Nagoya Basho 2017

Posts about the tournament in Nagoya, July 2017

A Day Out at the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium

Josh K Nagoya Basho 2017

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I was fortunate enough to take in Day 2 of the Nagoya basho in person, so here’s a firsthand account of the day, the venue and the atmosphere.

Booking Tickets

At Bruce’s recommendation, I reached out to BuySumoTickets.com a couple months in advance to try and get tickets, and they delivered! I knew I would have time in Nagoya to go to either Day 1 or Day 2 (or both), and knowing how difficult it would be to get tickets owing to Nagoya being a smaller venue and the ever-rising popularity of the sport, this ended up being a safer option than booking my own tickets through NSK like I did for Hatsu before Tagonoura-beya changed the face of the banzuke with a pair of promotions.

We ended up getting Chair “A” seats. In the Kokugikan this will put you at the front of the second tier, but in the smaller venue this puts you at the very back of the arena. I also threw a pair of J-League 2 tickets into the bargain for Nagoya Grampus. The tickets arrived to California well in advance of my flight to Japan (which was 11 days before Day 2 of the basho), and the site was a pleasure to work with.

Arriving at the Gymnasium

Coming from near Nagoya station, we took the subway to Shiyakusho/City Hall station on the Meijo line. Exiting the station, you end up just on the edge of Meijo Park, which houses both the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium as well as Nagoya Castle. The park is nice and leafy and green, and provides a nice counterpoint to the majesty of the Kokugikan. We arrived at around noon, and the atmosphere outside was mostly subdued, with a handful of lower division rikishi walking around and the punters being generally easygoing and happy.

Entering the venue is quite cramped and I’m glad we arrived “early” (it would have been earlier if Wakaichiro had been competing!), as the hallway can only fit about 3-4 people across at a time which is quite a difference from the great hall that welcomes you to the Kokugikan! Already a handful of fans were queueing up for the arrival of the more vaunted rikishi, so we decided to make a lap around the arena and check out the merch and food options before heading to our seats.

Speaking of entering the venue, here’s a time-lapse of the makuuchi (west) rikishi getting started (sorry for the shaky camera – I had to hold it a LONG time!):

Merch, Food & Souvenirs

Keeping with the theme, both the diversity as well as the quantity of the merch and food offerings are downsized at Nagoya, however the dispersal and consistency of merch to be found is very impressive. You are just never far from a pretty good collection of sumo merch regardless of where you are in the venue. As it was a hot day, ice cold beer, water and ice cream were plentiful and there were plenty of roving vendors supplying ice cream throughout the day as well. There was a decent bento selection but we opted to grab some edamame and dango before heading to our seats. I’d been hopeful to get a cup of chankonabe, but there was quite a long queue and the signs around the venue made clear that today’s stew would be limited to 400 cups.

As the hallways were extremely narrow, it made purchasing merch (and boy, did I ever) a challenging proposition. When ordering multiple items, the vendors often needed to go around the shop to work out what each item cost before totalling them all up. It’s not quite a smooth of an operation as in Tokyo but everyone was extremely enthusiastic and thankful for the business.

And judging by what was on display, it was clear that shin-Ozeki Takayasu was the popular man – not only gracing most of the main magazines but also quite prominently across most of the featured food items and other souvenirs. There is just enormous love for Takayasu right now and most of the media coverage we saw leading up to the day centered squarely around him. Beyond that, as expected, Kisenosato and Hakuho were the other two big sellers.

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Yum!

Seats

Our seats were near the back of the arena on the west side, but the sight lines are outstanding in the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium. There literally is not a bad seat there, and at the back the slope is just steep enough that you don’t need to worry about seeing over the row in front of you – there’s always a clear sight of the entire dohyo.

When we visited the Toyota Stadium a few days earlier to take in the Grampus match, we were able to book a “pairs seat,” which is a fantastic innovation in that it’s two seats with direct aisle access that has a mounted table in front (if you live in a city in America that has an Alamo Drafthouse movie theatre, it’s similar to this). This was unbelievably handy and it was cool to see that the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium also has these type of seats installed – I would highly recommend trying to book those seats if you are able. I will definitely try to do so on my next visit.

