Hakuoho will be back on Day 13, along with stablemate Kawazoe down in sandanme.
The Juryo contest is still a three horse race between Endo, Wakatakakage, and Onokatsu. But Onokatsu will fight Endo tomorrow while Wakatakakage takes on Shiden. I imagine they will have WTK take on Onokatsu on Day 14, setting up a thrilling final weekend.
Once again, NHK videos are available here.
Let’s get to the action.
Day 12 Highlights
Ichiyamamoto (6-6) defeated Ryuden (7-5). Ichiyamamoto used his brand of sumo to overpower Ryuden. Ryuden was unable to establish any sort of inside position to even attempt a grip on Ichi’s belt. Oshitaoshi.
Roga (5-7) defeated Nishikifuji (4-8). Nishikifuji came out hard at the tachiai, forceful with his tsuppari. Roga attempted to settle the bout and bring Nishikifuji under control by moving inside and forcing a belt battle. Nishikifuji reached in with his right and pulled Roga around but Roga used his right hand grip to pull Nishikifuji down. I wonder if he broke his hand or a finger because he was slow to get up and was indicating an injury to his hand. His hand was wedged in Roga’s belt when he went down, so it might have gotten caught. Uwatedashinage.
Sadanoumi (7-5) defeated Churanoumi (7-5). Sadanoumi had the advantage throughout this bout and tried to put Churanoumi away several times but Churanoumi had excellent footwork and would not get pushed out or shoved down. Sadanoumi changed his grip and pulled Churanoumi down with his left while swinging him by the belt grip with his right. Uwatenage.
Hokutofuji (6-6) defeated Tsurugisho (3-9). Tsurugisho put in his best effort to avoid being walked backward, as had happened the past few days. He used that upper body strength to hoist Hokutofuji but Hokutofuji continued the rotation and brought Tsurugisho down in the center of the ring. I have no idea how this is an Oshitaoshi and not a throw of some kind. Shitatenage, anybody?
Tamawashi (5-7) defeated Tomokaze (2-10). Tomokaze is broken and Tamawashi chucked him into the audience since the bin for the chikarakami is too small. Oshidashi.
Oshoma (9-3) defeated Shodai (5-7). Shodai was moving forward today, which was a great sign. His weight got too far ahead of his feet, though, and Oshoma brought him down. A mono-ii was called because Oshoma’s hand came down on Shodai’s topknot in a way that was suspicious for a hairpull but there was no hairpull. Gunbai-dori. Hatakikomi.
Tokihayate (5-7) defeated Nishikigi (3-9). Tokihayate launched himself at Nishikigi but Nishikigi shrugged off the charge and bulled Tokihayate toward the edge of the ring. Tokihayate twisted at the edge and tried to throw Nishikigi. As Nishikigi stumbled, Tokihayate finished him off with a gentle shove. Yorikiri.
Kinbozan (7-5) defeated Midorifuji (5-7). Solid footwork and fundamentals from Kinbozan as he maneuvered Midorifuji to the edge and out. Tsukidashi.
Onosho (5-7) defeated Takanosho (5-7). Onosho gripped Takanosho and whipped him around and down. Tsukiotoshi.
Halftime.
Kotoshoho (8-4) defeated Ura (6-6). Kotoshoho cycled backwards and dragged Ura out and down by the arm. Kotenage.
Takayasu (6-1-5) defeated Tobizaru (4-8). Tobizaru’s half-hearted henka met Takayasu’s full-hearted slap-down. Hatakikomi.
Hiradoumi (6-6) defeated Gonoyama (5-7). Hiradoumi hit Gonoyama hard at the tachiai but pulled, immediately. Gonoyama avoided going out and was trying to regain his balance at the edge when Hiradoumi circled back and picked him off…not gently. Thus, the “taoshi.” Oshitaoshi.
Atamifuji (5-7) defeated Oho (4-8). In the comments we’ve been talking with a bit of consternation about Oho’s tendency to pull. He did it again today and Atamifuji made him pay. Atamifuji blocked his initial forward progress but he had still worked Atamifuji beyond the shikirisen, about half way to the edge. This initial resistance was Oho’s trigger for a pull. But Atamifuji was not off balance and was ready. He drove Oho to the edge where it was Oho’s turn to resist, with futility. Atamifuji just churned those legs and blasted Oho into the crowd. Oshitaoshi.
