An early happy Thanksgiving to all of Tachiai’s readers in the United States. I don’t recall the last time Thanksgiving fell during the November tournament, but the 4 day weekend in the US presents this sumo fan with a double-wide opportunity to enjoy the last days of this basho. A quick run down of day 12 before I start prepping for tomorrow’s feast. If you want the details of what is on the line, do check out lksumo’s excellent piece on the promotion / demotion chances.

Kyushu Leaderboard

Last day of warm-ups for the top ranks, we start the brutal round robin matches soon.

Leader: Terunofuji
Hunt Group: Takakeisho, Abi
Chasers: Mitakeumi, Tamawashi, Hokutofuji

4 matches remain

What We Are Watching Day 12

Sadanoumi vs Tochinoshin – Well, this one is full of potential, not just because its a significant clash of styles. You have speed and agility from Sadanoumi. Then you have Tochinoshin, who is only a shadow of his former self. If Sadanoumi wins today, it’s kachi-koshi for him, and make-koshi for Tochinoshin.

Ishiura vs Chiyonokuni – Chiyonokunin has never lost to Ishiura, in 8 attempts. For whatever reason, Chiyonokuni has the right formula to shut down whatever Ishiura might try. Both are in the funnel right now, and if Chiyonokuni wins, both will more or less exit the funnel. This happens because as the days march on, the funnel does narrow, and right now anyone who can get to 7 wins and 7 losses is more or less on a path to make or kachi-koshi.

Kotonowaka vs Shohozan – If Shohozan somehow manages to win, he can drag Kotonowaka over the line to join him in make-koshi land. Much as I like Kotonowaka, I kind of what to see this happen.

Kaisei vs Terutsuyoshi – Perfect funnel match, the two have a tied 4-4 career match record, they both come in at 5-6, and the winner gets to ride the funnel into the future, the loser is on the path to make-koshi. I favor Kaisei on this, because against a smaller opponent, being enormous is often a valid sumo strategy.

Chiyotairyu vs Akua – Another solid funnel match, the perfect result, in terms of the funnel, would be a Chiyotairyu win. Chiyotairyu won their only prior match in May. Akua will need to survive the first 5 second if he wants to take things his way, and advance to 7 wins.

Aoiyama vs Yutakayama – Aoiyama has had 8 straight losses after opening strong with 3-0. Can he rally and drag Yutakayama down to make-koshi as well? I have my doubts. Yutakayama is pretty rough this November, too. But I don’t think he is in the same poor condition as “Big Dan”.

Kotoeko vs Chiyomaru – I am going to say that I don’t think we will see another Kotoeko win. He just does not see to have any power in him this time out. Best to see if he can recover from whatever injury is going on, and get him fresh in January.

Kagayaki vs Tobizaru – Kagayaki is make-koshi, but there is still plenty of room for Tobizaru to make his 8, he just needs to
(checks notes) win 3 of his last 4 matches. Oh dear. Kagayaki is quite effective against Tobizaru, with a 4-1 career advantage.

Ura vs Hokutofuji – We all knew this one was coming along at some point, or we at least hoped. This one has the potential to be the match of the day. Ura is doing quite well this November, and Hokutofuji’s over demotion let him run up a 9-2 score. But now that we are in act 3, it’s time to see some of these peer matches unfold, regardless of rank. So I think Ura’s grab and tug sumo holds an advantage against Hokotofuji’s brand of oshi-zumo. Go ahead, big stuff, stick that arm out for a while. We all will get to enjoy a fourth katasukashi from Ura this month.

Hidenoumi vs Chiyoshoma – Matching 6-5 scores, and the winner gets to climb out of the funnel, the loser stays on course for Darwin on day 15. Their 6-7 career record is only slightly informative, as Chiyoshoma appears to fighting better than average, and Hidenoumi is at or slightly below average this basho.

Abi vs Tamawashi – This is a great “act 3” match, where you have two rikishi that are doing well, so you pair them up. I think this is another test match, looking to see if Abi is ready to rank in the top half of the banzuke. Abi’s long-arm thrusting attack works about half the time against Tamawashi, so this will likely be quite the battle.

