Mitoryu retired yesterday. He had been kyujo for the first few days of the tournament while ranked at Makushita 7. In his press conference today, he pointed to ongoing injuries and health problems for his decision to hang up his mawashi. He will not become an oyakata.
＜水戸龍引退＞
— 日本相撲協会公式 (@sumokyokai) September 20, 2025
水戸龍が、師匠の錦戸親方同席で引退会見を行いました。
度重なる病気とケガで思うような相撲が取れず、今場所前に引退を決めたと話しました。#sumo #相撲 #水戸龍 pic.twitter.com/p2yjEiEVz5
In the second division, Kotokuzan suffered his first loss of the tournament to Kyokukaiyu but Mita bested Daiseizan. So, Mita is the lone undefeated rikishi in Juryo. He will fight Oshoumi tomorrow for his kachi-koshi. Kotokuzan falls one loss back, level with Asanoyama and Asahakuryu.
Your NHK videos are here. Today, there’s a brief feature video with Ichiyamamoto.
Makuuchi Action
Shishi (5-2) defeated Nishikigi (0-7). Shishi drove Nishikigi back and off the dohyo. Yorikiri.
Shonannoumi (4-3) defeated Tomokaze (5-2). A bit of shoving and some slaps while Tomokaze looked for a slapdown opportunity. It didn’t come. Shonannoumi eventually pressed Tomokaze back and over the edge. Oshidashi.
Tobizaru (5-2) defeated Kagayaki (3-4). Beautiful henka from Tobizaru. He jumped to his right and slapped the Juryo visitor down. Hatakikomi.
Hitoshi (3-4) defeated Asakoryu (2-5). Hitoshi pulled and slapped Asakoryu down, but Hitoshi jumped out. Gunbai Asakoryu. Mono-ii. Video replay showed Hitoshi landing outside the dohyo just before Asakoryu touched. The judges met for quite a while on the dohyo and decided on a torinaoshi rematch. On the rematch, Hitoshi wrapped his arm around Asakoryu and drove him back and out. Oshidashi.
Ryuden (5-2) defeated Sadanoumi (3-4). Both yotsu-men engaged on the belt. Ryuden overpowered Sadanoumi, though, and toppled Sadanoumi over the edge. He had the better hold, with both hands secure on Sadanoumi’s belt. Uwatenage.
Tokihayate (3-4) defeated Churanoumi (5-2). Tokihayate started with a pivot and pull start. Another pivot and pull. Tokihayate then drove forward into Churanoumi. When Churanoumi got to the edge, he plowed into Tokihayate. This time, as Tokihayate balanced on the tawara, he pulled Churanoumi forward and shoved him down. Tsukiotoshi.
Daieisho (2-5) defeated Meisei (2-5). Standard Daieisho tsuppari attack. One especially powerful and well-timed shove from Daieisho to Meisei’s shoulder forced Meisei off balance and he stumbled to the ground. I feel it’s been a while since I’ve seen that power in Daieisho’s tsuppari. Okuritaoshi.
Fujinokawa (3-4) defeated Roga (4-3). A good long grapple here. Fujinokawa finished Roga with the throw of the tournament, so far. He used his inside grip to start the throw but used his leg to help topple Roga. Kakenage.
Shodai (6-1) defeated Midorifuji (2-5). Shodai chugged forward. Midorifuji resisted awkwardly at the bales. Shodai shoved Midorifuji down with more and more power before eventually crushing him down from the dohyo. I’ve seen a level of determination from Shodai this tournament which I haven’t seen in a while. Oshitaoshi.
Kinbozan (2-5) defeated Mitakeumi (3-4). Kinbozan’s thrusts overpowered Mitakeumi. Mitakeumi pulled ineffectively and Kinbozan shoved him out. Oshidashi.
Onokatsu defeated Oshoma. Oshoma seemed fixated on Onokatsu’s left arm, trying to pull it in weird directions. Onokatsu got his right hand inside and pulled Oshoma down. Weird kimarite call, though. Onokatsu pulled Oshoma down with his inside hand. Uwatedashinage? OK?
Halftime
Ura (6-1) defeated Ichiyamamoto (2-5). Oshi-zumo brawl before the two men settled in the center of the ring, shoving each others’ shoulders. Ura pulled and slapped Ichiyamamoto down. Hatakikomi.