Meisei (8-4) defeated Daieisho (8-4). Daieisho hit Meisei with just about everything he had. Tsuppari, stronger shoves, pulls, slapdown attempts…but Meisei had perseverance and misdirection. Once he got Daieisho near the bales, he pivoted and shoved Daieisho out. Tsukidashi.
Sanyaku
Onosato (9-3) defeated Takarafuji (8-4). Onosato dispatched Takarafuji, quickly. The takarabune set sail during a hurricane. The strong winds immediately overpowered the little dinghy and drove it back to the shore. Oshidashi.
Abi (8-4) defeated Shonannoumi (9-3). Shonannoumi got Abliterated. Abi’s tsuppari drove Shonannoumi backwards. Oddly, Abi tried a slapdown despite the fact that he was making great progress. Perhaps it was just habit? Shonannoumi did not go down but as Abi re-engaged with his shoves, Abi drove Shonannoumi back and out. Oshidashi.
Hoshoryu (8-4) defeated Mitakeumi (8-4). Mitakeumi should not be facing an Ozeki in this condition. It is beyond me why the lower-ranked Maegashira did not do their job and get dirt on him. He cannot bear much weight on that left foot. Hoshoryu wrapped him up and drove him back, yanking Mitakeumi to the right (Mitakeumi’s left). This made Mitakeumi left up on his left foot. Hoshoryu then plowed ahead as Mitakeumi hopped on his right foot. Yorikiri.
Kotozakura (9-3) defeated Wakamotoharu (3-6-3). Kotozakura pulled, trying to throw Wakamotoharu over the edge. Wakamotoharu used his own solid right-hand belt grip to pitch Kotozakura forward. Kotozakura kept his balance by hopping forward on his right leg and drove back into Wakamotoharu, pulling him down. Gunbai Kotozakura but this was close. A mono-ii was called but Shonosuke got it right with his initial call. Sukuinage.
Wrap-up
Speaking of dead things, I’m going to resurrect a dead conversation. My frustration with dead bodies is with cases like this where rather than looking at the timing of “death,” the bout decision relies on when so-and-so touches the ground first. Kotozakura was clearly in an unrecoverable position, foot in the air, before Wakamotoharu was in danger of going down. But Kotozakura is allowed to continue his attack though there is no way he will regain his balance.
The key for me is that I feel that in the Tobizaru/Kotozakura bout, until Tobizaru was down, he should have been allowed to attack. He did, and he pulled Kotozakura forward and out before he landed, though his body was, admittedly, in an unrecoverable position – whether his foot was in or not. The foot being in gives a concrete decision point where the judges can say, Kotozakura was out while Tobizaru was in, done. Instead, there’s this nebulous point when Tobizaru was “dead” and anything he did afterwards was essentially superfluous and that nebulous timing of death is never concretely defined.
Anyway, I think it’s instructive, and fun, to play devil’s advocate in situations where there is so much uncertainty around rules and when there is deliberate obscurity. Why? I think it is silly when governing bodies come up with silly rules, like the NFL’s “Tuck Rule,” to make up for blown calls and I don’t want to see that happen in sumo. Ambiguity allows for shenanigans and I do not like shenanigans. Your banzuke rank, for example, should not be safe just because your bright orange mawashi is the orangest of them all.
Back to more important matters, this crazy yusho. With Shonannoumi’s loss, he falls back into a four-way tie with Kotozakura, Onosato, and Oshoma. Oshoma will face his first test in Wakamotoharu while Shonannoumi will face Kotozakura. Onosato will take on Ura. Remember when Ura was leading this thing? He’s 6-6 and in danger of makekoshi.
Meanwhile, Kotoshoho has stormed back from his shaky start to the tournament and got his kachi-koshi. He and six other guys are one loss back: Hoshoryu, Abi, Daieisho, Meisei, Mitakeumi, the fore-mentioned Kotoshoho, and Takarafuji. Hoshoryu, meanwhile, takes on Midorifuji. Abi will face Meisei. Daieisho will take on Mitakeumi and Takarafuji will fight Kinbozan..who is fighting for kachi-koshi.
I’m looking forward to more action tonight. Who knows where this is going?
Not to gloss over today’s action, but looking at tomorrow’s fight card makes me go WTF. It feels like a throw-away day, scheduling-wise, making everything come down to the final two days. Unless they’re trying for a Darwin bout spectacular on the final day, and day 13 is the setup day for that.
Seriously, Midorifuji for Hoshoryu? A hobbled 3-9 Wakamotoharu vs. co-leading 9-3 Oshoma? A clearly flagging Ura vs. the prodigy Onosato? Kotozakura/Shonannoumi is the only credible challenge for any of the lead pack.
