Multicab driver Leonard Quintos Jr. ate his way to P500,000 in prize money at the 7-Eleven Big Match BigBite Hotdog Eating Competition Finals held at the SM Mall of Asia on Saturday, November 14.

The contest is considered the first and biggest of its kind in Southeast Asia, both in scope and the amount of prize money at stake.

Quintos tied with another contestant, Filipino-American nursing student Kyle de Guzman, for eating 13 hotdogs during the championships.

Each contender was given 50 hotdog sandwiches and 10 minutes to finish as many as they could.

However, Quintos was able to eat more hotdogs than De Guzman during the 3-minute tie-breaker round. Competition judges announced that Quintos chowed down 74 grams more than De Guzman did during the tie-breaker.

Filipino 'gurgitator'

Quintos was cheered on by his wife, his fellow jeepney drivers, and several 7-Eleven Baclaran store clerks who encouraged him to join the competition.

Hailed as the country's first "Filipino Gurgitator", Quintos said he trained for the finals by eating rice non-stop.

The competition finals was canceled on September 26 due to storm Ondoy, giving contestants about 2 months more to train.

Asked about his winning strategy, Quintos told abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak: "Bahala na ang nasa itaas sa akin. [I leave that up to God.]" He added that he will use the prize money to start a garment business.

In all, the final top two contenders - De Guzman, 30, and Quintos, 22 - ate over 17 hotdogs each during the competition.

Quintos was one of 25 male finalists from all over Luzon, who clocked in the fastest times for eating 5 BigBite Jumbo-sized classic flavor hotdogs in one sitting.

The elimination rounds were held at various 7-Eleven branches nationwide from July to August. Official time records from 1,311 partipants were tallied for 6 weeks before the 25 finalists were chosen.

'Surprise win'

Quintos's victory was a surprise for judges who expected the top 2 elimination round contenders - students Donald Jao and De Guzman - to win in the finals.

Jao, 20, finished at first place during the semi-finals, eating 5 hotdog sandwiches within 1 minute and 3 seconds.

During the championships, however, Jao coughed out his eighth hotdog (because he was sick) and was disqualified.

"At first I was trying to beat my own record. But after the storm hit and the competition got canceled, I sort of stopped training. But I made it this far, and I hope to come back next year," he told abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak.

Hotdog training

De Guzman, meanwhile, placed 2nd overall during the qualifying rounds with a record of 1 minute 7 seconds.

He trained for 3 months before the Finals with the help of his best friend and fellow Filipino-American Frankie Vasquez, who was raised in Texas. Both are students from the University of Pangasinan.

"I researched a lot about competitive eating. I'm a nursing student so, with the whole nutrition thing, it's all about eating right and physiological stuff. It's also mentally challenging," said De Guzman, who hails from San Jose in California.

During his "hotdog training", De Guzman would drink 4 liters of water (a gallon) in 5 minutes to expand his stomach. He would also eat 20 hotdogs at least once a week, then eat vegetables and oatmeal to help with digestion.

During the competition, De Guzman would put earphones over his ears and dance to music by the rock, funk, and hip-hop band N.E.R.D. in order to relax and feel happy.

Other contestants had their own strategies for winning during the Big Match Finals, like eating 2 hotdogs at a time or soaking hotdog buns in water to make them easier to swallow.

The current world record for most hotdogs eaten is held by American competitive eater Joey Chestnut, who ate 68 hotdogs in 10 minutes (6.8 hotdogs and buns per minute) at the 2009 Nathan's Hotdog Eating Contest.

'RP is hotdog eating capital'

7-Eleven invited another American competitive eater named Tom "Goose" Gilbert last July and pitted him against Filipino contestants.

Jao beat Gilbert's record of eating 5 hotdogs within 1 minute 20 seconds.

"This means the Philippines can take a crack at this sport," 7-Eleven Food Service Division Manager Armi Andrade said, adding that the contest appeals to Filipinos' love for eating and for bonding over food.

7-Eleven Philippines sells 16 million hotdogs a year and the company is reportedly one of the world's largest hotdog retailers.

Victor Paterno, president of 7-Eleven Philippines, said Filipinos' love for hotdogs could be attributed to "the Americans' influence on our taste of food."

Andrade said the hotdog eating competition, meant to promote the 7-Eleven brand, has helped boost sales in stores nationwide - even after the contest ended.

7-Eleven Philippines, run by the Philippine Seven Corporation, has 405 branches nationwide.

Open to foreigners next year

Joanne Dinwoodie, 7-Eleven Global Marketing and Merchandising Director, said the franchise is planning to open up the Philippine Big Match competition to international contenders next year.

She said they have gotten inquiries from foreign competitive eaters who were attracted by the contest's prize money of P500,000 or $10,700. "That's a big prize for a big bite," Dinwoodie said.

Competitive eating or speed eating is considered an extreme sport in the United States, and is regulated mainly by the International Federation of Competitive Eating.

LIST OF COMPETITION WINNERS:

1 - Leopoldo "Black Hole" Quintos Jr. (Baclaran)

2 - Kyle "The Beast" de Guzman (Dagupan)

3 - Edwin "Lightning Strike" Duque (Villamor)

4 - John Paul "El Macho" Aragoncillo (KcKinley Hills)

5 - Alejandro Villarino (Adriatico)

6 - Jose Lucrecio "Running Devil" Rivera (Parang)

7 - Domingo "Symphony of Digestion" Beltrano (Olongapo City)

PRIZES:

1st place - P500,000

2nd place - P150,000

3rd place - P75,000

4th to 7th - P20,000

Source:

Jeepney driver is RP's 1st hotdog-eating champ by Kristine Servando, abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak. | 11/16/2009 9:34 PM

Original article on: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/lifestyle/11/16/09/jeepney-driver-rps-1st-hotdog-eating-champ