Joey Chestnut to Defend Title At Second-Annual Pacific Park World Taco-Eating Championship

Top-Ranked Eaters to Converge in Santa Monica to Compete for $5,000 in Prizes

Joey Chestnut, the number-one ranked competitive eater in the world, along with other top-ranked Major League Eating athletes, will gather in Santa Monica, Calif., for the second-annual Pacific Park World Taco-Eating Championship. This year’s competition, presented by Pepsi, will take place at 11:00 A.M. on National Taco Day—Friday, October 4, 2019—at Pacific Park, 380 Santa Monica Pier, Santa Monica, CA 90401. The competition will feature up to 15 Major League Eaters from across the nation.

The event honoring “National Taco Day” will set a new world record for the number of Pacific Park Los Angeles street-style carnitas tacos that can be eaten in eight minutes. At last year’s inaugural event, Chestnut demolished 62 street-style carnitas tacos to take the title and set a world record in the discipline.

“Pacific Park’s World Taco-Eating Championship is becoming the premier eating competition on the West Coast and continues to draw the top talent in the field,” said Jeff Klocke, Vice President and General Manager of Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. “We are excited to welcome our new presenting sponsor, Pepsi, who is supporting the efforts of MLE and Pacific Park to engage the top competitive eaters in the world.”

“We are thrilled to be back in Santa Monica for the second-annual Pacific Park World Taco-Eating Championship,” said Richard Shea, President of Major League Eating. “Leading MLE athletes are hungry for this title, and Chestnut will be hard-pressed to defend his title.”

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The Pacific Park 2019 World Taco Eating Championship will be held at Pacific Park on the legendary Santa Monica Pier with a background featuring the world-famous Pacific Wheel Ferris wheel. Rising 130 feet above the Pacific Ocean, the Pacific Wheel has been featured in thousands of films, television shows and commercials, print and online ads, and social media posts. Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier is the most Instagrammed location in Los Angeles.

Chestnut will face fierce competition. Other top-ranked eating talents in attendance will include the number 5-ranked Gideon Oji from Morrow, GA; number 1 ranked female competitive eater in the world, and No. 6-ranked overall, Miki Sudo from Tucson, AZ; No. 8-ranked Nick Wehry from Torrington, CT; No. 44-ranked Sergio Reyes Raya from San Francisco, CA, and No. 47-ranked Mary Bowers from Beverly Hills, CA.

About Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier

Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier, LA’s only admission free amusement park, offers 12 amusement rides, 14 midway games, an oceanfront food plaza and beach-side retail shops. Signature rides include the Pacific Wheel, the world’s first solar-powered Ferris wheel; The West Coaster, a steel roller coaster that races 55 feet above the Santa Monica Bay; and Inkie’s Air Lift Balloon Ride, the high-flying, family-share kids ride. For additional information and hours of operation, please call 310-260-8744, visit pacpark.com, and go to Facebook.com/pacificpark, Instagram.com/pacpark or Twitter.com/pacpark.

About Major League Eating:

Major League Eating (MLE), the world governing body of all stomach-centric sports, conducts more than 80 events annually, including the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest in Coney Island, N.Y. The competitive eating community is made up of more than 8,000 veteran and rookie gurgitators who travel the nation in search of top titles and the glory that they provide. For more information, visit at www.MajorLeagueEating.com, follow on Twitter and Instagram @eatingcontest, and like them on Facebook www.facebook.com/eatfast.

This article was updated on October 1st to include the most recent roster of competitors expected to attend.