Day Five begins in Tokyo. Make sure to catch Leonid’s Makushita updates. A number of former sekitori are in the hunt for the yusho. The Enho/Ikarigata matchup was today. Sadly, for Enho fans, he wasn’t able to get much offense going today. Ikarigata was all over him with tsuppari and then when Enho tried to counter, Ikarigata immediately slapped him down.
碇潟、炎鵬に激勝！
— ちなつ(公式)大相撲垢 (@chinatsu500290) September 18, 2025
良い相撲やった pic.twitter.com/3048dvQiKb
Meanwhile, Mita and Kōtokuzan lead in Juryo at 5-0. Mita thrust Kotoeiho down as punishment for a little henka at the start of the bout. Kotokuzan thrust out Tamashoho Kōtokuzan will fight Tohakuryu on Day 6. Mita will visit Makuuchi and fight Shonannoumi. Asanoyama is one loss back, so he might still be a factor in this race next week.
Your NHK videos are here. Pro-tip, for slo-mo you can watch these in half speed and three-quarter speed. You will thank me later. In the meantime, let’s turn to the top division.
Makuuchi Action
Hitoshi (1-4) defeated Nishikigi (0-5). Nishikigi got decent penetration on the tachiai but Hitoshi quickly backed him up with strong shoulder slams. Hitoshi picked up his first win. Oshidashi.
Tomokaze (4-1) defeated Nishikifuji (3-2). Tomokaze pressed Nishikifuji toward the bales before pulling and executing a slapdown. Hatakikomi.
Shishi (3-2) defeated Tobizaru (3-2). After some rather ineffective tsuppari from this pair, Shishi ducked inside and got his left hand wrapped in Tobizaru’s belt. Leading with his forehead, Shishi then bodied Tobizaru off the dohyo. Yorikiri.
Ryuden (4-1) defeated Asakoryu (1-4). Asakoryu established his left hand inside and tried to pull Ryuden over. Ryuden kept his balance, though and used that right hand outside to force Asakoryu to the edge. Both men tried to topple the other. Rotating to his left, Ryuden pulled back toward center and hauled Asakoryu down with that right hand. Uwatenage.
Shonannoumi (3-2) defeated Sadanoumi (3-2). Sadanoumi seemed to get lost a few times today as he bounced around the ring. Shonannoumi nearly tripped him up. Shonannoumi eventually got his right hand on Sadanoumi’s belt, rotated and used his left hand on Sadanoumi to shove him to the ground. Uwatenage.
Mitakeumi (2-3) defeated Meisei (2-3). Mitakeumi’s ottsuke kept Meisei from getting his right hand inside. Meisei tried to pull but Mitakeumi was all over him and shoved him over the edge. Oshidashi.
Roga (3-2) defeated Tokihayate (2-3). Roga quickly corralled Tokihayate with his right hand inside and forced Tokihayate back and over the bales. Yorikiri.
Churanoumi (4-1) defeated Daieisho (1-4). Daieisho’s balance issues have compounded. He was on the defensive for most of this bout. He cycled away from Churanoumi’s head butts and thrusts. Daieisho seemed to press forward a step and immediately got too far ahead of himself, stumbling by as Churanoumi pulled him forward. Churanoumi then shoo-ed him out of the ring from behind. Okuridashi.
Fujinokawa (2-3) defeated Midorifuji (2-3). Well then. Maybe this is what others have seen in Fujinokawa? Fujinokawa blitzed Midorifuji immediately at the tachiai and locked him up in a bear-hug, both hands around Midorifuji’s trunk. Fujinokawa then quickly drove Midorifuji to the bales. Midorifuji struggled to attempt any counter attack but tried to brace himself at the edge and twist. Fujinokawa wasn’t having any of it and forced him over the bales. Yorikiri.
Shodai (4-1) defeated Kinbozan (1-4). Kinbozan got a left hand outside grip and tried to heave Shodai over the bales. Shodai countered by plowing headlong into Kinbozan and knocking him backwards. Both men fell off the dohyo. Gunbai Shodai. Kinbozan had landed on his butt before Shodai fell into him and both men rolled onto the former Takamisakari, ringside. Yoritaoshi.
Takanosho (4-1) defeated Oshoma (2-3). Good tachiai. Oshoma got some penetration into Takanosho’s side of the ring so he pulled and tried to slap Takanosho down. But Takanosho kept his balance and forced Oshoma over the bales. Yorikiri.