It was also interesting that both the tickets that I booked directly from the sumo association as well as the tickets I booked through BuySumoTickets put me amongst a large group of foreigners. It was cool to be able to explain what was going on to others and hopefully help them get more excited about the sport, but I will say that in future it would be good to be able to participate in more of the atmosphere by being surrounded by folks who know the sport. I have a feeling that may come simply by managing to get better/more expensive tickets. On the whole however, the tourist crowd was better in Nagoya as they were at least more interested in the matches – when I was in Tokyo in January there were several disinterested tour groups whose presence probably prevented a few genuine sumo fans from getting into the venue.

Finally, the one oft-discussed element of Nagoya has been the weather. While the hallways were very swampy and humid owing to doors being open to the outside, our seats themselves were very cool and comfortable. It rained earlier in the day which may have contributed to this, but since we weren’t anywhere near the hot lights down below, and the venue does have a degree of air conditioning, it was very nice. It only started getting warmer once the venue started to fill up, and the seats are VERY close together (by American standards). So I was only a little upset that I didn’t need to use my new Ura fan!

Matches

Bruce has largely covered this so I won’t go into too much detail, but it is true that the live experience is very different from both the extended coverage and the NHK highlights, both in terms of the cadence of the day as well as the angle you experience the match and the crowd.

We got to see huge wins for Takayasu, Tamawashi and Ura, and the crowd really exploded at each of those owing to the nature of each victory. In fact, the Australians behind us spilled their beer from celebrating when Ura won! Kisenosato seemed extremely defensive, and people seemed more relieved than anything at his win. Fans were really behind the typically popular rikishi – though one woman a couple rows down tended to scream out the name of whoever the crowd favorite was up against! The day of course ended with the Shodai kinboshi and as I’ve now been fortunate to experience that final match kinboshi on 2 occasions, the sight of seat cushions flying everywhere is just one of the coolest ways to end the day.

The Hakuho/Tochinoshin match was notable because you could really hear and feel the battle, and also because getting to sit and witness someone like Hakuho who is the very best at what they do is always special no matter what it is that they do. In a few years we will be talking about The Great Hakuho in the past tense, and being there for even just a piece of those 1,038 wins feels significant. And also, the chance to see this, perhaps one last time:

 

Nagoya Day 3 Preview

Bruce H Arawashi (荒鷲), Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hakuho (白鵬), Harumafuji (日馬富士), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ichinojo (逸ノ城), Ikioi (勢), Kakuryu (鶴竜), Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Nagoya Basho 2017, Shōdai (正代直也), Takakeishō (貴景勝), Takarafuji (宝富士), Takayasu (高安), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Terunofuji (照ノ富士), Tochinoshin (栃ノ心), Ura (宇良) , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Big-K

Young Blood Creating An Exciting Dynamic

Video from this Nagoya basho always features one thing in every shot – the crowd desperately fanning themselves. I had heard that this event was a hot, sweaty and sticky affair. On top of that, Japan has turned it’s heat and formidable humidity to 11. The greatest and most troubling manifestation of Japan’s tropical tendencies are the catastrophic rain in western Japan, including parts of Kyushu and extreme western Honshu.

While the discomfort for the fans in the Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium is quite real, the heat endured by the athletes is even more extreme. Within the dohyo awning suspended from the ceiling, There is a battery of high intensity flood lamps, cameras and microphones. These lamps are meant to light the action, and easily raise the temperature on the dohyo by 10°. So if you wonder why the rikishi are drenched in sweat when you see them either exit the arena, or in the interview room after a bout, this plays a significant part.

As anticipated, the placement of so many strong, healthy and new rikishi this high in the banzuke is creating some unpredictable results in the first third of Nagoya. Readers of this site know that it is my theory that any basho follows a fairly predictable evolution, that can be thought of as 5 day “thirds”. The first third is the warm up, the second is the heart of the competition, where you see who is hot and who is not, and the final third determines the yusho. The roster of who is in Makuuchi has been surprisingly stable for at least a year, and so the pace and contests within each day’s torikumi can feel almost familiar.

With this much new talent in the top Maegashira, it’s a surprise each day. First time match up coupled with raw talent, uninjured rikishi scrapping to make their mark on the sport they will likely dominate for the next decade or so. Let the chaos cauldron continue to boil! Nagoya is just getting started!

Matches We Like

Nishikigi vs Chiyomaru – Both have started the basho with two wins, and both are Maegashira 15. Looks like it’s time to sort these two on the clay.

Arawashi vs Takarafuji – Takarafuji as never lost to Arawashi, but Arawashi has won his first two bouts of the basho. I would expect that Arawashi will need to do something to escape Takarafuji superior reach and complete lack of neck.