Kusano (3-4) defeated Kotoshoho (2-5). Kusano launched into Kotoshoho and drove him to the edge. Kotoshoho bent backward perilously but Kusano kept pushing forward and eventually toppled Kotoshoho backward. Abisetaoshi.
Takanosho (6-1) defeated Wakamotoharu (5-2). Takanosho forced Wakamotoharu back to the edge. It seemed Wakamotoharu was all too happy to comply and try to work the edge. He must not have planned on Takanosho to land a powerful shove to his neck, though. Takanosho put all of his weight into that nodowa and thrust Wakamotoharu off the dohyo. Tsukiotoshi.
Atamifuji (2-5) defeated Tamawashi (3-4). Atamifuji weathered Tamawashi’s tsuppari. When Tamawashi forced Atamifuji to the edge, Atamifuji resisted well. This forced Tamawashi to step inside and start shoving, eventually becoming a yotsu battle. Atamifuji was able to shift along the bales and get some space. With a double inside hold of Tamawashi’s trunk, he pressed forward and forced Tamawashi over the bales. Yorikiri.
Sanyaku
Takayasu (1-6) defeated Abi (0-7). Standard Abi-zumo and rather standard shoves and shoulder blasts from Takayasu. Abi was a bit out over his feet and Takayasu was able to attack from an angle and shoved him down. Oshitaoshi.
Hakuoho (4-3) defeated Kirishima (4-3). Hakuoho had a maemitsu grip with the right arm. Kirishima decided to clamp down hard on both of Hakuoho’s arms. Hakuoho released his grip but kept driving forward. He powered through and drove Kirishima out. Oh shit. Hakuoho’s injured again. He was cradling that arm, not using it. Yorikiri.
Aonishiki (5-2) defeated Wakatakakage (4-3). Aonishiki kept Wakatakakage in front of him and shoved the wannabe Ozeki off the dohyo. Oshidashi.
Oho (3-4) defeated Kotozakura (5-2). Kotozakura is relying too much on mis-direction and tawara dancing rather than power. Oho withstood two of the Ozeki’s slapdown attempts. Kotozakura shoved and batted away Oho’s arms but he left that right paw out too long. Oho grabbed it and pulled Kotozakura forward toward the bales. From there, Oho followed up with a shove and upset the Ozeki. Oshidashi.
Hoshoryu (7-0) defeated Hiradoumi (4-3). Hoshoryu got his right arm inside and committed to heaving Hiradoumi over. Hoshoryu pulled and pivoted along the edge and finally twisted Hiradoumi down. Sukuinage.
Onosato (6-1) dispatched Gonoyama (0-7). Onosato met Gonoyama at the tachiai with a shoulder and two shoves later, Gonoyama was in the crowd. Oshitaoshi.
Wrap-up
Immediate concern is for Hakuoho. He won the bout but may have seriously injured that right arm. He was in visible pain when trying to do his tegatana after the bout and kept checking it and testing it while he cradled it. I couldn’t tell if his concern was with the elbow or his bicep. Given his shoulder issues and the way his arms were squeezed, even the shoulder might be hurt. But it seemed like maybe the bicep. Rub some salt on there, do some keiko, it will be right as rain tomorrow, right?
In other news, there is a yusho race to be had. At the moment, Hoshoryu remains the sole competitor with no losses in the top division. Several of the chasers lost today. We are left with Onosato, Takanosho, Shodai and Ura with one loss. Shodai will fight Ura tomorrow. Takanosho will fight Churanoumi and Onosato will fight Hiradoumi. Hoshoryu will fight Gonoyama. Kotozakura will take on Takayasu, Kirishima will fight Wakamotoharu, Wakatakakage will fight Atamifuji and Tamawashi will face Aonishiki. Loads of great action on tap for tomorrow! See you then!
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“What’s in the box?” Um … just salt
I think Takanosho has looked really strong. A yokozuna yusho looks likely, but other than them, I think I’d pick him as the one with the best shot to win it.
Great summary as ever Andy, thank you. I can’t say a word for fear of jinxing someone (superstitious? possibly! :D) but I’m enjoying the basho enormously, as ever.
I’ve also very much enjoyed the glimpses into Makushita – thank you Leonid.
Half-waypoint tomorrow, all to play for!
Kotozakura? You mentioned this the other day, but it’s all reactive sumo from him. He didn’t look like an Ozeki today, that’s for sure.
