My compliments to the scheduling team at the Japan Sumo Association. Through skilled match making and probably as fair amount of planning, you have constructed a marvelous yusho race going into the final 3 days. The matches today were consequential, thrilling and so much happened today that it may have the most engaging day of the basho so far.

We exit day 12 with the yusho race tied up once more between Nishikigi and Hokutofuji, and one of the three Ozeki hopefuls likely relegated to trying again next basho.

Highlight Matches

Oshoma defeats Daishoho – Juryo visitor Oshoma puts the doom on Daishoho, handing him his 8th loss and make-koshi. It was kind of a weird match, with a mutual side step slow motion tachiai, and very tentative arm’s length mild fighting, and a soft step out by Daishoho. Not what I call sumo. Oshoma now 6-6.

Aoiyama defeats Kinbozan – Aoiyama now with 4 wins in a row, and I would be amazed if this arch-competitor can self-rescue from near certain demotion. He may be as flabby as a manatee, busted up and hurt, but he’s not giving up and going home, he’s fighting with everything he can muster. After an initial battery of shoves, Aoiyama gets Kinbozan turned around and sends him out by okuridashi. Both end the day 6-6.

Myogiryu defeats Takarafuji – Takarafuji, on the cusp of a much needed 8th win, is sputtering. Myogiryu opens with an off-angle tachiai, which lets him get both hands inside for a body hold. Takarafuji does not quite have his feet set for defense when Myogiryu turns on the forward power and walks him back for a yorikiri. Myogiryu now 6-6.

Chiyoshoma defeats Takanosho – I was hoping for a Chiyoshoma henka, but instead I got him executing some fantastic disruptive sumo. Lots of slapping and knocking Takanosho off balance. It shows a great sense of the best time to hit someone to make them stumble. Granted, an odd skill to have, but it’s solid gold for sumo. Takanosho can’t keep his feet, and Chiyoshoma helps him visit the clay with a dandy hatakikomi. Both end the day 6-6.

Sadanoumi defeats Bushozan – Bushozan does a great job of shutting down Sadanoumi’s mobility, and the two trade volleys of thrusts trying to set up a working grip. When Sadanoumi gets his left on Bushozan’s belt, he goes for the uwatenage. But did I see Sadanoumi’s right hand on Bushozan’s mage? Perhaps not – the judges did not ask to review the footage. Both end the day 3-9.

Ryuden defeats Nishikifuji – Things start off very well for Nishikifuji, until the moment when he decides that moving forward was not going to work for him, and attempts a pull. The release of forward pressure is all Ryuden needed to charge ahead, and send Nishikifuji out by oshidashi, giving Ryuden his kachi-koshi win at 8-4.

Gonoyama defeats Takayasu – Shin-Goeido makes short work of Takayasu after Takayasu tries some manner of henka. Clearly hurt and not used to big lateral moves at the tachiai, it fails miserably. Gonoyama with the win, advancing him to 7-5.

Kotoeko defeats Hokuseiho – Hokuseiho has now lost 3 of his last 4, and seems to be on course for a make-koshi. Brilliant work by Kotoeko keeping Hokuseiho off of his mawashi for most of the fight. Once the giant landed a hold, Hokuseiho worked to contain Kotoeko and walk him out. It nearly worked, but somehow Kotoeko got a pivot in there, and against the odds completed the rotation to take Hokuseiho down by uwatenage. Kotoeko now 6-6.

Oho defeats Kotoshoho – Another match where Kotoshoho is too far forward over his feet. Points to Oho for understanding his opponent’s body position, and taking full advantage of it. He managed to get Kotoshoho airborne for a moment, which is always a good finish in my book. Oho now 5-7, Kotoshoho with his 8th loss is make-koshi at 4-8.

Tsurugisho defeats Onosho – Color me surprised that Tsurugisho found enough fortitude to handle a straight ahead match with Onosho given his level of injury and pain. Apart from a brief moment where he nearly fell forward, Tsurugisho had the upper hand and finished Onosho with a glorious rolling throw. They scored it oshitaoshi, close enough. Tsurugisho now 4-8.

Hiradoumi defeats Midorifuji – Midorifuji worked hard to execute some kind of sumo move with that right hand grip, but when his best try failed, he also lost the hold on Hiradoumi’s mawashi. At that point Hiradoumi put power forward and walked Midorifuji out. Hiradoumi now 4-8.

