Clinches Promotion With Harumafuji Upset.
Day 14 action in Tokyo saw a belter of match between Yokozuna Harumafuji and Takayasu. Having achieved his 33rd win in the last three basho, Takayasu was eligible for promotion to Ozeki, but it had been widely said that it was more or less contingent on his performance over the last 3 bouts. With his stunning victory over Harumafuji, that condition is for all practical purposes, lifted.
Given that his day 14 opponent is Shodai, Takayasu could even finish the basho with 12 wins, which would be his tie his Jun-Yusho in 2013 (and his thunderous performance at Osaka).
We have been stating for over a year that Takayasu represented the best hope to become the next Ozeki, and we are so very happy that he has reached sumo’s second highest rank. The Ozeki corps has been very shaky for some time, and Tachiai hopes the infusion of new blood will bring order and stability to upper San’yaku.
:) Awww, the big fuzzy teddy bear had zabuton thrown at him! Man, that dude they showed on GSH looked like he was having a blast throwing those cushions, too. Here’s hoping that Terunofuji gets pelted with cushions tomorrow! I want to see a super duper cage match! (yes, I know that doesn’t happen, but wouldn’t it be kind of neat to see chain link fencing put around the dohyo for the final day’s playoffs?)
Only if we can get zombie Chyonofuji and cyborg Akibono in there as well.
Oh Yeah!! Make it tag team sumo with no disqualifications and gyojis get to randomly come by and sweep kick the contestants. :) All the while we change the words to the Ultimate Showdown (Lemon Demons) played with replaced sumo wrestler legends.
… I really need this weekend to start. :)
Is there any reason Takayasu couldn’t go further and make it 13 wins this basho?
No reason at all. I try not to predict the future too much, as it’s always changing.
Terunofuji.
Kaiju is hurting more every day. I am curious to see what kind of condition he is in after Hakuho on day 14. But yeah, beating Terunofuji would be a huge outcome for Takayasu.
I would almost make him the favorite for that matchup as of now
Takayasu at his best is not better than Terunofuji at his best, but Terunofuji is very clearly crocked
I would love to see a 13 win basho for Takayasu making it so that he only has to get 26 over the next 2 for Yokozuna contention
Not that I think this is realistic, but I can see a scenario where he goes 3-2 each time vs the other 2 ozeki and 3 non-tagonoura yokozuna
There’s no 39-wins guideline for yokozuna promotions, and sekiwake tournaments don’t count in any case…
Hmmm – i don’t know where i must have got that – thought I had seen it as a number floated as the equivalent performance of winning 2 straight tournaments, over 3
But fair enough re: Sekiwake tournaments not counting. I just want to see things get tasty with the YDC!
When Kakuryu was promoted, I remember seeing people discussing ways to get around the consecutive yusho requirement. But I could see them staying strict about that now.
Mentioning Takayasu and Yokozuna warped my brain. But it is realistic now. He’s doing extremely well and others are falling by the wayside, rapidly. I feel the pressure would be on for Kakuryu to retire, though, if Takayasu picks up a yusho and generates Yokozuna buzz.
It’s still quite a way from Takayasu’s current 10-12 win capability to regular yusho contention though. Just ask Kise…
Actually, it would be pretty ironic if Kise ends up as the wall to Takayasu’s yokozuna ambitions, but if the arm injury heals properly it could very well happen – I still think he’s got the best shot at profiting from the continued crumbling of all the other top rankers. (And I do suspect Hakuho’s success this basho will turn out to be a last hurrah type of thing, not a career revival.)
“I still think he’s got the best shot at profiting from the continued crumbling of all the other top rankers. (And I do suspect Hakuho’s success this basho will turn out to be a last hurrah type of thing, not a career revival.)”
This.
Though as far as longevity is concerned, I see retirements in this order:
Kakuryu,
Kotoshogiku,
Harumafuji,
Hakuho.
I’m not going to pretend to know enough about their conditions to go into timelines. But based on their relative health over the past year, it appears Hakuho is the most healthy, and Kakuryu/Kotoshogiku are the least. Harumafuji still has some gas in the tank but doesn’t appear to be as healthy as Hakuho.