Aoiyama vs Ishiura – Classic sumo big man / little man match. We have yet to see any real sumo from Ishiura this tournament, and it would warm the hearts of many fans to see these two provide a good battle. This is, in fact, their first match.

Ichinojo vs Onosho – Another big man / little man match, Onosho has really been high energy and dangerous since May. As always Ichinojo is hit or miss. Another of the great first ever meetings between these two.

Ura vs Kagayaki – Kagayaki has been struggling to get his sumo running in Nagoya. Now he is up against Ura, who has dialed back the acrobatics and is winning with solid sumo fundamentals. Perhaps today Ura will unleash some of his non newtonian physics for the fans.

Tamawashi vs Yoshikaze – Both rikishi are coming into the match with two win starts, and this one could be one of the better matches of the day. Yoshikaze has been surprisingly deliberate in his two prior wins. Tamawashi has been unleashing explosive sumo from the start, and making it work. Their career match ups are essentially even, so this could be a real battle.

Mitakeumi vs Goeido – Mitakeumi has only beaten Goeido once before, but Mitakeumi could care less. Mitakeumi is starting to remind me of a Honey Badger now. Goeido is getting into a really troublesome mode right now, I had jokingly nominated him for kadoban, but he seems to be on a fast track this time.

Terunofuji vs Ikioi – One could imagine a healthy Terunofuji would stop by the Ryogoku McDonalds for some dipping sauce to enjoy with what was left of Ikioi. But it’s clear that the big Ozeki is injured. Ikioi could really use the win, so it will be somewhat unpleasant to see what happens here. Surprisingly, Ikioi leads their career bout record 7-2.

Takayasu vs Kotoshogiku – Another cringe inducing match. As we stated before we hate watching Kotoshogiku suffer, but he insists on turning up to compete. But for Takayasu, he needs to settle down and produce Ozeki class result. Hopefully Ojisan Kotoshogiku will provide him with a good match.

Takakeisho vs Harumafuji – We can assume after the first two days that Harumafuji has some medical / mechanical issues in Nagoya. The question is does he soldier on? Takakeisho is a big mystery here, this is their first ever match, and he is both nervous and fired up.

Hakuho vs Shodai – The boss is looking for win #1039 on his march to the record. Shodai will likely provide some contest for a few seconds, but I expect Hakuho to dispatch him. Short of injury, Hakuho is making the case that he will be the man to beat.

Hokutofuji vs Kakuryu – Another potential for a great match. These two are meeting for the first time, and we will have two rikishi who have mass, strength and a great defensive approach to sumo. Sure Hokutofuji can implement a masterful attack, but I am expecting to recognize that a match with Big K is going to be a game of cat and mouse.

Kisenosato vs Tochinoshin – Someone is going to really hurt Kisenosato, I fear. And with the overwhelming strength of Tochinoshin, I fear this could be the match that unleashes agony for the Yokozuna and the Japanese sumo loving public. If The Great Pumpkin can make it through this match and even win, it would do a lot to shut people like me up, who think his current left arm is some cutting edge robotic attachment from the labs at Tohoku University.

Nagoya Day 2 Highlights

Bruce H Arawashi (荒鷲), Chiyonokuni (千代の国), Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hakuho (白鵬), Harumafuji (日馬富士), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ikioi (勢), Ishiura (石浦), Kakuryu (鶴竜), Kisenosato (稀勢の里), Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Nagoya Basho 2017, Shōdai (正代直也), Takakeishō (貴景勝), Takayasu (高安), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Terunofuji (照ノ富士), Tochinoshin (栃ノ心), Tochiozan (栃煌山), Ura (宇良), Yoshikaze (嘉風) , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Day 2 Iri

Concern For Harumafuji

Day 2 saw things improve slightly for the top two ranks, but in the Ozeki there is a lack of dominance. For Terunofuji, it would seem quite clearly that his knee problems are quite significant, and keeping him from really producing much power. The amount of bracing and bandaging Terunofuji wore on day 2 was substantial, and his inability to counter anything Tamawashi was using identifies the problem squarely. In the past I have jokingly referred to Terunofuji as Kaiju – a tangential reference to Godzilla and other giant creatures of the cinema. When he is healthy and fit, Terunofuji is somewhat unstoppable by any normal means (much like Godzilla).

Goeido on the other hand seems to be healthy, but is making tactical mistakes in his split-second decisions on the dohyo. Today he seemed to want to get into a speed battle with Yoshikaze. That’s a bit like Wile E Coyote racing the Road Runner – it won’t end well. As of day 2, both established Ozeki have two losses and zero wins.