Meisei defeats Shodai – Shodai managed to reverse on Meisei and put Meisei’s heels on the tawara. It looked like Shodai was about to ramp up the pressure when Meisei brought his right leg into the match, toppling Shodai with a sotogake. Power move from Meisei, both end the day 5-7.

Ura defeats Mitakeumi – Mitakeumi can still execute the motions behind “his brand of sumo”, but they seem to be only about 80% of required strength and power. Great example today as he is unable to break through Ura’s “chaos defense”. Multiple times we see Mitakeumi have Ura bracketed, square his hips and push forward, only to see Ura break free and scamper away. Ura’s finishing tottari was messy, but glorious, he is now 6-6.

Shonannoumi defeats Nishikigi – Shonannoumi makes the yusho race interesting, by taking down sole leader Nishikigi with an arm bar throw. The key was that initial left hand inside hold from Shonannoumi, which he was able to hold through Nishikigi’s attempt to first break the hold, then grip shift. Shonannoumi gets his 8th win and is kachi-koshi at 8-4.

Asanoyama defeats Tobizaru – “Asanoyama risks career ending injury” is how I look at this match. Like that tape is going to do anything. This match is quite the mess, as Asanoyama can’t use his left to set up the throw we knew he wanted against Tobizaru. Tobizaru tries a counter move, and the two collapse in a heap in the middle of the dohyo. They scored it as a sukuinage, but the win went to Asanoyama. He is now 5-7.

Kotonowaka defeats Endo – Good lord! Kotonowaka not only blocks Endo’s opening move, but uses his trapped left arm as a lever to lift him up and into a throw. Sukuinage win for Kotonowaka, what a move. Kotonowaka is kachi-koshi at 8-4.

Hakuoho defeats Abi – The start of this match was a matta festival, as each man tried out a false start or two. When they finally got around to the match, Abi’s initial surge at the tachiai was nearly enough. Sadly he then resulted to a series of pulling attempts, that opened the door for Hakuoho’s offense. Hakuoho set his forward power to “11” and sent Abi into the second row. Hakuoho fell on that injured shoulder and was clearly in pain. He did score the win, and is now 9-3, while Abi is make-koshi at 4-8.

Tamawashi defeats Daieisho – Perfect execution from Tamawashi. He presenting an opening push to Daieisho, who responded by powering forward with everything he had, spot on for “his brand of sumo”. Of course Tamawashi pushed gently again, stepped back and to the right as Daieisho thrust forward into the open air. Scored as a hatakikomi, it was the exact way you let Daieisho defeat himself. Tamawashi now 7-5.

Hokutofuji defeats Hoshoryu – Hokutofuji’s upper body sumo today was good, not great. But his lower body sumo was amazing, once again keeping him in the match by keeping him upright. Hoshoryu was pouring in the power, but was not quite patient enough to move properly. A poorly executed step to the right gave Hokutofuji the opening to collapse Hoshoryu’s stance, and he crumpled at the tawara. Oshidashi win for Hokutofuji, and he pulls even with Nishikigi again at 10-2.

Kirishima defeats Wakamotoharu – Kirishima’s ottsuke shut down anything Wakamotoharu had in mind. Followed by an expertly timed left hand body grab, Wakamotoharu was done. With this loss, Wakamotoharu’s aspirations to reach Ozeki this month are likely gone, as Kirishima picks up the yorikiri win to improve to 6-6.

The first thing that caught my eye when putting this post together was that Asanoyama is back. A doctor told him to take 4 weeks off to recover from a partial tear to his left bicep from his match against Hoshoryu. At the time I complimented him for not “going all Kisenosato on us”, but it seems it was too early to assume that. The shockingly poor state of sports medicine around professional sumo continues to depress me.

With Hokutofuji’s loss to Wakamotoharu on day 11, it’s now Nishikigi’s yusho race to win. I am certain they are going to hope someone puts dirt on him soon, but he has already faced all of the top rikishi, including Kirishima. He still has yet to face Hokutofuji, thought.

There are 4 rikishi up for possible kachi-koshi today: Kotonowaka, Shonannoumi, Ryuden, and Takarafuji, along with 6 up for possible make-koshi, including Asanoyama, the big dummy.

