Aki Basho 2017

News and events around the September grand sumo tournament in Tokyo

Day 13 – And Then There Were Three

Herouth Aki Basho 2017

goeido-third-loss

Hey, where is everybody? Yesterday we had 10 men chasing after Goeido. But now we have only the Good, the Bad and the Rookie.

10-3 Ozeki Goeido
9-4 Yokozuna Harumafuji Maegashira #16 Asanoyama

Looking at the bouts, it seems like many of the kachi-koshi guys just decided they want nothing to do with the Yusho race or with this basho anymore now that they have secured their places. Only Asanoyama, as usual, climbs up to the dohyo and just tries to win. And finds himself in a theoretical position for a three-way playoff for the Makuuchi title with an Ozeki and a Yokozuna. Ain’t sumo great?

Those with eagle eyes will also notice that the lead has shrank again. The Ozeki who only two days ago looked like nothing can stop him found a worthy foe: himself. They can call this a Hatakikomi, but it was a clear slippiotoshi. In other words – this time the Ozeki sidestepped himself. Both yesterday and today he switched to reverse gear again, but this time, it didn’t work out as it did in the first week.

Now it’s all in the hands of the Yokozuna. The yusho is actually his to lose.

harumameter-day-13

Watching the above bout must have set fire under the Yokozuna’s toes. Today he lunged at Yoshikaze and finished him up before the man in the green mawashi could even blink. Within four seconds, all we were left with was the sight of the Yokozuna’s prettier set of cheeks.

So the old lion (horse by name, lion by nature) is one step away from his “yokozuna kachi-koshi” (reminder: he claims it’s 10 wins), and two to four steps away from lifting the Emperor Cup again. Who set off the improbability drive again?

Other Yusho races

In the lower divisions, where they engage in only 7 bouts, championships were decided today. Well, all but Sandanme, that is.

The champion of Jonokuchi is 23 years old Shoji from Musashigawa, winning 7-0.

The champion of Jonidan is 18 years old Narutaki from Isenoumi beya, also winning 7-0.

The champion of Makushita is the former sekitori, Mongolian Kagamio, also with a 7-0. Still has a long way to go to air out his kesho mawashi, though.

What about Sandanme, you ask? Well, #18 Enho wins a difficult torikumi against Tanabe and goes 7-0, tied with #82 Matsuda. Tanabe has only ever lost two bouts before, both to Enho. Here is the video from One and Only, a bit shakier than usual:

The playoff will take place on Senshuraku.

And in the Juryo division, my favorite uncle, Aminishiki, had a relatively protracted match with Hidenoumi.

He is now in the running for the Juryo yusho. If he wins it, he will be the oldest rikishi to have ever done so, by a margin of over two years of age! However, there are two other Juryo with a 9-4 record at the moment – Kotoyuki and Homarefuji. It could end up with Aminishiki having a playoff with his own stablemate!

So what did we have on yet another wacky day of Aki?

Sadanoumi wins his first bout of this tournament! Congratulations. Unhappy Nishikigi is make-koshi.

Asanoyama is all over Daieisho. At this rate he might even beat Onosho (and deny him the double digits) tomorrow. I really don’t know which of the to root for.

Hapless Yutakayama gets another loss for his birthday. Takekaze may secure his kachi-koshi yet.

Ishiura falls again right off the tachiai. Moti says he has a neck injury. I knew he had something, as he didn’t participate in the summer jungyo, but this solves the question of “why no bandages”. In any case, he didn’t continue the good sumo from yesterday, and I have to wonder why a neck injury would lead him to fall again and again right off the tachiai.

Daishomaru secures his kachi-koshi against Arawashi. Tongues will wiggle at this one, but anyway, Daishomaru got a firm grip at Arawashi’s belt and quickly introduced him to the salty dirt.

Chiyomaru the Ever-Round also secures his kachi-koshi in his usual genki manner. Takanoiwa seemed to be disappointed at dropping from the Yusho race, clenching his fists right there at the end. Endo, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to offer Takarafuji much resistance, possibly preferring to keep his leg safe rather than chase a seemingly futile yusho, and the old Isegahama man finally secures his kachi-koshi. The only sekitori yet to secure it from that heya is Juryo man Terutsuyoshi, who is in the danger zone now.

Chiyoshoma again falls together with his rival, this time Okinoumi, but this time he fell on top of him, so no need for monoii or torinaoshi. Neither of them is in kachi-koshi land yet.

Kaisei’s bout with Ikioi was interesting. Ikioi managed to sidestep him and kaisei sailed to the edge of the dohyo. Ikioi came from behind to give him the final push, and found himself caught and thrown by the Brazilian. Very nice save there.

