James Webb of Sydney, Australia, devoured 13 1/2 pounds of chocolate fudge in eight minutes to win the title and $2,500 in prize money during the inaugural Eating Uranus Fudge Galactic Championship at the Uranus Missouri complex.
The contest took place last week at the Uranus Fudge Factory and General Store at the complex along Route 66 near St. Robert, Missouri.
For context, that’s more food weight than the famous 72-ounce steak dinner that’s free if eaten in an hour at the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo.
The runner-up was Geoffrey Esper of Oxford, Massachusetts, who pounded down 10 3/4 pounds of fudge from Uranus. Esper earned a $1,200 prize.
Nick Wehry and Miki Sudo, both of Tampa, Florida, took third and fourth place respectively. Wehry received $650 and Sudo earned $400. Wehry consumed 9 3/8 pounds and Sudo 8 1/2 pounds of fudge.
You can watch the event in all its gut-churning glory from its archived livestream:
In fifth place was Patrick “Deep Dish” Bertolleti of Chicago. Bertoletti earned $250 for eating 7 3/4 pounds of Uranus fudge in eight minutes.
Tying for 11th place were Crazy Legs Conti of New York City and John Gebhard of Fishers, Indiana. Each consumed 2 1/4 pounds of chocolate fudge from Uranus.
Amateur eater Daniel Hueppelshauser of nearby Crocker, Missouri, gobbled 1 pound of fudge from Uranus to take 13th place. He edged professional eater Dr. Rene Rovtar of Basking Ridge, New Jersey.
Rounding out the field were:
- Sixth, Radim “Steel Rod” Dvořáček, Czech Republic, 6 pounds
- Seventh, George “The Smorgasboard” Chiger, Pocono Pines, Pennsylvania, 5 1/2 pounds
- Eighth, Michelle “Cardboard Shell” Lesco, Tucson, Arizona, 5 pounds
- Ninth, Matthew Raible, Edwards, Illinois, 2 1/2 pounds
- Tenth, Jocelyn Young, Sherman, Texas, 2 3/8 pounds
Before the competition, Uranus Missouri Mayor Louie Keen announced the 2025 fudge-eating contest will be at his other location in Anderson, Indiana.
Uranus Missouri, known for sophomoric humor to draw tourists, includes an ice cream shop, escape room, playground, a putt-putt golf course, the world’s largest belt buckle and its infamous fudge factory.
(Images courtesy of Uranus Missouri)
I’m glad that happened in Uranus and not mine.