Sonya Thomas Wins San Antonio Qualifier With 64 Krystal Burger Points

Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas beat out Erik "The Red" Denmark for first place at the KSO VI San Antonio Qualifier

It was a stifling 98 degrees at Six Flags Fiesta Texas during the first San Antonio Krystal Square Off Qualifier in history, but by the size and excitement of the crowd, you would think locals have been coming to this summertime Krystal Square Off event for each of its six years.

Weighing in at a mere 105 pounds, Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas proved that she’s all stomach (and smiles) after downing 5 Big Angus Burgers and 39 Krystal Burgers for a total of 64 Krystal Burger Points. Thomas’ win secures her place at the championship table, where she will battle it out on live television against two of this year’s already confirmed eaters, second-ranked in the world Patrick Bertoletti, who took first place at the Chattanooga Qualifier this past weekend, and number-one ranked in the world Joey Chestnut, the KSO V winner.

Thomas, the number-one ranked female in the world, was no doubt the favorite to win. And, it looks like the new Big Angus Burger Points and “No-Dunking” rule only worked to her advantage. Not only did Thomas’ 64 Krystal Burger count win her the San Antonio Qualifier trophy, but it also broke her long standing record of 62 Krystals, which she ate at the 2007 Krystal Square Off Chattanooga Qualifier.

Finishing in a close second was 15th-ranked eater in the world, Erik “The Red” Denmark, who also shattered his personal best of 50 Krystals with a new Krystal Burger Point total of 55 – a great finish, but not quite good enough to pull out the much talked about upset over Thomas.

Check out who took the remaining 10 slots at today’s Qualifier:

1. Sonya Thomas – 64 Krystal Burger Points (39 Krystals, 5 Big Angus)
2. Erik Denmark – 55 Krystal Burger Points (30 Krystals, 5 Big Angus)
3. Homer Flores – 32 Krystal Burger Points (7 Krystals, 5 Big Angus)
4. Tie: T.J. Henderson/ Nick Bauer – 31 Krystal Burger Points (6 Krystals, 5 Big Angus)
5. John Baird – 22 Krystal Burger Points (2 Krystals, 4 Big Angus)
6. Nicholas Konecny – 21 Krystal Burger Points (1 Krystals, 4 Big Angus)
7. Shawn Chrystal – 19 Krystal Burger Points (9 Krystals, 2 Big Angus)
8. Marie Freire – 17 Krystal Burger Points (2 Krystals, 3 Big Angus)
9. Heber Ramos – 13 Krystal Burger Points (3 Krystals, 2 Big Angus)
10. Brad Norris – 8 Krystal Burger Points (8 Krystals, 0 Big Angus)

The next qualifier for Krystal Square Off VI takes place in Jacksonville on Labor Day – Monday, Sept. 7, where hometown hero and professional eater Hall “Hoover” Hunt will compete for a seat at the final table in Chattanooga on Sept. 27.

Stay tuned for more coverage from today’s event. As always, follow the Krystal Square Off VI on Twitter @KSquareOff for the most up-to-date news and announcements.

Quick Bites: San Antonio Krystal Square Off VI Qualifier

Erik "The Red" Denmark will attempt to beat last year's Krystal count and steal the favored spot from Sonya Thomas for a seat at the KSO VI finals.

The Krystal Square Off VI Qualifying Circuit continues this weekend with the Texas state qualifier in San Antonio, where Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas, Erik “The Red” Denmark and others compete for a seat at the live-televised championship event on Sept. 27 along the banks of the Tennessee River in downtown Chattanooga. Below are some quick bites of info for you to chew on between now and then.

Contest Bites:

• This is the first time in the Krystal Square Off six-year history that a Qualifier will be held in San Antonio, Texas.
• There will be a series of two-minute Pre-Qualifying Events for San Antonio locals on Friday, Aug. 28. For details, click here.
• The San Antonio Qualifier will take place on Saturday, Aug. 29 at Six Flags Fiesta Texas. The 8-minute contest will start at 2:00 p.m.
• Six Flags Fiesta Texas is located in a former rock quarry in the development “La Cantera,” which means “rock quarry” in Spanish.
• Open Registration for five amateur hopefuls will be held on-the-spot starting at 1:00 p.m.
• All eaters competing at the San Antonio Qualifier will have to contend with Krystal’s new Big Angus Burger Points and “No-Dunking” Rule.
• Sonya Thomas, the number-one ranked female eater in the world, will headline the San Antonio Qualifier on Saturday. Her personal best is 62 Krystals, which she did at the 2007 Chattanooga Qualifier.
• Sonya Thomas has competed all six years of the Krystal Square Off.
• Erik “The Red” Denmark, who recently placed 8th at Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Championship and is currently the 15th-ranked eater in the world, will battle it out with Sonya at the San Antonio Qualifier.
• Four of the eaters confirmed for the San Antonio Qualifier are in the Top 50 of Major League Eating’s world rankings.
• At least eight different cities and five states will be represented at the table on Saturday.
• The current list of confirmed eaters includes: Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas (Alexandria, VA), Erik “The Red” Denmark (Seattle, WA), Nic Fry (Hays, KS), Yasir Salem (New York, NY), Ronnie Simicek (Richmond, TX), Nick Bauer (Houston, TX), T.J. Henderson (Nederland, TX).
• Krystal Lovers can receive live updates from the San Antonio Qualifier via Twitter @ksquareoff.

Krystal Square Off To Host Pre-Qualifying Events In San Antonio This Friday

Sonya Thomas hopes to make a come back at the Krystal Square Off VI San Antonio Qualifier with a better performance than seen here in Jacksonville last year.

Well known to Krystal Lovers all across the South, The Krystal Square Off VI World Hamburger Eating Championship is spreading the excitement to its fans in Texas by hosting one of its seven Qualifying events in the great city of San Antonio this Saturday. And to introduce KSO VI to San Antonians, Krystal will kick things off on Friday prior to the main event with a series of Pre-Qualifiers that are exclusive to the San Antonio market.

Check out the details below…

The Krystal Square Off VI Pre-Qualifying Event on Friday, August 28 will include a series of 2-minute eating contests that give amateur hopefuls the chance to compete in the main San Antonio Qualifier at Six Flags Fiesta Texas on Saturday, Aug. 29. Local Krystal Lovers will eat one Big Angus Burger and as many Famous Krystal Burgers as possible in order to win, while adhering to the new Big Angus Burger Points and “No-Dunking” rule (click here to read more about new rule changes). The top two eaters of the night will be guaranteed a spot at the San Antonio Qualifying event and the chance to go up against competitive eaters Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas and Erik “The Red” Denmark.

Krystal Lovers must be 18 years and older to participate in the KSO VI Pre-Qualifiers, which are set to take place Friday, August 28 from 5 – 8 p.m. at the Krystal Restaurant located at 7953 Pat Booker Rd., San Antonio, TX 78233.

Stay tuned for more information about the main Krystal Square Off San Antonio Qualifier, where there will be even more opportunities for amateur contenders to show off their gustatory might and battle for a spot at the main table in downtown Chattanooga on Sept. 27.

Follow @ksquareoff on Twitter for the most up-to-date Krystal Square Off news.