Onosho-Shodai was also a save at the edge. Again Onosho’s overcommitment was his undoing. He got Shodai all the way to the edge and into a rather loose morozashi, but Shodai managed to slip away. Onosho desparately pushed him aside, but Shodai danced on the tawara, and Onosho’s inertia carried him outside, while still looking at Shodai’s feet to see if they are inside or outside. Now to get double digits Onosho needs to win his next two bouts.

Chiyotairyu tried to keep himself in the Yusho race, and tried to drop Hokutofuji to the floor, but somehow Hokutofuji regained his balance, and instead Chiyotairyu overshot and found himself on the floor.

Kotoshogiku also managed to survive Chiyonokuni’s first waza, turned back, but Chiyonokuni grabbed him for an uwatenage. Both fell down together, and Kotoshogiku was still expecting a monoii to be called as he slowly stepped back to the west edge, realized it was not coming, nodded his head and exited, stage right.

Shohozan got Tochinoshin into a strong morozashi. Tochinoshin, with a clear height advantage, lifted Shohozan like 20cm up and tried to get him out. But he was not able to convert. Strong yorikiri there by Shohozan.

Perky kagayaki hands Tochiozan his make-koshi, with determined tsuppari followed by a quick arm lock and an oshi-dashi. Kudos for not giving up despite his own make-koshi.

Strange matta there between Aoiyama and Tamawashi.

Ichinojo seems unable to transform any power through his feet. I’m amazed at how easy he is to push for his weight. He shouldn’t have put back all those kilograms.

Yep, the banzuke looks like a game of Crazy Eights.

Wakaichiro Loses Day 13

Bruce H Aki Basho 2017, promotion, Wakaichiro (若一郎) , ,

Wakaichiro3

In his final match for the Aki basho, Texas sumotori Wakaichiro lost his bout against Wakasenryu. The match was an oshi-zumō festival, with both rikishi landing plenty of thrusts and shoves, but Wakasenryu was able to thrust down Wakaichiro. The kimarite is recorded as oshitaoshi.

Wakaichiro closes out the Aki basho with a 4-3 winning record, that short of some kind of cosmic upheaval will place him in the next higher division, Sandanme, for the November basho in Kyushu. We look forward to his promotion and his new slate of opponents.

This video posted to twitter shows the match. I fear something has happened to sumo’s one and only, as his videos have become scarce, shaky and from the cheap seats.

Torikumi Update

lksumo Aki Basho 2017

Day 14 torikumi just dropped. So now we know or can infer most of the remaining bouts for the key rikishi.

Harumafuji’s schedule has been clear all along: Yoshikaze, Mitakeumi, Goeido. He needs to run the table and hope Goeido drops one bout before senshuraku.

Goeido will face Takakeisho and Takanoiwa before his showdown with Harumafuji.

Mitakeumi will face Ichinojo, Harumafuji, and Yoshikaze, and needs to win 2 out of 3 to remain sekiwake.

Yoshikaze will face Harumafuji, Arawashi, and Mitakeumi in his quest for double-digit wins.

Tamawashi will face Aoiyama, Shodai, and one of the better-performing maegashira in his quest to win out and defend his komusubi rank.

Tochiozan is in similar position and will face Kagayaki, Takakeisho, and a maegashira to be named later.

As for those in contention for a San’yaku slot:

Kotoshogiku has Chiyonokuni, Daieisho, and a maegashira to be named later.

Onosho has Shodai, Asanoyama, and a maegashira to be named later.

Chiyotairyu has Hokutofuji, Endo, and a maegashira to be named later.

Aki Day 13 Preview

Bruce H Aki Basho 2017, Arawashi (荒鷲), Chiyonokuni (千代の国), Endo (遠藤), Gōeidō (豪栄道), Harumafuji (日馬富士), Ichinojo (逸ノ城), Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Takakeishō (貴景勝), Takanoiwa (貴ノ岩), Takarafuji (宝富士), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Yoshikaze (嘉風) , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Goeido-Mug

Time to crank up the final weekend for the Aki basho, and what a weekend it is likely to be. Yes, there are two paths (you can go by, but in the long run, there’s still time to change the road you’re on) to the finish line. One is likely and it involves Goeido staying in charge and holding course until Day 15, when it won’t matter what happens when he faces Harumafuji. The other, more interesting and unlikely path involves some brave soul (Takakeisho?) finding a way to defeat the lone surviving Ozeki, and forcing the option of a Senshuraku Showdown. Then it all comes down to Harumafuji, and a win would force the barnyard brawl that we know would light the sumo world on fire. While the 10 rikishi who are 2 wins behind Goeido will likely thin quite a bit before Sunday, a multi-way battle for the cup would be a fitting end to Wacky Aki.

