Joey Chestnut net worth: Does he make more than UFC fighters?

Joey Chestnut is probably the biggest name in competitive eating (yes that's a real thing). He's won the Nathan's Hot Dog eating contest numerous times, his most famous time being in 2007 when he defeated six-time defending champion Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi by consuming a world record 66 hot dogs and buns.

He doesn't win every year (sometimes that honor goes to Matt Stone, who is equally well-known in the field).

But how much does he actually make a year? According to the Daily Mail, he makes $4 million a year from prize money and brand deals.

To put that into context for some MMA fans ... he makes a hell of a lot more than most UFC fighters do.

His net worth doesn't scratch the surface of fighters like Conor McGregor's $200 million or Anderson Silva's $18 million (according to Sarkarilist.com) but he's above and beyond some of the more "normally" paid MMA fighters.

According to en.as, some of the lower tier fighters make $10,000 a fight and at just three fights a year, if they are lucky, they are making only $30,000 a year. Look at the PFL champions who make $1 million for their PFL finals fight, that's still $3 million less than Chestnut.

Maybe it's time for some of these fighters to switch careers.

How to watch the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest

ESPN will be broadcasting the event with the men's contest airing at noon ET on ESPN2.