There was some late breaking news yesterday – that one of the rikishi in Dewanoumi heya had tested positive for COVID, and the entire stable was now kyujo for the rest of the tournament. This has an immediate impact on kadoban Ozeki Mitakeumi. He had been unable to train prior to the basho, and was rapidly on his way to losing his Ozeki rank. Now forced to sit out the rest of the tournament, his status as an Ozeki is likely spared, at least until September. In general, if the stable is forced to sit out due to COVID infections, everyone’s rank is preserved. This is what happened for Ichinojo last basho. We hope none of the cases in Dewanoumi are serious, and everyone makes a speedy recovery. Hoshoryu picks up a much needed win by default and is now 3-4.

It should also be noted that Takanosho is also kyujo with a shoulder injury. Wakatakakage got the free win to improve to 4-3.

Highlight Matches

Nishikifuji defeats Yutakayama – I was a little surprised by this match. I thought Yutakayama would be able to put more together for defense than he did. He quickly let Nishikifuji get his hands inside, and the shin-maku rikishi skillfully dialed up the trusting power. Yutakayama could not defend and was quickly pushed out. Nishikifuji improves to 5-2.

Oho defeats Kagayaki – Kagayaki focused his thrusting at Oho’s neck and face. This left his chest more or less open for counter attack, and Oho was happy to supply. Points to Kagayaki for countering with a hazu-oshi – nice move in this case. It was working well enough that Oho decided to try and end the match with a slap / pull down, which hit just in time as both tumbled to the clay. Oho improves to 4-3.

Tsurugisho defeats Chiyomaru – There was so much belly-meat in this match, it was tough to think through the amount of force that was being delivered. Chiyomaru could not generate enough forward pressure to overcome Tsurugisho, and found himself quickly pushed back over the bales. Tsurugisho improves to 3-4.

Ichiyamamoto defeats Daiamami – Daiamami opened strong, and had control of this match by the second step. But an inspired rally from Ichiyamamoto turned the tables, as he advanced, Daiamami lost his footing and fell while taking a backward step. Daiamami is still looking for a second win after coming back from an ankle injury (I think his ankle gave out today), and Ichiyamamoto improves to 5-2.

Onosho defeats Takarafuji – This match was a bit of a puzzle. It looked to me that Takarafuji had stopped Onosho’s charge, and had gotten into his defensive stance. But he almost immediately releases pressure and tries to pull Onosho down. This was a complete disaster as Onosho rushes forward into the pull, ejecting Takarafuji into the west side rikishi. Onosho improves to 4-3.

Midorifuji defeats Myogiryu – Midorifuji delivers a henka to immediately bring Myogiryu down, he is now 5-2.

Kotoshoho defeats Chiyoshoma – Chiyoshoma was fighting well until Kotoshoho broke his balance on the 5th exchange. With his feet out of position, Chiyoshoma was an easy mark for Kotoshoho to apply full force to a push that sent Chiyoshoma into the front row. Kotoshoho improves to 4-3.

Chiyotairyu defeats Meisei – It took two big hits for Chiyotairyu to stand Meisei up, and move him back. Chiyotairyu Then switched to pull and barely got Meisei down before he stepped out of the ring. A monoii confirmed it, and Chiyotairyu improves to 4-3.

Kotoeko defeats Terutsuyoshi – This match was clearly going to be Kotoeko’s win, but it was interesting to watch how long Terutsuyoshi could keep up enough defense to prevent Kotoeko from pushing him out. At least Terutsuyoshi still has some stamina working for him. Kotoeko improves to 4-3.

Nishikigi defeats Okinoumi – Nishikigi is back in the win column after 2 straight losses. Once Nishikigi got his left hand inside grip, he had superior body position, and worked Okinoumi back a piece at a time for a yorikiri win. Nishikigi improves to 5-2.

