Early on Thursday in Osaka, American sumotori Wakaichiro (若一郎) defeated veteran Burinosato to improve his record to 5-1, improving his chances of being promoted to Jonidan. The bout was a bit messy, with the tachiai being out of sync (and probably should have resulted in a matta). But Wakaichiro persisted and quickly drove Burinosato from the ring.
There seems to be some effort to tame Wakaichiro’s naturally very bold and kinky hair, which the Tachiai team predicts will never succeed.
Congratulations to Wakaichiro, and Tachiai looks forward to seeing him in Jonidan in May. He has one bout remaining that will likely take place day 14, and as always we will bring you the details.
If he makes it to Makuuchi, the Tachiai blog will be his first sponsor. Seriously, as an economist, I find kenshokin fascinating. And as a sumo fan, I want to get sumo to a point where every makuuchi wrestler is picking up a few envelopes. These bouts are amazing.
Actually, I had my sites set on a nearer goal. If he gets to close to Juryo, I am pondering the ways to raise enough cash for his kesho-mawashi.