Odd

Champ eater 'uses hands more than mouth'

Published Monday, Sep 6 2010, 13:00 BST | By Mayer Nissim

The winner of the ninth annual National Buffalo Wing Festival has revealed the hands-on tactic which helped her defeat Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut in the championship bout on Sunday.

Sonya 'The Black Widow' Thomas beat the favourite Chestnut in the town of Buffalo, from where the spiced chicken wings are said to originate, after eating nearly 181 wings in 12 minutes, The AP reports.

Thomas said: "I'm so happy! Sometimes if I try to chew too much I slow down. I used my hands more than the mouth."

Festival founder Drew Cerza said: "They pushed each other really hard. Joey is so strong. He's got great jaw strength. But Sonya's so fast with the hand."

Chestnut, who could only consume 169 wings, is currently ranked first in the world by the International Federation of Competitive Eating.

Thomas described the championship-winning tally as "an appetiser" and later made a guest appearance at the Ridiculously Hot Buffalo Wing Eating Contest, where she ate 20 more wings.

"The hottest wings!" she added. "I had to drink a lot of water."