Nagoya Leaderboard

This is all Nishikigi right now, and we have the two chasers facing each other today as Hoshoryu and Hokutofuji fight in the penultimate match of the day. The 4 in the hunt group have to hope that things fall apart a bit to give them a chance to try and get into a leading score in the final 4 days.

Leader: Nishikigi
Chasesr: Hoshoryu, Hokutofuji
Hunter Group: Daieisho, Wakamotoharu, Endo, Hakuoho

4 Matches Remain

What We Are Watching Day 12

Daishoho (4-7) vs Oshoma (5-6) – With Asanoyama back, the top division had an odd number of athletes again, so we get a Juryo visitor today in Oshoma. He and Daishoho share a 1-1 career match history, with Daishoho winning the most recent one on day 9 of Hatsu.

Kinbozan (6-5) vs Aoiyama (5-6) – Interesting to me is that Aoiyama, with 3 straight wins, managed to work his way from the make-koshi lane into the middle / Darwin lane. He’s got a first ever match against fellow middle lane rikishi Kinbozan today. All “Big Dan” needs is 3 wins out of the last 4 matches to reach kachi-koshi and rescue himself from near certain demotion as the second to last man on the banzuke this July.

Takarafuji (7-4) vs Myogiryu (5-6) – Takarafuji going for his 8th win today, and kachi-koshi. He has a 26 match career history with Myogiryu, with Myogiryu owning the better of it 17-9. But this is equalized today in that Takarafuji seems to be fighting much better than Myogiryu is this July.

Takanosho (6-5) vs Chiyoshoma (5-6) – Another middle lane match up, featuring Takanosho coming into today with 6 consecutive wins, after an ice cold 0-5 start to Nagoya. He has an 8-4 career advantage over Chiyoshoma, and I am once again going to ask – is it time for a henka?

Sadanoumi (2-9) vs Bushozan (3-8) – Both of these guys are already make-koshi, and Bushozan is likely to be the captain of this month’s barge of the damned headed back to Juryo. He has won both prior matches against Sadanoumi, the most recent was day 12 of Aki, 2021, when they were both ranked in Juryo.

Ryuden (7-4) vs Nishikifuji (5-6) – A win today for Ryuden and it’s kachi-koshi for him. He has done surprisingly well this July, maybe in part because he was over-demoted down to M15E, where he has been able to build a strong winning record at 7-4. Out of their 3 prior matches, Nishikifuji has won 2.

Takayasu (5-6) vs Gonoyama (6-5) – Both are on the middle / Darwin path right now, and I could see either or both of them in day 15 Darwin matches. There is no way that Takayasu is anything other than hurt right now, as he can only tolerate about 5 seconds of full power sumo before he tries some kind of escape move like a head pull. This is a first ever match against rising star Gonoyama, who needs just 2 more wins out of the final 4 matches for kachi-koshi.

Hokuseiho (5-6) vs Kotoeko (5-6) – Two more rikishi that are part of an 16 man middle lane headed down the highway looking for a Darwin match on Sunday. It could be epic. Hokuseiho has won both prior match ups against the much smaller and lighter Kotoeko, so I would guess unless Kotoeko can get the giant turned about, it will be a Hokuseiho win today.

Kotoshoho (4-7) vs Oho (4-7) – An even up match where the loser gets his 8th loss. Both come in at 4-7, and they have a 4-4 career record. They last fought in 2022, and of the 4 matches that year, they split them 2-2.

Tsurugisho (3-8) vs Onosho (6-5) – Tsurugisho is too hurt to fight, but I am sure he is remaining in competition to try and make sure he does not rack up enough losses to be sent back to Juryo. Sumo can be incredibly brutal some times, and this is a prime example of that brutality. Onosho will likely be able to chose the manner he defeats him, as Tsurugisho won’t have the mobility to avoid his massive forward thrusting power.

Midorifuji (3-8) vs Hiradoumi (3-8) – Both are already make-koshi, so this is all about padding their fall down the banzuke. Hiradoumi won their only prior match, which was day 10 of Hatsu 2022.

Shodai (5-6) vs Meisei (4-7) – Shodai may be in a bit of a late basho rally right now, having won 3 matches in a row. Should he best Meisei today, it would relegate him to a losing record with an 8th loss. Shodai leads their career series 9-5.

Ura (5-6) vs Mitakeumi (2-9) – In normal circumstances, Mitakeumi can beat Ura without too much trouble (7-1). But right now Mitakeumi is just going through the motions most day, and Ura may get his second career win against the former Ozeki today.