Okinoumi vs Shimanoumi – A Shimanoumi win today will be make-koshi for Okinoumi, and more funnel time for Shimanoumi. He has a 4-1 career advantage, but it’s never wise to predict that Okinoumi will lose any match on any given day. He is tough, wily and has been in the top division for more than a decade.

Onosho vs Takanosho – Battle of the “nosho” crew, this one strongly favors Takanosho. A win by him will send Onosho make-koshi, and probably punch Takanosho’s ticket back to the named ranks.

Daieisho vs Hoshoryu – Another one for “make-koshi day”, Daieisho is one loss away from his, and he needs to summon his fighting spirit to keep Hoshoryu from getting a hand hold and putting the match on his terms.

Myogiryu vs Wakatakakage – Wakatakakage is also at risk for make-koshi today, but I think that he will prevail against a flagging Myogiryu, who has only had 2 wins this month.

Ichinojo vs Takarafuji – It just won’t not be “make-koshi day” if we were not treated to a mini-Darwin, where one of these two will exit the day with their make-koshi, and another survives to day 13. I think it’s going to be Ichinojo’s win, as Takarafuji just does not seem to be able to resist much forward pressure this basho.

Mitakeumi vs Endo – Mitakeumi can hit double digits with one more. He’s out of the spot of playing spoiler for the yusho, for the most part, but he can still wreck someone else’s November while he’s here. He holds a career 11-6 record over Endo, who has not had much luck landing his opening combos in the last 11 days.

Shodai vs Kiribayama – Shodai should win this today, but I hold in reserve the chance that he might blow his first chance at kachi-koshi. I am glad to note that Kiribayama has won 3 of the last 4, and is not quite as demoralized as his first week’s sumo led me to believe. But a loss today will send him make-koshi, which is typical for a first visit to the named ranks. He will be back.

Takayasu vs Takakeisho – This should be a high interest match, but I am going to guess that Takayasu won’t use his calm, patient sumo. The temptation for “wild man” sumo may be too great for him, and if he’s dancing around on one foot like three drunken gymnasts all squeezed into the same plus size leotard, he’s a big, easy target for Takakeisho.

Terunofuji vs Meisei – Terunofuji is going to wrap Meisei up, and grind him down. The real challenges for the Yokozuna start tomorrow, I would guess, so this is the last preliminary match for him.

Hello sumo fans. Tight day for myself, so I will hold back the sumo banter and just get straight to the matches. Some notables

10 rikishi at 4-7. Expect tomorrow to be “make-koshi day”
15 rikishi in the funnel at 5-6 / 6-5. This could be an epic Darwin match roster if the schedulers can keep it up.

Highlight Matches

Hokutofuji defeats Chiyomaru – One of the underlying themes of this basho is that Hokutofuji is one some kind of sumo “Bonus level”. Over-demoted, he is fighting rikishi far below his actual level, and more or less running amok down there. Today it was Chiyomaru who got to play with him, and supply his 9th win. I love me some Hokutofuji, but I am pretty sure there is no boss fight in his future, so its a bit mindless.

Sadanoumi defeats Ishiura – Ishiura took the attack straight to Sadanoumi’s forward quarter, and found he lacked the power to move Sadanoumi at all. After consolidating his stance, Sadanoumi pushed to the front, found he could move Ishiura, and proceeded to march him out. Sadanoumi improves to 7-4.

Terutsuyoshi defeats Kagayaki – Two matta: this match was a mess before it even started. Once they got underway, neither man could find a solid hold, a usable stance, or any clear advantage. The traded offense until Terutsuyoshi got low enough, raised Kagayaki high enough, and gave a lateral shove to take the win. Kagayaki’s picks up his 8th loss, and is make-koshi, Terutsuyoshi improves to 5-6 and remains in the funnel. Kagayaki has not had a winning tournament since September of 2020. How is this guy still in the top division?

Kotonowaka defeats Akua – Kotonowaka absorbed Akua’s initial combo, and managed to hold the middle of the ring as the two locked up chest to chest. Akua was slow to switch to a defensive posture, and in that gap, Kotonowaka moved forward, tossing both of them into the east side rikishi. A mono-ii affirm’s the gyoji’s call, and Kotonowaka improves to 4-7.