Aoiyama defeats Shimanoumi – Aoiyama started with facial attacks using his big “V-Twin” thrusts. Shimanoumi rallied for a moment, and Aoiyama switched to a left hand outside grip. With that firm hand hold, he was able to move forward smartly, and walked Shimanoumi to improve to 4-3.

Tochinoshin defeats Sadanoumi – Sadanoumi established a grip first with a left hand outside, but Tochinoshin’s mawashi was so loose, I thought we were going to have a wardrobe malfunction. As it was, Sadanoumi could not find any way to transmit force to Tochinoshin’s body, and was an easy mark for the former Ozeki’s counter attack. Tochinoshin improves to 4-3 by yorikiri.

Hokutofuji defeats Endo – Hokutofuji tried an immediate pull following the initial merge, and it actually worked a bit. Not enough to send Endo out, but enough to leave him off balance and in poor position. Hokutofuji attacked again with a massive shove that send Endo into the front row, giving Hokutofuji the win to advance to 3-4.

Wakamotoharu defeats Tobizaru – Impressive sumo from Wakamotoharu today to knock Tobizaru out of his position as the #2 man in the basho. I liked that left hand to the chest right hand to the face combo, I also think it broke Tobizaru’s focus long enough that the rest of what Wakamotoharu did worked. He finished with a well timed step to the side against Tobizaru’s charge that sent Tobizaru to the clay. Wakamotoharu improves to 4-3 by hatakikomi.

Kotonowaka defeats Tamawashi – Tamawashi on offense at the tachiai, and he looks to have this won. But a brilliant lateral thrust from Kotonowaka puts Tamawashi on the deck just a heartbeat before Tamawashi could finish Kotonowaka off. The gyoji points his gumbai the wrong way, and a monoii ensues to clean up the botched call. Kotonowaka improves to 5-2 by expertly timed tsukiotoshi.

Daieisho defeats Kiribayama – Daieisho opened strong, and had Kiribayama struggling to hold his ground. A quick shift of position left Kiribayama off balance as he tried to get his right hand on Daieisho’s belt, and a single hit sent Kiribayama to the clay. Daieisho advances to 4-3 by hatakikomi.

Shodai defeats Ichinojo – Ozeki Shodai showed up today. Ichinojo tried to win by being enormous again, and it nearly worked. He failed to land a hand hold at the tachiai, opening the door for Shodai to break contact and circle away. Shodai attacked with vigor, and Ichinojo had no defense. Ichinojo tries to pull, and that opens the door for the push that finished the match. Shodai needed that win, and Ichinojo needed that loss. The Ozeki finds his spark to finish the day 3-4 by oshidashi.

Abi defeats Takakeisho – Takakeisho does a strange stand and squat tachiai, and it sadly plays directly into Abi’s mini-henka. Abi lands a left hand on Takakeisho’s belt and pivots Harumafuji style. He gets 180kg+ of Takakeisho airborne, and for the first time in a long time, Takakeisho really IS a bowling ball with legs. Abi improves to 4-3 by uwatenage.

Terunofuji defeats Ura – Ura does not try anything evasive at the tachiai, attacking Terunofuji directly, and succeeds in getting a double inside grip. The bad news about achieving such a position against the Yokozuna is that he also has his favorite hold on you. Now arm locked an unable to move, Ura tries what he can to escape, but he is little more than ballast at this point at Terunofuji keeps a hold of those arms and walks Ura out. Terunofuji improves to 5-2 by kimedashi.

It’s time for the middle weekend of the Nagoya basho, and I am struggling to accept the reality of this tournament. Ichinojo leads with 6-0, and continues to look unbeatable. His only challenger right now is 5-1 Tobizaru. Toby-freaking-zaru. The nearest competitors have 4 wins, represent the top end of the Darwin funnel, and there are 10 rikishi with that score. In fact, there are only SIX rikishi out of the whole entire top division that are NOT in the funnel at the start of the middle weekend. This is a situation I personally have not witnessed before. Sumo is in a bit of a shambles right now, and could really use a tune up.

