Takeru Kobayashi Breaks Hot Dog Eating World Record, Unofficially

(EndPlay Staff Reports) - Competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi scarfed down enough hot dogs on the Fourth of July to break the world record.

The catch, though, was it was an unofficial record as the wiener war between the Japanese eater and the official competive eating governing body continued.

Kobayashi did his eating on a Manhattan high-rise roof top miles away from the Nathan's Famous International Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island in Brooklyn, N.Y.

At Coney Island Joey "Jaws" Chestnut won his fifth straight victory in the actual 10-minute contest as he ate 62 dogs and buns, six short of his 2009 world record.

Kobayashi, banned from competing because he won't sign an exclusive contract with Major League Eating, broke the record by eating 69 in 10 minutes.

Kobayashi, arrested in 2010 for crashing the contest's stage, did his eating atop the roof of the nightclub 230 Fifth. Deadspin.com described the scene as Kobayashi, with two judges watching, timed his eating to match up with the ESPN footage of the actual contest shown on a nearby big-screen TV.

"It was terrible what happened to him at Coney Island last year, but he came here and showed he could beat them all," a fan, Marlene London, told Manhattan news website DNAinfo.com .

Major League Eating, the governing body over the sport, wasn't buying it. AOL News reported Major League Eating president George Shea called it a "farce."

"The champion of the world is crowned in Coney Island," he said. "Always has been, always will be. (Kobayashi) put a tin crown on his head and called himself king."

The renegade eater can be seen on YouTube .

AOL News said that after appearing on the competitive eating circuit a decade ago Kobayashi had won six straight Nathan's Famous contests. Kobayashi told AOL News that Major League Eating representatives had contacted him before this year's contest but continued to demand that he sign a restrictive contract in order to get the right to compete.

"I want to remain free to compete in the events that I want to compete in," he said.

230 Fifth owner Steven Greenberg, who paid Kobayashi an appearance fee, told Deadspin he had contacted Kobayashi after the 2010 arrest.

"It was a no-brainer, he's such a huge name," Greenburg told DNAinfo.com. "Kobi takes it very, very seriously. He created it as a sport."

Greenburg hopes to attract Chestnut to the rooftop night club on Labor Day, reported Deadspin.com .