Terunofuji is the new ozeki. I’m eager to see the next banzuke. He will likely be ozeki 1 East while Kisenosato will be ozeki 1 West, Goeido as ozeki 2 East, and kadoban Kotoshogiku as ozeki 2 West. What interests me is if this will motivate Ichinojo or lower sanyaku/top maegashira wrestlers. It seemed this atmosphere has lit a bit of a fire under other rikishi.
There will also be two fresh faces in Juryo: Mitakeumi and Takaryu.
After his red-hot Makuuchi debut, Ichinojo has certainly cooled a little… has he been carrying an injury, or do you think the other top guys are just starting to figure him out?
He had some tricks early on, especially the tachiai tactics against Kisenosato. He doesn’t pull out any more tricks and Tochinoshin has been consistently able to account for his size. In some cases his effort doesn’t seem to be there, like he’s just coasting to 7 or 8 wins, picking up his paycheck, and moving on. But, seeing Terunofuji fly up through the ranks to ozeki may be effective at getting him to buckle down.