You can think I am being a grumpy old sumo curmudgeon, and that may be true. But here, have this threat that Herouth posted on twitter as a way to see what others are saying…

Whoa, today Kitanofuji is seriously exasperated.

He doesn't want anything to do with this basho anymore. He has nothing to look forward to. And it's mostly the Ozeki corps fault.

(1/5)https://t.co/QapiLd9xzV pic.twitter.com/nYb7o4KRuJ

— ヘルット (Basho SPOILERS!) (@SumoFollower) July 14, 2022

What We Are Watching Day 7

Yutakayama vs Nishikifuji – A first time match between a pair of 4-2 rikishi. Considered part of the “leader” group, but within Darwin’s funnel. Sigh. Ok, I would take Yutakayama in this one.

Kagayaki vs Oho – Look who it is! Dear old Kagayaki coming to see how the top division is getting on. He’s at 5-1 at Juryo 3, so maybe he will have a good basho and come back to the top division for September. Hopefully he will have cured his performance problems if he does. He won the single prior match against Oho.

Chiyomaru vs Tsurugisho – No at the bottom edge of the funnel, the 2-4 crew (there are 9 of them). The winner gets to move higher in the funnel, the loser is probably doomed to the make-koshi path. Both are quite large and fairly round. Both are likely to try to pull the other one down early in the match. Tsurugisho leads the 18 match career series 11-7.

Ichiyamamoto vs Daiamami – Daiamami came back from kyujo on day 5, in an attempt to try and stave off a brutal return to Juryo by picking up a few wins. He lost day 5 for his return, but managed to put Oho away on day 6. Is he up to the challenge of taking on 4-2 Ichiyamamoto? I think that’s a tall order right now.

Onosho vs Takarafuji – Takarafuji continues to struggle to execute his sumo, and I worry he may not able to shut down Onosho today. Not that Onosho is really fighting well right now. Ugh, another scratch and dent match. They have 18 career matches that Onosho leads 10-8.

Myogiryu vs Midorifuji – Now onto a pair of 4-2 rikishi, still in the funnel. Midorifuji has a 2-0 record over Myogiryu, so he certainly seems to have a formula to take down the veteran. Midorifuji’s two wins have come from a throwing technique, so I would guess we will see him favor that attack plan today.

Kotoshoho vs Chiyoshoma – Back to the middle of the funnel, both are 3-3, both rikishi will remain in the funnel for Sunday regardless of win or lose today. Kotoshoho is falling well short of expectations this July, and he’s not really fighting up to his potential. So he will be on the Darwin path for the next 7 days, I think.

Chiyotairyu vs Meisei – Can Chiyotairyu summon enough of his mojo to unleash one of his remaining “cannon ball tachiai”. Those seem to be few and far between these days, darkening the gloom that seems to be haunting sumo, and it’s not even October. Meisei comes in at 4-2. and the share a 3-3 career record, definitely in favor of Meisei.

Terutsuyoshi vs Kotoeko – I had to double check, but yes – 24 career matches between these two prior to today! This streches all the way back to 2015 in Makushita, and they are long serving rivals. Their score is tied 12 to 12, with Terutsuyoshi in dire need of wins to improve his terrible 1-5 score coming into today.

Okinoumi vs Nishikigi – Still more funnel matches, this time it’s low-eyesight Nishikigi going up against Okinoumi. There is no clear advantage to either rikishi right now, and both of them are likely going to remain in the funnel for a few more days at minimum. For Nishikigi, he has lost the last 2 since winning his first 4, and needs to get back on a winning track.

Aoiyama vs Shimanoumi – This is probably a “gimmie” match for Aoiyama, as he is fighting well enough with a 3-3 record, while Shimanoumi is really suffering at 1-5. Aoiyama has won all of the matches against Shimanoumi so far this year, and is likely to continue that trend today.