Kaisei defeats Hidenoumi – Low speed, calm match between these two. It was Kaisei who was in control from the tachiai. He was able to take his time, and slowly work his way to a left hand mawashi grip. Once that left hand hit silk, it was three short steps to the win, and Kaisei ends the day 5-6.

Chiyonokuni defeats Aoiyama – Well, Aoiyama showed about 4 seconds of offense, and some of it was working. Chiyonokuni rallied, and Aoiyama gave ground, then tried to pull. The match ended with Aoiyama falling down, losing his footing on the bales. Hell, that was a mess. Aoiyama picks up loss number 8, and is make-koshi for November, Chiyonokuni advances to 6-5.

Shohozan defeats Kotoeko – Shohozan had never lost to Kotoeko, and he kept that rule in force today. A quick hit, hold and stride forward took care of Kotoeko in about 4 steps. Almost looked like Shohozan doing it too. Shohozan finishes 3-8.

Tochinoshin defeats Chiyoshoma – Tochinoshin used a side step at the tachiai, but it had very limited effect, as Chiyoshoma knows all about such moves. The big question was what happens when they go chest to chest. I guess Chiyoshoma wanted to find out, too. It turns out Tochinoshin does have just enough strength left in that leg to use a very limited form of his “sky crane” to heave Chiyoshoma out. Tochinoshin picks his 4th win, and is 4-7. I have to wonder if Tochinoshin may actually be able to rescue himself from the Juryo barge after all.

Abi defeats Ura – This match had a lot of potential to be a crazy running battle between two high mobility rikishi. But Abi was able to connect on the first two volleys, and Ura was never able to recover his balance. A quick walk forward, and Mr. Pink mawashi was in Konosuke’s lap. Abi improves to 10-1 and remains on the leader board.

Tamawashi defeats Chiyotairyu – The key to a win against Chiyotairyu is to survive the first 5 seconds, when Chiyotairyu’s power is at its maximum. Tamawashi gave ground into Chiyotairyu’s advance, but was able to move aside at the bales, leaving Chiyotairyu on his face dangling over the west side. Tamawashi improves to 9-2.

Yutakayama defeats Shimanoumi – Against the odds, as I saw them, Yutakayama beat Shimanoumi, staving off make-koshi, and pushing Shimanoumi back into the funnel. Yutakayama kept his feet, in spite of having balance issues the entire match. It was enough to get Shimanoumi, and finally out, to improve to 4-7.

Hoshoryu defeats Tobizaru – This one did live up to its potential, with both rikishi trading blows, launching combo attacks, and employing a good amount of lateral movement while maintaining balance. Tobizaru only really hand control for a moment out of all of that, but not convert it to a win. Hoshoryu looking quite solid in that win, and both finish the day at 5-6.

Takanosho defeats Takarafuji – As has been the problem with Takarafuji’s sumo this November, he has all of the same mechanics as his “good” basho, but it seems he can’t stick his stance. A mono-ii following the fight ruled that a rematch was needed, with the second bout running more or less as the first, save with less defensive power from Takarafuji the that time. Takarafuji had to release his feet repeatedly in the face of Takanosho’s forward pressure in both matches today. Maybe lower back issues with the Isegahama man? Takanosho takes control the second time, and keeps the attack to the front, improving to 7-4.

Wakatakakage defeats Okinoumi – Solid tachiai from both, but Okinoumi’s first step lost traction, and he went down to the clay. A classic slippiotoshi, as the great Kintamayama would put it, and Wakatakakage staves off make-koshi another day, ending at 4-7.

Daieisho defeats Onosho – This was anticipated to be a deluxe thrusting battle, with both rikishi preferring to go for big, double arm shoves. They traded blows with great effect, but it was Daieisho that won the match, as the two tried to pull / slap each other down at nearly the same time. Both end the day 4-7.

Kiribayama defeats Myogiryu – Kiribayama got to the side on the second step, and locked his left hand at Myogiryu’s mawashi knot. With this manner of grip, and keeping his stance oblique, it was time for Kiribayama to have some fun. He consolidated this stance, and lifted Myogiryu up, carrying him to the curb like a bin of green glass on Wednesday morning in Sumida. Kiribayama joins the outsize crowd at 4-7 (10 of them!).