Halftime
Ura (4-1) defeated Kusano (2-3). Well-timed pull from Ura. Kusano was trying real hard to make some sort of forward progress. Once Kusano put his weight too far forward, Ura pulled and Kusano launched forward, falling off the dohyo. Hikiotoshi.
Ichiyamamoto (2-3) defeated Kotoshoho (2-3). Ichiyamamoto took on Kotoshoho on the belt and overpowered Nagoya’s yusho winner. Ichiyamamoto latched on with his right hand inside, left-hand outside and relentlessly pressured Kotoshoho until he stepped out. Ichiyamamoto was utterly committed to fighting on the belt today. A good ole fashioned yorikiri.
Wakamotoharu (4-1) defeated Onokatsu (3-2). Wakamotoharu hit Onokatsu well at the tachiai but Onokatsu slowed things down by holding WMH’s left hand at bay. Wakamotoharu pulled away to extract his left hand. Onokatsu pounced and the two brawled with slaps and thrusts. Once Wakamotoharu saw an opportunity to get inside, he grabbed Onokatsu with his left hand inside and right hand outside grip. Grip secured, he was able to press forward and force Onokatsu out. Yorikiri.
Hiradoumi (4-1) defeated Hakuoho (2-3). Hakuoho bulled into Hiradoumi, forcing him to the edge. He pulled but when he tried to slap Hiradoumi down, Hiradoumi was out of reach. When Hakuoho reached the far edge, Hiradoumi jumped on him and kept up the assault until Hakuoho was thrust out. Tsukidashi.
Sanyaku
Tamawashi (2-3) defeated Takayasu. Tamawashi went for the jugular and hit Takayasu with a nodowa at the tachiai, then followed up with another. Takayasu did not like that and turned away. Tamawashi followed and continued to lash out at Takayasu until he stepped over the bales. Oshidashi.
Aonishiki (3-2) defeated Kirishima (4-1). Started with a brawl before Kirishima latched in with his left hand inside. As Kirishima changed up his grip with his right hand to bring it inside, Aonishiki snapped and spun Kirishima. Once Aonishiki was behind Kirishima, he ran Kirishima out from the back. Absolutely beautiful. Excellent timing. Okuridashi.
Wakatakakage (3-2) defeated Abi (0-5). Abi tried to pull and slap Wakatakakage down but Wakatakakage kept his balance and drove Abi off the dohyo. Did I say earlier this basho that Abi was looking good? I think I did. His 0-5 more competitive than Nishikigi’s 0-5. Oshidashi.
Kotozakura (4-1) defeated Gonoyama (0-5). Gonoyama pulled and nearly caught Kotonowaka off balance with a slapdown. Kotozakura regained control, however, and shoved Gonoyama over the bales. Oshidashi.
Hoshoryu (5-0) defeated Atamifuji (1-4). Hoshoryu thrusted out at Atamifuji’s head at the tachiai. He then reached in with the right hand and got Atamifuji’s belt with left hand outside. From there, Hoshoryu steamrolled Atamifuji and forced him back and out. Yorikiri.
Onosato (4-1) defeated Oho (2-3). Oho hit out at Onosato’s head but his weight was too far forward. Onosato brought his right arm down on Oho’s back and thrust him down to the clay. Tsukiotoshi.
Wrap-up
The Aonishiki/Kirishima bout is worth watching a number of times. We often see guys get in trouble when they change their hold on their opponent’s belt. That makikae can be troublesome. But I feel that guys usually get caught out on the backward motion, when they pull away from their opponent. It creates some separation and the opponent can fill that void, moving forward. That gives the attacker momentum, just as you are pulling away.
This time, however, Kirishima got caught when he reached forward. It was as if his right shoulder on the outside had been holding Aonishiki at bay. Once Kirishima’s arm went to the inside, Aonishiki shifted left and used his left hand belt grip to pull Kirishima farther forward and got in behind. That was a great move.
Hoshoryu is our sole leader at 5-0 and Onosato leads the pack of guys one loss behind. They will trade opponents tomorrow, so Hoshoryu fights Oho in the musubi-no-ichiban while Onosato fights Atamifuji. Both Kotozakura and Hiradoumi are in that group of 4-1 chasers and they will square off tomorrow. Meanwhile, Kirishima will fight Tamawashi, Wakatakakage will fight Gonoyama, and Takayasu will fight Aonishiki.