Hiradoumi vs Hoshoryu: this was the highlight today, I think. Great sumo by both men. Could have gone either way. I am not a Hoshoryu guy but…yeah, he’s looking all Yokozuna.
Onosato! The opposite of Kotozakura. No messing about.
Kotozakura hasn’t looked like an ozeki for about 4 basho. His ancestors are not impressed
Tobizaru’s though process today might as well have been “You’re from Juryo? Naaaaaah.”
Watching today’s match, I definitely think Abi’s elbows or shoulders are giving him trouble. If you compare his thrust to Takanosho’s, for example, there’s less strength behind them than usual.
In your concern for Hakuoho, you stated that “He (Hakuoho) powered through and drove Hakuoho out!” Kirishima was the victim of the drive out but Hakuoho’s injury must have been on your mind.
Wonderful commentary, as usual.
Really enjoying this Basho. Yokozuna face off for the cup on Senshuraku!
Arg. Will fix it. Sorry, sloppy edit.
Our version of NHK on both Verizon and Xfinity stopped showing the basho yesterday. Other NHK programming is filling the sumo slots. Looks like the issue is coming from NHK. Licensing problems here n Maryland ???
I had seen someone else complaining about it on DirecTV which makes me think it’s a broader NHK thing. Do you have NHK World (which is in English) or NHK World Premium (which has programming in Japanese)?
Here in Seattle, Comcast wrote on my DVR, “There was an issue with this recording. Would you like us to record it on 9/21?” I already have DVR set to record both the Live at 1:09 AM overnight and the Highlights at 9:29 AM tomorrow morning. Doggone it, I was up this morning when the usual Highlights run at 9:29 but watching Formula 1 Qualifying. Usually the Highlights rerun in the afternoons but it’s not listed today, Doggone it.
Ours is just regular NHK World. I agree that it seems to be coming out of NHK itself. OTOH, we heard Mr. Murray Johnson narrating one of the “replacement shows”. Not remotely sports related either.
Try the website directly instead of through your cable provider. I checked and nakabi is on the schedule online at NHK World https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/
Have the same problem on Directv in the states. The program is on at its normal time, but the guide is all over the place. You can catch the basho highlights on NHK World website.
Tonight it looks like the website will have live coverage for the last bit of Makuuchi. https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/sumo/
On my cable system in NYC the program guide for NHK World went off the rails, showing programming for who knows what day, but the actual shows seemed as normal, including sumo. Guide back to normal too, now.
Tobizaru With the henka! Ouch! Kagayaki never seen it coming.
Fujinokawa throw was amazing, liked his reaction after the win.
It is rare in sumo to see such winning emotions.
Ura was very calculative today, he gave an impression that he will push, but suddenly pulled.
Like to see such technical sumo
I had to think about the Onokatsu uwatedashinage, too. Watched it carefully and saw his left hand in maemitsu-position, but the momentum for the throw seemed to come from his right hand under the opponent’s arm, as you said. So I‘m thinking over: is it because the left hand was placed first (or later?), or is it because Onokatsu might be left-handed, or is it the direction of the throw? Or is it just the usual madness of the world? Nevertheless, it was an attractive win against co-mongolian Oshouma.
Ura deserves recognition for the tsuppari he always gets w his brand of sumo .. but seldom backs down .. he is a bit more aggressive this basho and it is working for him .. In his shoving stand off w Ichiyamamoto .. Ura waited til both IYMs feet were momentarily back and instantly pulled him down .. it’s not always obvious how they sense/read their opponent’s imbalance ..
Oho must have read Andy’s analyses of KZK .. and decided that if he was ever going to press the attack at every turn, today was the day .. KZK is waiting for his opponents to make an over eager mistake on the bales ..
Takanosho can land a viscous nodowa .. Let’s see if he can stay focussed ..
I wonder if Kirishima has any neck/back problems popping up .. i think he had such an issue several months ago ., it might explain lapses in his aggression ..
I wonder how WTK would analyze his match w Aonishiki .. it looked like mirror images of each other rapidly hand fighting w foreheads pressed together .. then WTK retreated .. Aonishiki must excel w quick hand reactions ..
Does Shishi look a little bigger/stronger in his upper body ? .. his sumo looks more assertive and assured .. Lets see how he manages v the higher ranked rikishi ..
Shishi prediction with higher ranked wrestlers: he’s gonna get schooled again. I think he’s hit his ceiling already. You can’t train speed, and he has zero