Mitakeumi defeats Takayasu – Mitakeumi expertly disrupted Takayasu’s balance, never letting him set up either offense or defense. When Mitakeumi released his nodowa, he drove a left hand inside, and eased Takayasu over the bales. Mitakeumi improves to 9-2.

Takakeisho defeats Endo – That was the best example of wave action tsuppari from Takakeisho in a while. It was configured to keep Enod back, away from the Ozeki’s mawashi, and incrementally win the match. Once Takakeisho gets into that cyclic attack, most folks are going down. Takakeisho impoves to 10-1.

Shodai defeats Meisei – We got Ozeki Shodai today, and we got a fine display of that “Wall of Daikon” offensive-defense. He kept Meisei to the front, and nibbled a way a piece at a time to move him back. Shodai improves to 7-4, and may have escaped the funnel.

Terunofuji defeats Ichinojo – I did not expect Ichinojo to put up that much of a fight. The Boulder did well to keep Terunofuji’s left hand out of the early portion of the match. Once the Yokozuna landed that left hand, Ichinojo lost most attack routes, and the count down clock to the yorikiri started. When Terunofuji moved forward to finish him, Ichinojo surprised with an escape! Not easy to do when you are that big. Terunofuji chased him down, and put him on the clay. Solid effort from Ichinojo, but Terunofuji remains unbeaten at 11-0.

With the dawn of day 11 in Western Japan, we are on to the final act of this Kyusho basho. Act 3 is where all of the pieces come together, we sort everyone into make and kachi koshi, and we crown the yusho winner. As predicted at the start of this tournament, Yokozuna Terunofuji is the favorite to hoist the cup yet again, with his nearest rival for the honor, Ozeki Takakeisho, eating clay on day 10 at the hands of Meisei.

In act 3, we are going to see two things of interest – first will be the “test matches” this is where there are much larger rank differences between the competitors. I tend to think of them as testing out the target promotion rank for the next banzuke. Second is the conclusion of “Darwin’s Funnel”, that herds as many rikishi as possible into starting day 15 with 7-7 scores. Many or all of them will face off against each other in single bout elimiation style. The winner get kachi-koshi, the loser make-koshi. But we have 4 days of action before we can get there.

Kyushu Leaderboard

It will all come down to “who can put dirt on Terunofuji”. My money is on an Ozeki.

Leader: Terunofuji
Hunt Group: Takakeisho, Abi
Chasers: Mitakeumi, Tamawashi, Ura, Hokutofuji

5 matches remain

What We Are Watching Day 11

Chiyomaru vs Hokutofuji – The only think I can think of about this match is that they want to make sure that Chiyomaru stays in the Darwin funnel. He has never won against Hokutofuji, who is already 8-2, and was over-demoted coming out of his September kyujo. I suspect this will not be pretty

Ishiura vs Sadanoumi – A win today, and Sadanoumi escapes the funnel, he would improve to 7-4, and would pretty much be a lock for kachi-koshi. He has been fighting well, and I think will be able to make his 8 no matter what. Ishiura is another matter, he has not been able to generate consistent quality sumo, and I think he will struggle today, in spite of his 9-5 career advantage over Sadanoumi.

Kagayaki vs Terutsuyoshi – I worry that Kagayaki might actually win this one, which would leave both of them with 3-7 scores. A Kagayaki loss today would be make-koshi for him on day 10, and may portend a double digit loss. At his rank, that might put him back in Juryo if things pay out a certain way. Terutsuyoshi is at the bottom edge of the funnel, and needs a win to maintain any hopes of reaching 8, a significant long-shot at this point.

Kotonowaka vs Akua – An Akua win today would be his first ever over Kotonowaka, and would also deal Kotonowaka his make-koshi. Akua would exit the funnel with a win, and so there is a lot of tension built into this match before these guys even get their mawashi on.

Kaisei vs Hidenoumi – Kaisei finds himself in yet another basho where he is struggling to keep more wins than losses in his record. He’s going to struggle some more against Hidenoumi today, who seems to have quietly found his sumo, and has been racking up wins. A win by Hidenoumi would probably push him out of the funnel.

