No kyujo to report. But we do have a retirement announcement: former Makuuchi wrestler Daiamami has retired. Always Genki, he had fallen to Makushita 17 after a 1-7 tournament in Kyushu. Any idea why they gave him an eighth bout, against Juryo Himukamaru, to boot. I just feel like there’s a story there since 8-bout bashos are rather rare, unless you’re Hattorizakura. I’ll dig into it later today after I get some Zs.
Getting back to the Juryo race, Fujiseiun lost to Shonannoumi, falling to 5-1. Kayo is also tied at 5-1 with eight men chasing at 4-2. Fujiseiun will fight Tamashoho tomorrow and Kayo will fight Hakuyozan. Today’s NHK videos include the Nishikigi/Hidenoumi bout at the bottom.
Makuuchi Action
Shishi (4-2) defeated Hatsuyama (0-6). Shishi pressed forward and shoved Hatsuyama back and out to his sixth consecutive loss. Oshidashi.
Oshoumi (5-1) defeated Mitakeumi (3-3). Oshoumi locked up Mitakeumi and drove him back and out. Yorikiri.
Asahakuryu (4-2) defeated Tobizaru (1-5). Tobizaru had the early edge in this long yotsu battle as his ottsuke kept Asahakuryu away from his belt. Once Asahakuryu landed his right hand inside grip, though, he was able to press forward and force Tobizaru out. Yorikiri.
Tomokaze (3-3) defeated Asanoyama (4-2). As Asanoyama forced Tomokaze to the edge, Tomokaze shifted right and thrust Asanoyama down to the ground. Tsukiotoshi.
Abi (6-0) defeated Asakoryu (2-4). Abi shoved Asakoryu back and Asakoryu stumbled a bit and stepped over the bales. Tsukidashi.
Ryuden (2-4) defeated Nishikifuji (3-3). Ryuden put his head down and drove Nishikifuji out. Yorikiri.
Kotoshoho (4-2) defeated Midorifuji (2-4). Kotoshoho drove forward and pressured Midorifuji over the bales while falling down. Gunbai Midorifuji. Mono-ii. Kotoshoho touched while Midorifuji was in the air and already dead. The shimpan reversed the call. Kotoshoho wins. Yoritaoshi.
Roga (3-3) defeated Chiyoshoma (2-4). Chiyoshoma shoved Roga back to the edge but he really still can’t put all of his weight on his right foot. Roga steadily charged forward and forced Chiyoshoma back over the edge. Chiyoshoma tried a last gasp pull but it was ineffective. Yorikiri.
Kinbozan (2-4) defeated Tokihayate (3-3). Kinbozan drove forward with a left-hand uwate and lifted Tokihayate off the ground and over the bales. Tsuridashi.
Fujinokawa (5-1) defeated Gonoyama (1-5). Despite Gonoyama’s forceful tsuppari forcing Fujinokawa back to the bales and around the ring, Fujinokawa used excellent footwork to work his way back to the middle of the ring. This put Gonoyama on the edge. Fujinokawa lashed out and thrust Gonoyama over the bales. Oshitaoshi.
Onokatsu (3-3) defeated Shodai (3-3). Shodai got his morozashi and forced Onokatsu to the edge but Onokatsu used the leverage to counter Shodai. He shoved Shodai hard in the face with his right hand. Shodai didn’t like it and stepped back and out. Oshidashi.
Halftime
Churanoumi (3-3) defeated Oshoma (5-1). Churanoumi’s tsuppari drove Oshoma back over the edge as Oshoma twisted Churanoumi down. Gunbai Churanoumi. Mono-ii. The shimpan confirmed the gyoji’s call that Oshoma touched out. Oshidashi.
Atamifuji (4-2) defeated Hiradoumi (3-3). Atamifuji grabbed Hiradoumi, wrapped him up, and drove him back over the edge. Yorikiri.
Hakunofuji (4-2) defeated Tamawashi (2-4). Hakunofuji’s left-hand inside grip allowed him to negate Tamawashi’s tsuppari and drive Tamawashi back. He fought to get his right hand inside grip, as well. With the morozashi he was able to force Tamawashi out. Yorikiri.
Yoshinofuji (4-2) defeated Ura (0-6). Ura had an early Edge and drove Yoshinofuji back. Ura brought his right arm up around Yoshinofuji’s neck and pulled. Big mistake as this completely reversed Yoshinofuji’s fortunes. Yoshinofuji plowed into Ura and forced him through the dohyo and off the edge, into the first row of spectators. Oshitaoshi.
Sanyaku
Wakamotoharu (1-5) defeated Oho (2-4). Oho seemed to have the upper hand as he acquired a morozashi and forced Wakamotoharu to the bales. Wakamotoharu twisted and threw Oho to the ground as both men crashed out. Gunbai Wakamotoharu. No mono-ii. Utchari.
Kirishima (5-1) defeated Ichiyamamoto (1-5). Kirishima drove Ichiyamamoto back to the edge. Ichiyamamoto stepped over the edge. Gunbai Ichiyamamoto? Mono-ii. I think the gyoji got lost and pointed the wrong way. Ichiyamamoto was out. Kirishima was never dead or out. Oshidashi.
