had been a light lunch.

Hard to imagine that fellow being taken down, though he did beat his own previous record by an amazing 9.5 hotdogs.