Nishikigi (10-1) vs Shonannoumi (7-4) – First of the big matches, we get a first ever fight with rising star Shonannoumi in an attempt to get some dirt on the yusho race leader. A Shonannoumi win would be kachi-koshi for him, but he will need to be far more aware of his spot in the ring than he was in his day 11 loss to Kotonowaka if he wants to take down the ultra-stable Nishikigi, who needs to win this one to stay in the lead.

Asanoyama (4-4-3) vs Tobizaru (6-5) – In a bit of a “What are you thinking?” moment, we have Asanoyama back in action with a partially torn bicep. Hes up against the ultra-mobile Tobizaru, who would be well advised to throw his most chaotic combos at the former Ozeki straight from the tachiai. Asanoyama won their only prior match, day 5 of Natsu 2021.

Kotonowaka (7-4) vs Endo (8-3) – Endo continues his tour of the upper ranks, visiting from near the bottom of the banzuke. I might guess they are trying to figure out where to rank him for September, and they are seeing how he fares against various folks in the san’yaku for some reason. He holds a 4-2 career lead over Kotonowaka.

Hakuoho (8-3) vs Abi (4-7) – The last man on the banzuke for July takes his kachi-koshi into the san’yaku to see how he can stand up to Abi-zumo. Abi needs this win to rescue himself from almost certain make-koshi, which I would not be surprised to see show up today.

Tamawashi (6-5) vs Daieisho (8-3) – Daieisho needs to win 3 of the last 4 to hit 33 and punch his ticket to be considered for Ozeki. Right now Tamawashi is not that potent a threat, as he seems to be about a half step slower than his recent top form. They have 24 career matches, favoring Tamawashi 14-10, with the most recent being a Daieisho win on day 9 in Osaka.

Hoshoryu (9-2) vs Hokutofuji (9-2) – Unless something odd happens, this match will knock Hokutofuji out of realistic contention for the cup. He has not defeated Hoshoryu in 5 prior attempts, and will be hard pressed to take him down today. Whomever wins this match will be the lone chaser against Nishikigi, unless Shonannoumi should manage a win, in which case the winner of this match will be tied for the yusho at the end of the day. Hoshoryu needs 3 of his last 4 to reach 33.

Wakamotoharu (8-3) vs Kirishima (5-4-2) – In a fantastic demonstration of the brutal, zero sum game that is sumo, Wakamotoharu must win today against the lone competing Ozeki to keep his dreams of being promoted to Ozeki ahead of his brother Wakatakakage alive. Kirishima is not at his normal fighting power, but so far has done a fair job in defeating the rest of the upper ranked rikishi. Kirishima needs to win 3 of his last 4 to reach the safety of 8, and kachi-koshi to avoid kadoban in September.

The start of act 3 delivered some great matches, as the final push by the 3 Ozeki hopefuls runs squarely into the tougher part of their schedules. Both Wakamotoharu and Hakuoho earned their kachi-koshi today with an 8th win, as the roster of rikishi with winning records grows to 7.

Following the loss by Hokutofuji to give Wakamotoharu that 8th win, Nishikigi stands alone on the leaderboard for the Emperor’s cup. Seriously, what kind of crazy time line / universe are we in right now? One party glorious, one part WTF. This is the sumo I am here for, as we have 4 more matches before someone goes home with the hardware. It could be a screamer down to the wire, and I could not be happier.

Highlight Matches

Ryuden defeats Daishoho – Ryuden keeps it simple, getting a left hand frontal grip at the tachiai which Daishoho manages to break. From there its morozashi and some belly bumping to bounce Daishoho back and then out. Ryuden is now one step closer to kachi-koshi at 7-4.

Bushozan defeats Chiyoshoma – Chiyoshoma was far too focused on Bushozan’s head and face. That included head pulls, face slaps and generally focusing on attacks as high as he could. Bushozan got down to business center-mass and took care of business, still make-koshi, but now 3-8.

Aoiyama defeats Tsurugisho – Battle of the banged up behemoths, it was a classic Aoiyama “stand him up and pull him down” as the hatakikomi hit almost at once. Given Tsurugisho’s poor condition this basho, it was almost certain to work. Tsurugisho is now make-koshi at 3-8, Aoiyama improves to 5-6.