Tochinoshin vs Sadanoumi – More funnel matches – it’s endless! 3-3 Tochinoshin is up against 2-4 Sadanoumi. Sadanoumi is clearly in greatly diminished form from his outstanding 11-4 jun-yusho, and is now struggling 2-4 to start the middle weekend, and will be lucky to get his 8th win this month. Tochinoshin holds a small 6-4 lead in their career score, but seems to be day-by-day in terms of his sumo.

Endo vs Hokutofuji – Now for the bottle edge of the funnel, both are 2-4, and both of them are fighting well below their abilities. The winner gets to continue in the funnel, the loser gets to walk the make-koshi path starting on day 8. Endo has a 10-8 career advantage.

Wakamotoharu vs Tobizaru – Tobizaru has a 7-1 career lead over Wakamotoharu, and coupled with Tobizaru’s position on the leader board, this is actually a high stakes match up, with 3-3 Wakamotoharu having a shot to knock Tobizaru off the leader board and back into the funnel. I am looking for Tobizaru to stay mobile, and keep Wakamotoharu away from his belt.

Kotonowaka vs Tamawashi – After winning his first two matches against the kadoban twins, Kotonowaka dropped the next two to Takakeisho and Terunofuji. Since then he is back to winning, and I am looking for him to turn in more than 8 wins this July. Given the chaos in the san’yaku, there may be a bit of a ‘jump ball” for ranks going into September. Tamawashi is only at 3-3, in part because he could not close the deal in his day 6 match against Yokozuna Terunofuji. They share an even 3-3 career record.

Kiribayama vs Daieisho – Both are part of the Darwin Funnel group, with matching 3-3 records thus far in July. Both are capable fighters, but really have not been able to muster more than a middling record. Both will remain in the funnel no matter who wins today, as escape at this point requires at least 2 consecutive wins.

Wakatakakage vs Takanosho – I think 1-5 Takanosho is a lost cause for July, and with any luck, Wakatakakage can use today’s match to put up a much needed win that maybe might help move him away from the funnel. At 3-3, he also needs at least 2 consecutive wins to escape.

Ichinojo vs Shodai – Unless there is an odd turn of events, Ichinojo will dominate his match with Shodai today. Shodai is still not ready to be an Ozeki, and Ichinojo is still feeling fine and ready to toss ponies. He also has a 12-4 career record over the Diakon, including 5 of the last 6 matches. Ouch…

Hoshoryu vs Mitakeumi – I would love to say that a strong and confident Mitakeumi was going to extend his 3-1 career record over Hoshoryu, but we all know this July these things are not in the cards. So I expect this to be a struggle. Both are 2-4, so loser exits the funnel to the make-koshi path, winner survives another day to try and claw his way out of the trap.

Takakeisho vs Abi – Abi is fairly adept at shutting down Takakeisho, and I think he’s likely to show us that talent today. Takakeisho is at the upper end of the funnel at 4-2, and would need at least one win to realistically escape. Abi at 3-3 would need at least two consecutive wins to escape.

Terunofuji vs Ura – Ura has never won a match against Terunofuji. There is a small chance he might take his first today, if Terunofuji does to carefully manage where he has his arms and hands. One stray appendage, and it’s time for Ura’s grab-and-tug sumo. Terunofuji has been fairly stable on his feet, but I would rather not see Ura test out the Yokozuna’s knees.

With the dawning of day 6, we begin act 2 of the 2022 Nagoya basho. At tachiai, we divide the 15 day tournament into three 5 day “acts”, each that tends to have its own goal and tempo. Act 2 is where we narrow the field to find out who has what it takes to compete for the yusho, and to start sorting the survivors from the damned. This is going to be a tall order this time, as so many rikishi have middling records, and we are likely to see a very broad “Darwin Funnel” put in place starting today or Saturday.

There are 4 rikishi who start day 6 with strong 4-1 records. None of them are in the named ranks. We have one rikishi / geological formation that has a perfect record, that’s the “Mongolian Behemoth” Ichinojo. Nearly everyone else is 3-2 or 2-3. So sure, pair up everyone and see just how many poor souls can be funneled toward a 7-7 score to start day 15. If nobody is going to distinguish themselves, they can all become cannon fodder for the brutal zero sum mill that is sumo at its finest.