Aoiyama vs Chiyonokuni – What pain or misery has beset Aoiyama? After a 3-0 start, Big Dan has had 7 straight losses, and if Chiyonokuni should prevail today, it would be 8 and make-koshi. It’s like the ancient game of pinball, there were times when the ball would take just the right trajectory, and after racking up a few nice points, rocket into the center drain, forever lost. Aoiyama, don’t be the pinball.

Kotoeko vs Shohozan – I guess they just had to have a misery match. Both already make-koshi, both of them fighting well below their abilities, and for Shohozan, the captaincy of the dreaded Juryo Barge. There are some who argue that such an honorific must go to Asanoyama given his standing as a former Ozeki. But as Shohozan is senpai, they can just keep quiet.

Tochinoshin vs Chiyoshoma – Chiyoshoma really does seem to have his sumo in good working order right now. That say 9 win over Endo was a thing of beauty. Today he’s got a much different opponent in Tochinoshin, who seems to be willing to endure quite a bit to try and save himself from demotion to Juryo. Going chest to chest won’t work, given the massive weight and strength difference, but please, for the love of sumo, do NOT henka this injured guy.

Ura vs Abi – Well, if a match could have neon details and streamers, this would be the one. What the hell is going to happen here? Really no good way to guess. Abi is going to attack at range, Ura going to go for grab and tug against anything left sticking out. If he can catch Ura with one of those big broadsides, it’s done and done for him, I would guess. Both are kachi-koshi, and fighting for rank.

Chiyotairyu vs Tamawashi – Both men like a big opening move, lots of forward power transmitted through their arms. It may come down to who connects first, and my bet would be Chiyotairyu. They have a 20 match history that narrowly favors the thunder-god, Chiyotairyu, at 11-9.

Shimanoumi vs Yutakayama – Must be a “gimme” match for Shimanoumi, or a make-koshi punctuation mark for Yutakayama. I don’t see Yutakayama winning today, so this will be loss number 8 should to happen that way.

Tobizaru vs Hoshoryu – Back to the high interest match set, this one may throw quite a few sparks. I am certain that Hoshoryu has had quite enough of losing matches that he has won in the past. Today it’s him against that flying monkey fellow, who is ripe for a big leg trip and face full of clay. Both are in the funnel, and the best funnel outcome would be a Hoshoryu win.

Takarafuji vs Takanosho – Fresh off of giving Mitakeumi the business, Takarafuji is going against Takanosho for the taka-battle of the day. While it would be great to see Takarafuji win this one, signs are that he is going to be the underdog in this match. Takanosho is 2 matches away from kachi-koshi, and 4 of the last 5.

Okinoumi vs Wakatakakage – Wakatakakage has proven a challenge for Okinoumi, beating him in both of their prior matches. At 3-7, the lead Onami brother needs every win he can find, and I am sure he is pushing to make it 3 in a row over Okinoumi today.

Daieisho vs Onosho – Both of these mega-thrust rikishi are staring a make-koshi down in act 3, the question is “when”. I think it comes down to who in this match will lose footing first, and my money is on Onosho. A loss today for Daieisho, and he is make-koshi.

Myogiryu vs Kiribayama – Kiribayama wins today, or picks up his 8th loss and is make-koshi. Myogiryu has lost 7 in a row, and I think he won’t be able to overcome Kiribayama’s 2-0 career advantage.

Mitakeumi vs Takayasu – A rivalry that goes back tp 2015, these two have 26 prior matches between them, with Takayasu holding a 19-7 advantage. Its been all Takayasu for the last couple of years, so we may see 2 losses in a row for Mitakeumi, to officially mark his traditional week 2 fade. And what is sumo without traditions? Just a couple of fat guys in underpants having a fight.

Endo vs Takakeisho – Endo will go for the belt early. If he gets there, it’s his to win. Takakeisho needs to bounce back after that suprise day 10 loss to Meisei. Hit hard, hit center mass, and don’t let Endo get his hands near your waist.