Kotoshoho defeats Kinbozan – Quite the straightforward oshi-zumo match from these two. They spent most of the time standing their ground and shove-hitting each other with as much upper body motion as they could muster while keeping their balance. It was Kinbozan who broke Kotoshoho balance first, but as Kotoshoho stepped away, Kinbozan lunged to finish him. Big gamble there, as he caught Kotoshoho’s hikiotoshi and stepped out. Kotoshoho now 4-7.

Kotoeko defeats Sadanoumi – For a moment I thought that Sadanoumi would dominate this match. He opened strong, set up a good working hand hold and immediately had Kotoeko stepping back. But at the third step, Kotoeko loaded up a sukuinage and laid Sadanoumi out on the clay. This guy cannot catch a break. Kotoeko improves to 5-6.

Hakuoho defeats Takayasu – Whatever is damaged in Takayasu’s body seems to limit him to about 5 seconds of sumo. After that he is easy meat. About about the “5” count, we see Takayasu shift his stance and try some kind of headlock rotation-pull-something. That works so poorly that it sets up an immediate okuridashi, giving Hakuoho his 8th win, and kachi-koshi for July at 8-3.

Hokuseiho defeats Myogiryu – Hokuseiho is still overly reliant on that right hand, but it was good to see him employ a somewhat modified form today. He was able to make some offensive moves with his left to keep Myogiryu from defending against the right, and that led to a workable yorikiri. Good to see. Both end the day 5-6.

Onosho defeats Gonoyama – Ah, youth. Gonoyama seems to want to go power-to-power with Onosho, which granted would be massive fun if you had the body and skill of Gonoyama. But this is not practice, it’s honbasho. Onosho works defense for 2 steps, then pivots and lets Gonoyama eat the sukuinage and a face full of clay. Both end the day 6-5.

Takanosho defeats Hiradoumi – Takanosho’s right hand did the bulk of the work in this fight, one that he very nearly lost. Hiradoumi was giving a lot of pressure back to Takanosho, but that right hand kept connecting high on Hiradoumi’s body, forcing him back. Hiradoumi cleverly deflected as he stepped back, putting Takanosho off balance, but Takanosho had just enough connection to earth to lay one more right on Hiradoumi, sending him out before he hit the clay. Hiradoumi, who has been fighting well, now make-koshi at 3-8. Takanosho improves to 6-5.

Ura defeats Nishikifuji – Good to see Ura continue his absolute dominance over Nishikifuji, and snap his 4 match losing streak today. Once Ura connected a hand to Nishikifuji’s mawashi, it was all forward pressure and quick, small steps to rush Nishikifuji out. Both end the day at 5-6.

Oho defeats Midorifuji – A wild, chaotic and out of control match that had the gyoji on the run trying to stay out of the way. It ended with both off balance and stepping wherever they could, and Midorifuji out. Midorifuji pick up his 8th loss and is now make-koshi, Oho avoids the same fate by improving to 4-7.

Shodai defeats Mitakeumi – This battle of the battered former Ozeki was all Shodai from the tachiai. Mitakeumi never really was able to get his feet set, or get any kind of defense started as Shodai ramped up the pressure and walked him out. Shodai now 5-9.

Tobizaru defeats Meisei – Meisei seemed to be committed to keeping Tobizaru front and center, which is usually a good idea. Tobizaru played along, to his advantage. After about 4 volleys between the two, Tobizaru stepped back, then to the side at the worst possible time for Meisei. The hatakikomi sent Meisei to the clay, and advanced Tobizaru to 6-5.

Nishikigi defeats Endo – One of the things I love about sumo is some of the small, subtle things that happen that you can only enjoy watching the video where you can pause, slow step and rewind as much as you want. One of Endo’s signature moves is that frontal grab at the tachiai. Watch Nishikigi’s block that he rolls into and inside body hold before Endo can defend. Endo breaks Nishikigi’s right hand loose, but the left hand is in play as Nishikigi powers forward and takes Endo out of the ring before Endo can counter. Whatever kami has a hold of Nishikigi, it’s glorious and I hope the whole lovely cinderella story continues. He is now 10-1.

Takarafuji defeats Abi – Long standing sumo fans were in on the joke embedded in this match. Abi’s double arm thrusting attack is always aimed at his opponent’s neck. Takarafuji has no neck, as it was surgically removed following a tragic accident when he was just a boy. Left with nothing to attack, Abi blindly tries to hit something that simply is not there, making him an easy mark for Takarafuji to bodily thrust and slap out of the ring. Takarafuji now 7-4.