Discover more from Tachiai (立合い)
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Today we had the fight between the two rikishi who are far from the rest, therefore a – well – peak of the basho, and it was Hitoshi who wasn’t able to lose…
Yesterday Abi wasn’t even back on the dohyo when your report arrived in my emails. That was impressive; but I still prefer your more elaborate work, like today‘s with the great Kirishima vs Aonishiki analysis.
I prefer to write more but I was extra sleepy yesterday and didn’t want to drink coffee that early. So I just had to wrap it up.
On the Ura v Kusano bout, Becoming clearer that Ura, in his end of last basho into Aug injury period, was not sitting idle…. Eating his wheaties and focusing on doing upper body strength training. I could not have predicted that Ura would out-muscle one of the strongest makuuchi rikishi in Kusano, but he did! Wow!!
Ura really buckled down and focused on the fundamentals, cutting out the theatrics for the betterment of his sumo so far… except that weird jump-pivot off the dohyo today. You’d think, with how Ura likes to roll and such to avoid reinjury to his knees, that he’d NOT take a flying leap off a raised surface.
Another thing I want to mention is the two Ukrainians. Both seem to like fighting low, with their head buried in their opponent’s chest. But where Shishi just seems to want to mostly bullrush ahead and perhaps pull and slap, Aonishiki can seemingly do anything from down there once he’s in position. I dearly hope he stays healthy and we get to see the true heights he can reach.
Agree on Ura. If you notice, his foot was up against the tawara. Those things are sometimes quite the hazard… ask WTK. I think he felt it and jumped to where he knew he could be a bit safer. The folks ringside seem to be soft landing spots.
Aonishiki victory over Kirishima was truly special, I so enjoyed seeing this! His skill set and his commitment are so deep, combined with his ability to leverage in the moment whatever position he and his opponent are in to his advantage towards a decisive win. He tops my list of favorite rikishi right now!!
Is Daiesho’s problem his knees, toes, or both? Balance is definitely an issue, but the glaring problem for me is his lack of power. No “ooomph” anywhere.
Mitakeumi seems to himself in order and it’s good to see him winning again.
Seems like “good” Shodai and Takanosho have shown up this week. We’ll see if they stick around for the rest of the basho.
Ura continues to amaze me even now. No one, especially Kusano, expected that strategy from him. Amazing!
A “make a statement” bout from Hiradoumi today. “You’re not saying my name in this conversation, so let me make sure you do from here on out.”
Rikishi are going to study Aonishiki’s bouts for years in the future. His work will change sumo if it hasn’t started to already.
I agree with Andy that, barring his bout with Hoshoryu, Abi’s 0-5 is better than Nishikigi’s 0-5. But, I think Abi has the same problem that Atamifuji has at the moment. Everyone knows what to expect. The curveballs in their sumo are unsurprising. Hoshoryu literally stood up and didn’t move forward until Abi moved laterally in their bout, for example. Effort isn’t the problem for Abi and Atamifuji at this point. Gonoyama might also be a part of this group.
Oho still hasn’t put everything together in order to be consistent. He’s got the talent and the skills, though.
On your point about Abi, I would like to contrast him with his “clone,” Ichiyamamoto. Ichi is proudly diversifying into yotsu-zumo to combat the issue you bring up. However, Abi remains consistently a top rikishi while Ichiyamamoto hangs on usually below the joi in the mid-maegashira. It will be interesting to see where they both are in a year or two.
„Everyone knows what to expect“ from Tamawashi, from Daieisho and even from Onosato.
So that‘s not the problem. Abi‘s difficulties may simply stem from the banzuke. I‘m quite certain that he won’t be the only one with a 0-5 against the two yokozuna and sekiwake and the sole ozeki! Therefore let’s wait and see how he fares against foes of his calibre.
Gonoyama needs to find his “style of sumo” soon before it’s too late. What I’m seeing isn’t working. (Also he’s on my fantasy sumo team…)
Gonoyama looked to want to press KZK but also did not want KZK to get a hold of his belt .. that’s when he lost the plot .. KZK is not the most fleet afoot .. plodding seems about right ., Gonoyama’s slap down had zero chance of success ., Gonoyama might want to reconsider his old “human missile” approach and accept the downside risks .,
Agreed Aonishiki v Kirishima was the best match .. truly a stand off of two well matched + quick rikishi .. I don’t think Kirishima will try to regrip + get two inside belt grips again v Aonishiki .. that instant of an opening turned the match .,