Kotozakura (4-2) defeated Daieisho (1-5). Kotozakura won moving forward today. Or, more precisely, Daieisho lost by retreating around the ring. Kotozakura did his job by not falling down while Daieisho ran away. Tsukidashi.
Aonishiki (5-1) defeated Takayasu (4-2). Aonishiki got that dangerous left-hand inside and drove Takayasu back and out. Yorikiri.
Hoshoryu (5-1) defeated Takanosho (0-6). Hoshoryu drove Takanosho back to the bales then unleashed a pull and slapped Takanosho down. Hatakikomi.
Onosato (5-1) defeated Wakatakakage (3-3). Onosato drove Wakatakakage back to the bales where Wakatakakage seemed to want to dig in and launch a counter-attack. Onosato pulled and pivoted, and slapped Wakatakakage down. Hatakikomi.
Wrap-up
Abi is alone with an unblemished record so far this tournament. Both Yokozuna lead a group of seven guys with one loss. We head into the middle weekend with excellent performances thus far from the division’s top guys. We have quite a bit to look forward to tomorrow.
Abi will fight Asanoyama for the first time in nearly two years. Asanoyama leads their head-to-head with 9 wins to 4 losses. However, Abi is hot and Asanoyama is charging his way back from injury. It should be a good bout, nonetheless.
In sanyaku, Takayasu will fight Oho, Kirishima will battle Yoshinofuji, Aonishiki will take on Wakamotoharu and it’s Kotozakura versus Wakatakakage. Onosato will fight Daieisho and Hoshoryu will finish the day off against Hakunofuji. I don’t see a bad match in there. Should be a great day of action.
Discover more from Tachiai (立合い)
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Very Uncharacteristic for Konusuke. It was not even close. He must have had a bad night sleep. In fact it is the first time, that I can remember they reversed a decision of him.
It just came to my mind that I don’t recall Tamawashi crashing spectacularly out of the dohyo, like for example Wakamotoharu and Oho today. He usually gives some resistance at the edge and then gently takes a step back. Maybe that’s the key to his longevity? Maybe Shodai realized this after his Ozeki period, that it’s better to give up quickly and live than to blow yourself up prematurely.
So true, with age comes wisdom. I would say Mitakeumi is in this same grouping with Tamawashi and Shodai.
Some of these bouts stick with you. Ikioi vs Kizakiumi taught me this lesson. Kizakiumi had neck issues and ended up falling down the banzuke and retiring much too soon. He’s Churanoumi’s brother. I think a lot of guys might have learned from this. Ryuden is probably the only one who I see trying to resist and crash out like this. https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/ikioi-defeats-kizakiumi-on-the-sixth-day-of-the-new-year-news-photo/1194807104
Ugh, what a photo…
I think Mitakeumi is a slightly different case, because he visibly lost his strength. Maybe it was because of – as Andy suggested – lasting effects of covid.
Mitakeumi’s mom was my waifu.
Shodai didn‘t like to get control in the middle of the plate with his belt grip. He had to walk his opponent labourously to the bales instead of baiting him to arrive there for his own doom. I meant to hear his inner voice: ‚I can‘t work under these conditions!‘
Abi, Abi, Abi… I won‘t say a word. I‘ll be silent. Did you hear anything? It wasn‘t me.
I‘m glad that Wakamotoharu realized his first win today (and beautifully). This reduces the danger of him resorting to a henka tomorrow against Aonishiki.
Midorifuji’s reaction to his loss today says it all for me. What else was he supposed to do to try to win? He executed the throw and if he left his leg where it was, he’d be injured. I guess the judges decided that Kotoshoho was a part of the throw? No idea why the victory was given to Kotoshoho here.
I am, however, glad that the judges gave the win to Churanoumi. I was hoping that “his toenail was touching the dohyo” wasn’t the deciding factor here and thankfully, that was true.
Big kudos to Fujinokawa for his win today. Ow, ow, ow, ow. Gonoyama was so upset about losing he almost didn’t give a perfunctory nod to his opponent. I hope that fire leads him to more wins.
Scary ending to Wakamotoharu/Oho today. I hope they’re both okay.
Weird “low power” sumo from Diaesho today. Not sure if he was trying to bait Kotozakura into chasing him, if he’s injured somehow, or both.
Interesting to see both Yokozuna win today with similar strategies. It’ll be interesting to see if “make the other guy over-extend themselves and/or put in too much effort and take advantage” is how they’ll both keep winning this basho. WTK was absolutely attacking Onosato’s weaker side, though. That’s definitely the blueprint for a potential win there.
I’m not talking about the leaderboard or potential winners until next week. Not with things as close as they are already.
For me the Midorifuji bout was a quite clear case for a rematch.
It‘s wise not to talk about potential winners yet. We tend to be impatient in that question. But until next week there are only eliminations from the yusho race; nobody can already win it. Almost everything can still happen. (Not so long ago Midorifuji was the lone leader with a 10-0 record and he ended the basho 10-5 if I remember right. Takerufuji was even 11-0 and he won the tournament, but only on senshuraku, not on nakabi…)
I also would have been fine with a rematch for Midorifuji/Kotoshoho! I’m wondering if rikishi will stop jumping like frogs to stay in the air in an attempt to win matches based on these recent decisions.