(BTW, I got on this tangent ’cause the headline says day 13, instead of day 12, and that got me thinking ahead).
Yeah, ummm…I teleported to the future and it looks bleak.
Thank you for catching that. I fixed the title but not the tweet.
I don’t like Wakamotoharu for Oshoma either.
But Midorifuji leads the head-to-head against Hoshoryu 7-6. Therefore absolutely no walk in the park for the Ozeki.
Onosato is a difficult customer, except for Abi and Tobizaru he already met every rikishi who is better ranked than Ura! I guess they keep Meisei and Abi for him. Maybe they could have done something with Shonannoumi?
Well, there are 3 days to go and 4 leaders of which Onosato and Kotozakura can’t meet anymore. Kotozakura is also a lock on senshuraku against Hoshoryu.
Tomorrow either Kotozakura or Shonannoumi is removed from the leader group, while the other one will stay in the lead for sure. Onosato and Oshoma could both drop or stay, but whatever happens, Oshoma can still be matched with all 3 others, while Onosato can still take on Shonannoumi.
I don’t think they want to try to force everyone down to 4 losses Also Meisei vs. Abi and Mitakeumi vs Daieisho will reduce the chaser group, so over the last two days they have plenty of options to shape the race the form they want and prevent a Maegashira from accidentally winning.
First highlight for me today was Sadanoumi vs. Churanoumi. After 1s I thought this thing was over but Churanoumi escaped from an unrecoverable position. The following very fast paced exchange saw opportunities for both sides and a few leg trip attempts until Sadanoumi converted his advantage.
Oshoma is a positive surprise this basho. He stayed calm vs. Shodai’s attacks and outlasted him. Not something that was necessarily to be expected.
Ura didn’t show up at all today. The kimarite is kotenage, but he already stepped out before that throw without Kotoshoho doing much. Like he completely lost his ring sense. Ura meets Onosato tomorrow. At this rate he might want to pray at a local shrine for favourable matchups the last two days.
Oho did the Oho thing. Atamifuji was grateful for a free win. Can I pray for Ōtake beta being merged into some other stable?
Daieisho threw another won fight. Something he does regularly in similar manner. I don’t know if he got a little dizzy or something, but Meisei was ripe to go out with just the tiniest little push, but Daieisho went for an attack angle, that stabilised him instead. This could turn out as a very costly loss.
Onosato unsurprisingly made very quick work of Takarafuji.
Shonannoumi stole a page from Oho’s book. Unfortunately the wrong one. So you absorb the initial storm that is Abi’s tachiai and decide to pull? Fantastic idea.
Mitakeumi had nothing to stop Hoshoryu today, who surely is regretting some of those week 1 losses now.
Kotozakura with another very narrow escape. How many more times will that work. He was a dead body for a long time. Fortunately/unfortunately one still slightly touching ground with one foot.
So we still have 11 rikishi in the thick of the race. There might even be some scenarios for the 5 loss guys to still get involved. Crazy.
The demotion picture seems pretty clear with 4 tickets secured. Roga and Tokihayate can probably secure there spot with one more win. Endo and Wakatakakage should have their return tickets secured. Chiyoshoma needs one more win to be completely safe, but unless Daiamami, Bushozan and Kagayaki win out probably has done enough already. Onokatsu could benefit from the 3 aforementioned not finishing strong, especially if he manages to get 14 wins.
Yes, I think Kotoshoho-Ura was more yorikiri than kotenage with that big step out by Ura before the throw happened.
Completely agree with this.
So, dead bodies: While I never thought I fully understood the rule, the one thing I thought I knew was that it only came in play if the rikishi is airborne, flying past the tawara. As long as the bottom of a foot is touching the earth inside the bales, as with the legendary Antaeus, life remains.
So I don’t think there’s any difficulty with today’s Kotozakura-Wakamotoharu result, and kudos to the gyoji for seeing WKM’s knee go down.
Of course, this is a topic because of Day 5’s Kotozakura defeat of Tobizaru. Commenter Larry S said then that he saw the monkey go out first on slo-mo. If so, then there’s no issue. If Tobizaru did stay in (as I thought), then I think rather than ascribe his loss to dead body, I think either:
• Tobizaru was up on the tip or top of his toes, and lost for that
• it was just a blown call.
It’s just that in this freeze frame, Kotozakura’s foot is airborne. I don’t think it is only for, “out of bounds” instances.