How the schedulers are going to brew a yusho race out of this mess is a good question. While I am loving Ichinojo’s total dominance right now, I am quite certain it’s not going to last and we face grim possibilities of unlikely outcomes like a (dare I say it) “Tobizaru Yusho”. This is precisely the kind of thing that keeps me awake a night.

What We Are Watching Day 6

Nishikifuji vs Chiyomaru – Chiyomaru is already getting my vote for “back to Juryo” even though he is a long way from ending up with a kachi or make-koshi. He’s just not fighting that well, and frankly I wish there were some way to clean up the top division from all of these middling performances. I think today is an even shot against Nishikifuji. For funnel purposes, both ending the day at 3-3 would work out well.

Yutakayama vs Tohakuryu – Juryo visitor Tohakuryu comes for a top division match. A college graduate in 2019, he blazed a fast path to Juryo and has been working to claw his way higher since January of 2021. He and Yutakayama have split their two prior matches.

Daiamami vs Oho – I suspect Daiamami’s injured ankle is a ongoing problem for him. We saw him limping following his day 5 match against Azumaryu following his return from kyujo. He has a 2-1 record against Oho, but Oho is not hurt, and seems to be fighting well enough, even if his performance on the clay is nothing remarkable yet.

Ichiyamamoto vs Onosho – Up until yesterday, Ichiyamamoto was unbeaten. With his first loss, he is now one behind Ichinojo, and he gets to face Onosho, who is continuing his streak of poor sumo that was his downfall in May. I have to wonder what kind of injury Onosho is struggling with, because at Maegashira 15 he should be building a pile of white stars that would put him the yusho race from the bottom third of the banzuke. This is their first ever match.

Tsurugisho vs Chiyoshoma – Tsurugisho is clearly struggling in the early part of this basho. It’s a shame but most of these men have at least a handful of chronic injuries that sap their performance and stamina. Tsurugisho has all of the tools that should see him at least as a stable mid-level rank and file man in the top division. Instead he tends to have periods where he struggles to have much sumo power at all, and right now Nagoya is one of those periods. He’s up against Chiyoshoma day, and has a fairly even 3-4 record against hism.

Terutsuyoshi vs Myogiryu – Now that Terutsuyoshi has “broken the ice” and scored his shonichi, I would like to see him run up the win count a bit. He has a 5-2 career advantage over Myogiryu, and a Myogiryu loss today would give him a 3-3 record and nominate him for the funnel.

Kotoshoho vs Midorifuji – Another attempt to produce a 3-3 funnel score. Kotoshoho has a 4-0 record against Midorifuji, and has a 2-3 score starting day 6. So a pick up by the Kotoshoho would center him into the funnel group. The kink in the scheduler’s plans here is how well Midorifuji has been fighting this month.

Takarafuji vs Meisei – I am expecting Takarafuji to continue to struggle. Whatever has put his sumo into “low power mode” is ongoing, and while we can see days where he shows us his excellent skill and tactical thinking, the day to day grind of honbasho will be dictated by the realities of his condition. Meisei has a 6-4 career advantage, and I am not expecting Takarafuji will be able to beat Meisei today.

Tochinoshin vs Kotoeko – I am looking for Tochinoshin to finally be able to satisfy his urge to pick up his opponent and carry them around like a toddler. We all know he loves to do it, and Kotoeko is compact enough he may be able to pull if off if his knees are steady enough to provide the base for that lift. He has a 6-1 record over Kotoeko. Sky-crane ahoy!

Okinoumi vs Shimanoumi – I like that they are giving Shimanoumi a chance to catch up a bit. He has a 6-2 career record against Okinoumi, and with just 1 win to his name so far, Shimanoumi can use every white star he might be able to catch.

