A PROFESSIONAL competitive eater from Chicago downed 444 chicken wings in 30 minutes at the 23 rd annual Wing Bowl in Philadelphia , narrowly edging out his nearest rival and shattering the record of 363 wings set a year earlier . “ I have the sweats but I feel a lot better because I know I don ’ t have to eat any more chicken wings, ” the winner , Patrick Bertoletti, said after narrowly beating prior record - holder Molly Schuyler , who gobbled 440 wings in front of a crowd of thousands at the area where the city’s National Basketball Association franchise , the 76 ers , plays. Bertoletti ate 50 wings in the last two minutes of the contest, ripping the meat from the bone and stuffing it in his mouth , a technique that left him chewing for more than two minutes after the final buzzer rang . The new record shocked Angelo Cataldi, the sports talk radio broadcaster who conceived of the contest as a consolation to Philadelphia sports fans , who have seen their Eagles football team make