Kotonowaka defeats Shonannoumi – Shonannoumi sets up a right hand outside grip early, and after a brief battle for stance, rotates into a throw. But he’s completely overlooked where he is in the ring, and steps well out before he can complete the rotation. Match goes to Kotonowaka, and both end the day 7-4.

Hoshoryu defeats Tamawashi – Tamawashi really wanted that nodowa, he worked to reestablish it after Hoshoryu broke through the first time, and was working for a third one as Hoshoryu put all of his force against Tamawashi’s chest and shoved him out. 9-2 now for Hoshoryu, who need just 3 more wins to get to 33.

Wakamotoharu defeats Hokutofuji – Impressive sumo from Wakamotoharu today. He endured Hokutofuji’s opening attacks, which tend to disrupt his opponents enough to allow him to finish. But Wakamotoharu stayed calm, focused and managed a left hand inside belt grip, which set the terms of the match that followed. Hokutofuji countered, but without more than a couple layers of silk in his hand, he did not have enough purchase to lift or move Wakamotoharu. Wakamotoharu countered with a strong advance and a commanding yorikiri, knocking Hokutofuji off the leader position and giving Wakamotoharu his kachi-koshi victory at 8-3. He needs all of his 4 remaining matches to hit 33.

Kirishima defeats Daieisho – Brilliant defensive strategy by Kirishima, he ensured that Daieisho could not square his shoulders or his hips, and deflected Daieisho’s first two volley attempts. The failed thrusts left Daieisho dangerously off balance, which his feet in the wrong spot as Kirishima delivered a hatakikomi to put Daieisho on the clay. Kirishima now 5-6.

With day 11, we are at the start of the third and final act of the 2023 Nagoya basho. Act 3 is where we sort everyone into make-koshi or kachi-kochi, and someone wins the yusho. We will start to see the schedule include matches with huge rank gaps, as we are going to see a tendency toward “interesting” combinations, or matches to keep the three groups – kachi-koshi, make-koshi, and middle / Darwin, guided toward their outcomes. We also have two story lines that will wrap up in the final 5 days.

Ozeki Hopefuls – there are three of them: Daieisho, Hoshoryu and Wakamotoharu, all who might possible hit 33 wins and make a bid to be promoted. Daieisho needs 11 wins (must win 3 of his final 5 matches), Hoshoryu needs 12 wins (must win 4 of his 5 remaining matches), and Wakamotoharu needs 12 wins (must win all of his final 5 matches). Odds are best that Daieisho makes it, about even for Hoshoryu, and growing mighty slim for Wakamotoharu. With each of them entering the “hard” part of their schedule, this is where the losses may show up and scuttle their runs. Also, do not be surprised if the NSK decide to make some or all of them who get to 33 wait another tournament for whatever reason they cook up.

Yusho Race – The schedulers now have 2 men with 9-1 records, and ideally they could get dirt on both of them one more time leading into the final weekend to open up the race to Daieisho and Hoshoryu, which would cause the Ozeki run and the yusho race to intersect. I am not sure what kami is powering Nishikigi right now, but it’s on a mission and wants our adorable bottom heavy cinderella to contend until the end.

Nagoya Leaderboard

Nishikigi continues to have the better path to the yusho, having already defeated the san’yaku in week 1. Hokutofuji starts his tour through the named ranks today, and we may see some of the best sumo of his career.

Leaders: Nishikigi, Hokutofuji
Chasers: Hoshoryu, Daieisho, Endo
Hunter Group: Wakamotoharu, Shonannoumi, Hakuoho

5 Matches Remain

What We Are Watching Day 11

Daishoho (4-6) vs Ryuden (6-4) – Ryuden’s straight ahead sumo on day 10 against Myogiryu would be an excellent plan for today. He has a 5-3 career record against the much heavier Daishoho. They will both likely try to go chest to chest, so it will come down to Ryuden getting his preferred grip at the Tachiai, or if Daishoho can shut it down.

Chiyoshoma (5-5) vs Bushozan (2-8) – Bushozan is already make-koshi at 2-8, so he may be set for a trip on the Juryo barge back to the lower division. I look forward to lksumo’s prognostication on the subject in the coming week. Will that motivate him to try and get to a 7-8 final score to ease his drop, or will he let Chiyoshoma take him apart? Hey, isn’t it about time for a henka?