Chiyotairyu vs Hokutofuji – This match would usually be a must-see. But neither of these guys are fighting well right now, in fact well below their peak capabilities. I don’t think either one of them has given up their goal to be their best, but we are back to injuries again, and what problems they are working through while competing in sumo’s top division, where no quarter is given. Hokutofuji has an 8-3 career lead.

Nishikigi vs Tobizaru – Now this is fun, the schedulers have pair up the two highest ranking 4-1 rikishi to narrow the field. They have only fought once before, and it was Nishikigi who took the win. That being said, I think Tobizaru is fighting well right now. But be warned that we have seen Nishikigi go on a “magical mystery tour” of the upper reaches of the banzuke before. He can and does surprise opponents.

Endo vs Sadanoumi – On the theme of injuries – we have May’s jun-yusho holder in Sadanoumi now with a single win at the end of act 1. Maybe he was over-promoted, or more likely he picked up an injury at some point prior to the basho. If so he should be an easy mark for Endo, who could frankly use the win.

Wakamotoharu vs Aoiyama – Most of the sumo world liked how Wakamotoharu trashed Ozeki Shodai on day 5. As always, Wakamotoharu has solid fundamentals and a very sharp ring sense. He’s going to need it today, as right now Aoiyama is quite a bit more genki than his 3-2 score would indicate. If Wakamotoharu can keep his feet for the first 10 seconds, he may get a shot to win this one from “Big Dan”.

Kotonowaka vs Takanosho – Add Takanosho’s name into the “what happened to this guy” column. He has successfully defended san’yaku ranking in the past, and here is is struggling with a 1-4 record in the rank and file. I am going to assume that Kotonowaka is going to pick him off today. The question that comes to my mind – in week 2, will Kotonowaka be in what should be a very jumbled yusho hunt?

Hoshoryu vs Abi – Hoshoryu has an excellent record of shutting down Abi-zumo. With his 1-4 record, Hoshoryu could use the win, and I would like to see Abi eat some clay and join the funnel team with a 3-3 record to start the middle weekend.

Wakatakakage vs Kiribayama – I still think Wakatakakage is headed for higher rank if he can stay healthy (a big question indeed). But his Ozeki dream is now being packed up and sent out to be rebuilt from scratch. With a 2-3 record, he needs to set aside that aspiration and focus on his 8. This has happened to many of the current and past Ozeki, and it’s no big deal if he can stay healthy. Meanwhile, Kiribayama will be looking to increase his 6-3 career lead over Wakatakakage.

Ichinojo vs Mitakeumi – The Original Tadpole gets to take on The Boulder. There is trouble all over this match, from the fact that Ichinojo is probably going to push Mitakeumi closer to make-koshi and demotion from his Ozeki rank, to the concern that at some point Ichinojo will lose a few, and then how do we get any kind of yusho race? Will the whole mess boil down to 20 or so 7-7 Darwin matches on the final day, with some kind of daffy single elimination tournament to decide the yusho? I don’t have enough sake in the house for that kind of thing…

Takakeisho vs Ura – The only Ozeki who looks to be ready to hold his rank is Takakeisho. He needs to keep his arms close to his body when he is not attacking, or its grab and tug time courtesy of Ura. The job for Takakeisho is to keep Ura centered, and keep both hands delivering force without lingering near the opponent. Takakeisho enjoys an 8-3 career advantage over Ura.

Daieisho vs Shodai – Its not getting any easier for Shodai. He has a 7-12 career record against Daieisho, and given how poorly Shodai if fighting, he is likely picking up another win today. Right now I just wish Shodai could get his sumo back, this slowly falling apart a day at a time is no fun to watch.

Terunofuji vs Tamawashi – Tough subject, but it’s time to consider when Terunofuji will go kyujo. He’s got a knee card he can play at any time, and he clearly is not able to be a Yokozuna every day this July. A few days, yes, but so far only a thin majority. He has a 10-8 career record against Tamawashi, which means that Tamawashi is up to the task at taking a second consecutive kinboshi in two days from sumo’s lone Yokozuna.