I would add to that score an unexpected name – Yokozuna Harumafuji. Normally Nagoya is the place where he shines, but for two days in a row he has suffered defeat. Today Shodai was somehow able to package him up and move him off the dohyo. For Harumafuji (“The Horse”) this is clearly a further manifestation of his many injuries that continue to degrade his performance.

Selected Matches

Nishikigi defeats Gagamaru – After one basho in Juryo, Nishikigi seems well motivated, and overcame the greater mass of Planet Gagamaru, who seems to be injured or in pain.

Arawashi defeats Chiyonokuni – Chiyonokuni is looking very sloppy now. He drove hard into Arawashi, who countered brilliantly and used Chiyonokuni strength to speed his exit. Sometimes an up and coming rikishi makes it to the top of Maegashira for a basho, and get pounded flat. It then takes several tournaments for them to re-assert their sumo with any confidence or poise. I wonder if that is what has happened to Chiyonokuni.

Shohozan defeats Okinoumi – Okinoumi suffers from a chronic and somewhat untreatable (while he is active) injury, but he put up a solid effort against Shohozan. I am going to guess that Okinoumi will retire before long as he has few options now.

Daieisho defeats Ishiura – No Ishiura henka means that Daieisho got to really toss Ishiura around. Daieisho was very impressive in this bout.

Onosho defeats Tochiozan – Not a powerful win from Onosho, he probably sensed that Tochiozan had a yorikiri almost ready to deliver. But Onosho showed amazing presence by timing a side step at the apex of Tochiozan’s forward thrust. A win by Hikiotoshi in this case was more impressive than a strong oshidashi.

Ura defeats Chiyoshoma – I think most were expecting Ura to dial the Jackie Chan module up to 11 in his debut in the upper Makuuchi. Instead what we are getting are quite excellent execution of solid sumo fundamentals. Ura remains low, powerful and moving forward. Sadly it looks like Ura took a finger to the eye in his win over Chiyoshoma.

Mitakeumi defeats Hokutofuji – Highlighted as a possible match of the day, this one did not disappoint. Both are amazingly strong young men, focused on advancing. This bout was all Mitakeumi, who got his hands under Hokutofuji’s armpits and marched him backwards. Impressive victory.

Tamawashi defeats Terunofuji – Tamawashi again is making the case that he has a lot of sumo left to apply, and today he was out to demonstrate that against a seemingly injured Terunofuji. Terunofuji was stiff and reactive, he was not able to bring his trademark hideous strength to play in this match, and Tamawashi tossed him around like a beach ball on a string.

Takayasu defeats Ikioi – The shin-Ozeki came roaring back in a really sloppy match that still counts as a win. Out of 6 Ozeki matches thus far, this is the only win. My pre-basho projection of Ikioi having a strong tournament is clearly wrong, as he looks unfocused and ill prepared for battle.

Yoshikaze defeats Goeido – I saw something really special again today from Yoshikaze. He deployed it on day one against Harumafuji as well, and he does not frequently use it: patience. It did not take long for Goeido to make a mistake, but Yoshikaze waited for it, and then exploited it for a win. Goeido really looks ragged right now.

Hakuho defeats Tochinoshin – It’s clear the Boss is having fun on the dohyo. He gave Tochinoshin a few moments to trade “strong man” moves back and forth. And at least once he was almost able to lift to Yokozuna off the clay. If Tochinoshin’s right leg were healthy, it would have been a different story, but Hakuho backed Tochinoshin to the bales and hip-rammed him out.

Kakuryu defeats Kotoshogiku – I thought this bout was magic. We knew that Ojisan Kotoshogiku is pretty much just making a farewell tour now, but Kakuryu did in fact let him set up for a hip-pump attack, and then dropped him hard on the first thrust. This is one of the things that makes Kakuryu a worthy Yokozuna when he’s healthy. He can use almost any rikishi’s attack to his advantage.

Kisenosato defeats Takakeisho – Glad that the Great Pumpkin was able to get a win against the hard-charging Takakeisho, but Kisenosato struggled to pull it off. The Yokozuna is still clearly protecting his left side, and it’s only a matter of time before the problems grow to the point he will consider going kyujo again.

Shodai defeats Harumafuji – This one was over the a blink of an eye. Harumafuji won the tachiai, but was off balance quickly. Shodai showed why he remains the upper ranks by immediately exploiting that opening for a solid kinboshi win.