Shodai vs Meisei – Meisei will try to make it 2 ozeki scalps in a row, if he can overcome whatever random sumo Shodai pulls out today. With a 7-1 career record, Shodai has a clear advantage, but he’s really hit or miss right now. A Shodai win lifts him out of the funnel, but at this point I would rather see him remain.

Terunofuji vs Ichinojo – I am looking for Ichinojo to go soft early, not wanting to risk a back injury against Terufnofuji’s big sumo today. Once the Yokozuna sets up his grip, I don’t see The Boulder offering a lot of resistance past the initial pressure.

We close out act 2 with a day of surprises. Surprising winners, surprising kimarite, surprising dance moves from the yobidashi, and a surprising on-air call from one of the great public figures in sumo.

Highlight Matches

Akua defeats Yutakayama – Yutakayama starts with good power, and decent targeting. But he’s exclusevly going against Akua’s face and throat, and leaving his chest wide open. Akua gets underneath and shuts Yutakayama’s attack down. As Yutakayama’s arms come to his chest to defend, Akua grab and pulls, sending Yutakayama sprawling forward for his 7th loss. Akua improves to 6-4.

Tochinoshin defeats Kaisei – These two dispensed with the formalities, and immediately assumed a left hand outside / right hand inside yotsu stance. From there it was a contest of strength, and somehow Tochinoshin overcame whatever problems he had to lift Kaisei just enough to gently move him out by yorikiri, improving to 3-7.

Ishiura defeats Shohozan – As expected, Ishiura delivered Shohozan’s 8th loss to mark him make-koshi at his home basho. Shohozan started with some offensive sumo, but Ishiura got first to the side, then behind, and it was okuridashi time. Ishiura improves to 5-5.

Hokutofuji defeats Sadanoumi – Hokutofuji gauged Sadanoumi’s tachiai as “to fast, to far”, and took action. After meeting the initial hit, he stepped aside, and used both hands to assist Sadanoumi forward, to win by hatakikomi. That’s the 8th white start for Hokutofuji, and he is kachi-koshi for November.

Terutsuyoshi defeats Chiyomaru – Low speed tachiai from Terutsuyoshi, he took the shallow attack, and landed a left hand frontal grip. Chiyomaru had just enough time to realize he was in trouble, but before he could defend Terutsuyoshi swung him to the clay. Short and clean, the win advances Terutsuyoshi to 4-6.

Hidenoumi defeats Kagayaki – Kagayaki had control of the early portion of the match, focusing blows and pushing against Hidenoumi’s upper body. To his credit, Hidenoumi stayed focus, on his feet and kept working to get chest to chest with Kagayaki, and eventually was rewarded with a right hand inside grip. Kagayaki attempts an arm bar / arm-breaker throw, which leads to a Hidenoumi rally and a forceful oshidashi. Points to the yobidashi for the masterful evasion move. Hidenoumi improves to 6-4.

Kotoeko defeats Chiyonokuni – Kotoeko was denied any kind of grip or body position by Chiyonokuni volley of thrusts. Kotoeko tried at least twice to attack, and was repelled each time. He found himself low, and spotted Chiyonokuni open, and lunged to plant a double hand push on Chiyonokuni’s mawashi, sending him into the front row of cushions. Second win of the basho for Kotoeko, he improves to 2-8.

Abi defeats Tobizaru – Tobizaru had to have known there would be no mawashi grip today, and instead committed to throwing every thrust he could at Abi. It was actually effective for the first few seconds of the match, even giving him advantage for a brief moment. But this just seemed to motivate Abi to improve his targeting, grabbing Tobizaru’s face. It’s two volleys from there and Tobizaru is out, with another yobidashi escape move. Get that guy a mawashi! Abi improves to 9-1.

Ura defeats Kotonowaka – Oh, how I had missed having Ura in the top division for those years of injury and recovery. For those of you new fans, he used to do this stuff every day. Rikishi hated to face him because he was going to do some crazy stuff that made them look foolish and clumsy. Kotonowaka is having none of it, so he just stands up and immediately goes defensive / “keep away from me, ya pest!” Ura goes grab and tug, making sure everything is solidly attached to Kotonowaka’s frame. Attack high, attack low, grab an arm, reach for that knee, he’s everywhere at once. Kotonowaka bars Ura’s right arm. Clearly he has not watched footage from the TWO PRIOR DAYS. Up comes the opposite hand, and it’s the third blazing katasukashi in a row. Ura’s 8th win, he is kachi-koshi for November. At least we can assume that Abi won’t try that hold against Ura day 11.