I didn’t see that freeze frame, but even so I don’t see how dead body (shintai) comes into play here.
Fair enough, shintai can be for inside the tawara, and I may have been too broad in my original comment, but I think that the way it would come into play in this context would be if, for example, Kotozakura had put a hand down before WKM’s knee hit, but the gyoji/judges decided it was to prevent injury, then WKM would be the dead body and lose.
You seem to have gotten to a place where if the attacking rikishi leaves the ground then that puts his win in jeopardy, and that’s just not the case. Here, Kotozakura attempted a throw and it worked. End of story. It was a close call because of the small time interval between the men going down, but otherwise a straightforward shiroboshi for the ozeki.
I love learning from you and the Tachiai team, but I think you’re overthinking this one.
“You seem to have gotten to a place where if the attacking rikishi leaves the ground then that puts his win in jeopardy”
I’m just in the place where I want the point in time where a wrestler is in “an unrecoverable position” defined and applied consistently. It is not. My website, at various times attempts to explain the rules of the sport and I like to point to Kyokai documentation/sources. It’s just…bimyō. I don’t like bimyō. As I said, that opens the door to “influence.”
The point is that when a rikishi is taken off his feet inside the dohyo, it’s almost always possible – with very few exceptions like being completely flipped over – that he will return to the ground in a legal position, if perhaps only for another split second before something other than his feet goes down as well. By contrast, a rikishi getting sent off the ground and past the tawara cannot possibly obtain a legal position anymore, which is why shinitai concerns are largely limited to those scenarios.
Which is why cases like Tobizaru and the others where they do maintain legal position, only touching with the bottom of their feet where they are allowed to. I get it and I get that Tobizaru lost. I guess what I am looking for is, where was Tobizaru dead? At what point was the match over? That seems difficult to pinpoint because it was NOT when Tobizaru touched outside the ring. When you are planning a nice webpage to explain the rules of the sport, it becomes more challenging.
The way how the leaderboard keep looking like one of those “Swinging & Rocking Huge Galleon Amusement Park’s Attraction” since the beginning of the tournament….i just cannot foresee how this basho cannot end in a playoff…somehow.
That “pirate ship” is even litteraly ready to do a full circle around with a multi way playoff i say. Watch it swing and go !
Ura has embarrassed himself with his shoddy performance the last 6 days. He embarrassed me for foolishly predicting success. But the entertaining (?) facial expressions and somersaults have returned!
I’m joining you on that. Sadly, the crazy Ura Yusho hope is no more.
But at least Ura is still being Ura. The king of entertaining sumo ! And he always still deliver that !
When Ura was 6-0 I wrote that he is probably going to finish 10-5 or 9-6. Now he is trending towards a 6-9 finish. Somewhere on the way he probably left his confidence.
Great text, Andy, thanks.
I loved the Onosato v Takarafuji description but U even topped that with „Tobizaru’s half-hearted henka met Takayasu’s full-hearted slap-down.“
Very short, very true and above all, very funny!
Thank you!
Looked over the Tsurugisho/Hokutofuji bout for several times. There was no inside belt-grip to execute a shitatenage, just a push to the chest. Not easy to spot from that angle.
Does shitatenage require a belt grip? Or just a grip of the opponent inside their arm? Like how yorikiri doesn’t require a belt grip.
I think those throws do require a belt grip. Otherwise it’s a sukuinage: “beltless arm throw”.
Inside their arm with no belt grip would be a sukuinage, I think. For Yorikiri it‘s not important, if a belt grip is practiced inside or outside the arms or you just hold the opponent in some way. Just my interim knowledge :)
The pull Abi tried is one of the standard tactics for power forward sumo guys. Chiyotairyu used it often and it’s also in Takayasu’s playbook. You hit hard and then try to time the pull for the moment when your opponent ups his power to meet you.
I think Onosato is still the likeliest to win this cup. He already defeated Kotozakura, lost to Takayasu and Hoshoryu and I just don’t see who else is going to beat him (from this current bunch…)
As for the dead body thing, my 2.5 years of watching sumo have not been enough to work out how it’s supposed to be applied, they just pull it out sometimes (not too often, thankfully) in what seems to my untrained eye to be a pretty random way. It’s true though that I can’t recall it ever being applied inside the ring.
It can apply in the ring in the following scenario — if you overbear or throw someone and you both fall but you’re on top you’re allowed to put your hand down before your opponent touches the ground to keep your weight from landing full on them and causing them injury (this is called kabai-te, protective hand).