New York/San Francisco  - Japan's competitive eater Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi, 31, ceded defeat again Saturday to the 25-year- old Californian Joey "Jaws" Chestnut in what's become their annual Fourth-of-July eat-off on Coney Island, outside New York City.

Chestnut downed a world-record 68 wieners and rolls in ten minutes, besting Kobayashi's 64, who came in second. The third place eaater lagged way behind with only 54.

Last year, Chestnut and Kobayashi went stomach-to-stomach with a tie of 59 hot dogs. Chestnut won the five-dog extended play, eating them faster than Kobayashi.

It was the third annual win for Chestnut in the 94-year-old Independence Day event.

"I've been practicing hard," Chestnut was quoted by the Daily News as saying after the eat-off. "I knew it would be hard to beat me."

Chestnut has now held the title for three years, after beating six-time champion Kobayashi in 2007 by eating 66 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes.(dpa)