Shimanoumi defeats Chiyotairyu – Sort of the “ultimate funnel match”, that needed a Shimanoumi win, and he got it. He withstood Chiyotairyu’s powerful opening combo, kept his feet and kept focused. It took a bit of time to overcome Chiyotairyu, with the opening coming as Chiyotairyu attacked high, leaving Shimanoumi as route to center-mass to push Chiyotairyu for the win. Both end the day 5-5.

Tamawashi defeats Aoiyama – Man, what happened to Big Dan Aoiyama? A solid 3-0 start, and then nothing but losses for the last 7 days. The match was all Tamawashi, with Aoiyama putting up only token defense. Kachi-koshi for Tamawashi at 8-2.

Chiyoshoma defeats Endo – There were suspicions that this could be a big fight, and I am delighted the two of them decided to give it a try. Excellent hit at the tachiai by Chiyoshoma robbed Endo of his frontal grip attempt. High marks to Chiyoshoma for his combo attacks, he never gave Endo a moment to do anything other than react. It was Chiyoshoma who landed a grip first from the side, and rather than let Endo reciprocate, he kicked Endo’s left foot out from under him, sending him backward onto the clay. A glorious susoharai leg sweep. I am really enjoying the upgraded Chiyoshoma, he improves to 6-4.

Okinoumi defeats Takanosho – Takanosho – too much enthusiasm to try and pick up that 5th win in a row. Okinoumi responds well, and gives him a close up look at the tawara with a hatakikomi, improving to 4-6.

Wakatakakage defeats Daieisho – Wakatakakage avoids make-koshi with a henka. Daieisho assumed a bit too much, and found his opponent not where he expected him, both end the day 3-7.

Ichinojo defeats Myogiryu – Myogiryu also attempts to slip to the side at the tachiai, but Ichinojo is ready. He captures Myogiryu, circles behind and runs him out like a man ejecting his daughter’s dirt-bag boyfriend. Ichinojo improves to 4-6.

Onosho defeats Kiribayama – A great moment in sumo broadcasting, as Murray Johnson refers to Kiribayama losing by “Slippotoshi”. My compliments to Murray and the great Kintamayama. Onosho improves to 4-6. I eagerly await its inclusion in the official kimarite later this century.

Takarafuji defeats Mitakeumi – Readers, do you know what happened here? I am still trying to piece it together. Everyone was hoping that Mitakeumi had his sumo together, maybe double digits, maybe one more try for Ozeki. Then this… Takarafuji, who only had 3 wins so far, gets his defend and extend sumo going, and shuts down Mitakeumi. Takarafuji picks up a surprising, but well earned win to improve to 4-6.

Shodai defeats Takayasu – Shodai won this, and how he won it is really sort of the story of his Ozeki career. He quickly gets in trouble, and puts all of his effort into evading Takayasu as best he can. He tries some cartoon sumo, he tries “Wall of Daikon”, and Takayasu is still in charge. He catches Takayasu at just the right moment and runs forward. Takayasu realizes he’s out of space, and pulls, in response Shodai does this little leap to keep himself airborne just long enough to Takayasu to be out. Yep, that’s a win. Shodai improves to 6-4.

Meisei defeats Takakeisho – Takakeisho seemed to be lacking most of his attack power today. Not sure if it was just an off day, or if some of his chaotic dismounts this November are starting to take their toll. The loss knocks Takakeisho out of his tie for the lead, as Meisei advances to 5-5.

Terunofuji defeats Hoshoryu – Well, Hoshoryu went for an inside grip. It was all fun for the moment, but Terunofuji loves those double arm bar holds. He used Hoshoryu’s grip as a fast route to squeeze the stuffing out of the Maegashira 5, and then tossed the husk out of the ring. The Yokozuna remains undefeated and alone atop the leaderboard now at 10-0.