By the end of Match Day 3, the list of undefeated wrestlers in Jonokuchi was filtered to four. The first bout I will share with you was by far the best of the four. It was a very competitive bout between Masutani and Wakayahara.

Masutani’s debut tournament was in Kyushu where he came up short with three wins and four losses. Interesting factoid: of the wrestlers who went on to be Ozeki, the vast majority spent only one basho here. However, two wrestlers had makekoshi for their first tournament, required a second tournament, and went on to have illustrious (legendary?) careers: Hakuho, and Kaio.

Masutani put in a great effort here, fighting for everything on the edge to stay in. This is the kind of resilience I’d love to see from certain Makuuchi wrestlers. Unfortunately for Masutani, Wakayahara was just too strong and finally ends the match with a great throw. With the win, Wakayahara is 3-0. In his two year career, Wakayahara has managed one kachi-koshi. I believe that will change soon. Gambare!

The final three bouts were rather one-sided affairs but they should set up some interesting bouts in the coming match days. Chiyotaiko overpowered Koga, forcing him back onto his butt. Next up, Aoifuji swept Kinseiryu to the side at the tachiai. Lastly, Nakashima forced Tanimoto over the edge. If I were scheduling the next Match Day, I’d pair Nakashima with Wakayahara and Aoifuji against Chiyotaiko…but expect some bouts between 3-0 and 2-1 wrestlers, with Nakashima battling undefeated Jonidan contenders.