Aki Leader board

Goeido is 2 ahead of an army of 10 chasers, which is everyone who is kachi-koshi as of day 12. Amusingly enough, that means even Endo and Asanoyama!

Leader – Goeido
Chasers – Harumafuji, Yoshikaze, Kotoshogiku, Onosho, Chiyotairyu, Takanoiwa, Arawashi, Daieisho, Endo, Asanoyama

3 Matches Remain

What We Are Watching Day 13

Nishikigi vs. Sadanoumi – Nishikigi is one loss away from make-koshi, and he faces Sadanoumi who is headed southbound in a big way. Nishikigi has a series advantage for 7-4, but both rikishi are struggling this tournament.

Daishomaru vs. Arawashi – Daishomaru working to close out his winning record against a strong and fierce Arawashi. Arawashi has faded a bit in week 2, but not as severely as Daishomaru. The two have split the previous matches 4-3, favoring Daishomaru.

Takanoiwa vs. Chiyomaru – Former leader board occupant Chiyomaru is hosting to finish out his kachi-koshi today as well, but he has to overcome Takanoiwa to get there. I am going to assume this match will come down to a pulling / thrust down kimarite, as both of these men are hoping to avoid a protracted battle.

Endo vs. Takarafuji – Clearly at test match for Endo, with the question being “how well has he healed up?”. Takarafuji has been fighting well, and a win here will give him his kachi-koshi. Takarafuji also holds a series lead of 5-2 over Endo.

Chiyonokuni vs. Kotoshogiku – This match has real potential, as the grumpy badger Chiyonokuni tests his mettle against the Kyushu Bulldozer Kotoshogiku. Chiyonokuni needs 2 more wins to lock down a winning record, but I don’t think that Kotoshogiku is going to cut him any slack. The real question is if the match is going to be Kotoshogiku wrapping up Chiyonokuni from the tachiai, and applying the yori-gabori, or if Chiyonokuni is going to stay mobile (not Kotoshogiku’s strong suit in spite of recent improvements) and force it to be a battle of footwork and balance. I can’t wait to watch this one.

Tamawashi vs. Aoiyama – The man-mountain Aoiyama seems to have gotten in step with his sumo now, and he is using his enormous reach and huge strength to manhandle his opponents. Tamawashi is one loss away from make-koshi and a his first demotion out of San’yaku in about a year, so I expect him to fight like it’s his last stand. Also another match with huge potential, as it could come down to Tamawashi’s blistering speed vs Aoiyama’s enormous strength. Also of note, Tamawashi has a habit of false and shaky starts to his matches, and he could employ that to throw of Aoiyama’s timing.

Mitakeumi vs. Ichinojo – Both rikishi come into today’s match 6-6, and can only drop one more match to have a hope of a winning record at the end of the day Sunday. Big Ichinojo has been hit or miss this basho, but in the past week has been more hit than miss. Mitakeumi seems to be at about 80% of his typical power, so it’s tough to know how this match is going end. Ichinojo won their only prior meeting.

Takakeisho vs. Goeido – This is a pivotal match, and Goeido has a complex problem to solve. Takakeisho has an impressively low center or gravity, he holds a great deal of mass below his belly button. This makes him quite stable as long as he can keep his balance. This is one case where it may be critical that Goeido be able to employ a solid henka. Goeido really needs to sell it, and get the relatively inexperienced Takakeisho to push off the tachiai with full force. Even a hit and shift could work in this case. For Takakeisho, Goeido’s best attack is to likely try and do a torpedo tachiai and blast him from from the dohyo before Takakeisho can set up his “Wave Action Tsuppari”. So actually, Takakeisho either needs to just stand up at the tachiai, or henka himself. For Goeido, this is a “must win” match if he wants to put the cup out of reach of the chasers.

Yoshikaze vs. Harumafuji – There was a match between these two in Nagoya in 2016 that turned into a bloody street fight that sent Yoshikaze to the hospital to get his face rebuilt. Since then these two have been strictly business when it comes to their bouts. Yoshikaze is now safe in his Sekiwake slot, so the question comes down to how high does he want to try and run up the score? Harumafuji is kachi-koshi as well, but Yokozuna have a higher bar, and anything less than double digit wins may be seen as sub standard performance. These two are evenly matched 9-9 in their prior bouts.