Today we have a relatively short selection of videos, as one of my main sources decided to visit the Kokugikan rather than sit in front of her TV and film the bouts with her phone. Can’t blame her, getting a ticket for nakabi is quite a feat!
Jonokuchi
So you want to see why I love the stick-insect Chiyotaiyo? Take a look. Stick insect is on the left, Ayaminato, from Minato beya, is on the right. (The video is time-marked to skip the usually painful Bariki bout, but it contains several additional Jonokuchi bouts if you are interested).
First, Chiyo-stick-insect has a lovely shiko. Second, you don’t expect someone of his girth to do what he just did.
Jonidan
Motobayashi from naruto beya, with 3-0, wants to get a second consecutive yusho. To do this he has to get past Yabugasaki, from Yamahibiki beya, with a similar score. Here is Motobayashi on the right:
Business as usual, Motobayashi wins, and keeps himself in the yusho race, as well as reaching his kachi-koshi.
Next up is the next Naruto beya star, Marusho, who wants to repeat the scene from last basho. However, he is facing Toma, you know, the not-so-tiny guy from Miyagino beya. Marusho is on the left, and Toma… you can see which one he is.
Marusho doesn’t seem to believe what has just happened to him. Toma rolls him like a tiny temari ball. There goes the yusho. Toma is kachi-koshi, and in the yusho arasoi.
Next we have Kitanowaka, Hakkaku’s new hope (other than Okinoumi, I guess). He is on the left, going against Tochihayate, Kasugano beya. Both are 2-1.
Ungh-uh… I think it’s the second bout this basho that I see him doing a henka. Though he will have the respectable-sounding uwatenage covering it up on his record, years from now when he has an Ozeki run. Or Ozeki run-away.
Makushita
That’s right, I couldn’t find any interesting sandanme videos. So let’s skip directly to the hot division. Warm up with Yuki (right) vs. Ayanoumi (left):
A fight over reach of the mawashi start. Yuki plays defense, stalls, and then Ayanoumi nonchalantly trips and throws him. Lovely!
Next we have one of the leading matches of the day- Shiraishi, the strong new bloke from Tamanoi beya, on the left, gets to work with Chiyonokuni. Both are 3-0 at this point.
Kachi-koshi for Chiyonokuni, whose face is saying: “I’m a Gulliver in Lilliput here”. I guess he’s going for the Yusho.
But the road there is full of obstacles. There are other lossless rikishi in Makushita. For example, the popular Shonannoumi, on the left, vs. eldest Onami brother Wakatakamoto. Both are 3-0:
Wakatakamoto is having a great basho, and is not letting his small body – none of the Onami brothers is heavy – stand in his way. However, tomorrow he faces… I’ll tell you in a moment.
We now have a series of Isegahama boys to cover. First is the energetic Tomisakae, on the left, who is fighting against formere Komusubi Jokoryu. Jokoryu got stuck in the third division, just outside of the Juryo-hopeful range, for quite a while. They are both 2-1. Tomisakae on the left.
Boing! Boing! Oshidashi!
Tomisakae used to be one of Terunofuji’s army of tsukebito when he was Ozeki. Now he is in the same division as the big T, who is next on our watch list. The Kaiju is on the left, Hokutoyo (Hakkaku beya) is on the right. Both have perfect scores as they crouch down on the shikiri-sen.
Sigh. Terunofuji is kachi-koshi, and in the yusho arasoi, where he will face the aforementioned Wakatakamoto. Now that’s going to be a challenge for the eldest Onami. Only…
[Switching to Asashoryu mode]
Past Ozeki!! What are you doing??!! Dame-oshi is low and dirty!! You can’t say there is no harm!! There is harm!! Onaruto oyakata is injured because of your stupid dame-oshi!! Stop doing that! 🤬
[Switching off Asashoryu mode]
Moving on to our next Isegahama boy, Midorifuji, with 0-3, puts his hands on the ground in front of Nogami from Oguruma beya, with the same woeful score. Midorifuji is on the left.
Congratulations to Midori-kun for his shonichi! But Nogami got injured in this bout. The Isegahamas are doing damage today.
Juryo
And the other Isegahama man, Nishikifuji, got a big piece of bad karma today. He faces Ikioi on the right. First, in his state, Nishikifuji shouldn’t be doing Juryo bouts. Or any bouts. Second…
What he doesn’t need after this bout is a Torinaoshi, and that’s exactly what he gets.
The second time around he is a mess. Ikioi picks his 6th win, and Nishikifuji goes make-koshi.
So to sweeten out this painful Isegahama chapter, here is Kiribayama (left) vs. Daiamami (right), in a proper Juryo bout. Both 3-4.
Tomorrow (or rather, in a few hours), our focus is on the Onami brothers.
- Wakatakamoto gets Terunofuji.
- Wakamotoharu gets Kototebakari.
- Wakatakakage has a Makuuchi bout with Toyonoshima.
A relatively short selection of videos? Your standards are always rather high. Stick-boy is awesome. I like his shikona, too. I wasn’t expecting “sun”. The shimpan gave this look at the gyoji, like, “Flip that gumbai, kiddo. Don’t make me come up there.” The bout seemed more conventionally painful than the first one…though I am seriously wondering why the guy from the first bout can’t squat properly. It’s like his mawashi got tied WAY too tight.
I don’t know what illness sent Bariki off banzuke for several years, but he looks like his skin shrunk in the laundry and he just can’t stretch in any direction.
Best of luck to the Onami brothers! Especially Wakatakamoto, who still has to become a sekitori before his Oyakata retires. Wakatakakage and Wakamotoharu both have things riding on the table too though, with Wakatakakage in a good spot to take his first Makuuchi victory and Wakamotoharu on the cusp of his own return to sekitori status. Let’s hope for a very Onami Kyushu!
am definitely with you for an Onami Kyushu! they’re all in this for the long haul. have quite a few pics of the Onami’s round my place… in amongs my Oguruma’s and my Tomozuna’s hehehe
It’s great to see Terunofuji, Ikioi, and the grumpy badger all making progress and moving relatively well. We certainly could use their good old selves back in the top division right now.
Thank you for Asashoryu Mode. Terunofuji and his “all of you Plebeians are beneath me” attitude really irritates me. Respect for opponents is important, especially when arrogance injures other people.
Ikioi seems like one of those people who will literally have to be carted out on a stretcher to end his sumo career. Using a cane is the minimum I see him dealing with physically when he finally retires.
Good luck to the Onami brothers! It’s always good when there is healthy competition for spots on the banzuke and we’re blessed with a plethora of it these days.