Aoiyama (4-6) vs Tsurugisho (3-7) – A loss today would have make-koshi for Tsurugisho, and I think that with a 5-3 career advantage, Aoiyama has at least a decent chance of getting that result. They are both hurt, moving poorly, and unable to execute the kind of sumo that wins matches for them. Should be a genuine struggle with heaping servings of painful expressions and winces of agony.

Kinbozan (6-4) vs Kotoshoho (3-7) – Kotoshoho’s next loss will be make-koshi for him, but he’s ranked high enough at M13 that he should be safe from the demotion queue. Kinbozan lost their only prior match, day 1 of Natsu, by yorikiri. Expect he will have a better defense set up this time.

Sadanoumi (2-8) vs Kotoeko (4-6) – Sadanoumi is hurt, and not likely to be able to generate much if any sumo offensive power. I have to wonder if he’s being used to “rescue” scores of some other rikishi, or it’s simply a matter of “he has to fight someone”. At 4-6, Kotoeko needs every win he can find. Kotoeko holds a 10-5 career advantage.

Takayasu (5-5) vs Hakuoho (7-3) – First ever match, and I wonder if Takayasu has enough energy and health left to give this guy a solid fight. Normally I criticize Takayasu’s “wild man sumo”, but I think in this match it would be the best approach. I am not sure Hakuoho has ever fought against a bear that has the strength of two bears. A win today for Hakuoho would be kachi-koshi.

Hokuseiho (4-6) vs Myogiryu (5-5) – Time for Myogiryu to try the turn and push trick with Hakuho’s giant. I can’t help but wonder if Hokuseiho was robbed of a win on day 10 against Shodai. I am sure his oyakata told him “Them’s the breaks, kid!” At the end of the day. He beat Myogiryu in their only prior match, which was day 11 of Osaka.

Gonoyama (6-4) vs Onosho (5-5) – This is a high interest match to me. You have two pretty strong rikishi, both with middling records headed for a likely day 15 Darwin match. Onosho will take this if Gonoyama makes the mistake that Wakamotoharu made on day 10 – keeping his hips and his shoulders square to Onosho and just soaking up all of that forward power Onosho can deliver. Word to the wise, hit and move, hit and move. Keep one foot back and keep your hips at 28°

Hiradoumi (3-7) vs Takanosho (5-5) – Takanosho comes in on a hot streak, with a blistering 5 wins in a row. Should he extend his run to 6, he will send plucky Hiradoumi to make-koshi on day 11. Hiradoumi holds a 2-1 career lead, winning both prior matches this year.

Nishikifuji (5-5) vs Ura (4-6) – On paper looks like a clear Ura win. But given how tenderly Ura was moving about after his day 10 loss to Kirishima, I am not even sure we will see Ura in action today. Nishikifuji has been struggling since he started a losing streak on day 4, so maybe a win today against a struggling Ura is just what Nishikifuji needs.

Midorifuji (3-7) vs Oho (3-7) – So a bit of a mini-Darwin here. Both of these guys have 7 losses, and are pretty clearly not up to fighting at the rank to which they were posted. So the loser of today’s match will be make-koshi for July. Midorifuji has won 5 of their 8 prior matches, although Oho won their match during the Natsu basho in Tokyo.

Shodai (4-6) vs Mitakeumi (2-8) – 32 career matches, with Mitakeumi holding a narrow 18-14 lead. Both of them are fighting well below their peak capabilities, and it’s kind of down to who wants the win more. Mitakeumi is already make-koshi, but up until the middle weekend, Shodai did not really seem to have any motivation.

Meisei (4-6) vs Tobizaru (5-5) – Another pair with middling records, both of them are strong candidates for day 15 “Darwin” matches. Tobizaru with a slightly better record at 5-5 has been fighting better this month. But their overall career 6-6 record would indicate they are evenly matched. Both have won a match this year, so this should be a strong head to head contest.

Nishikigi (9-1) vs Endo (8-2) – I adore this match. I love this match. This was a stroke of genius. Endo has beaten Nishikigi in 7 out of their 8 prior matches. But wait – their most recent match, day 2 of Kyushu 2022, was Nishikigi’s win. Both are already kachi-koshi, and lord only knows how this one is going to play out. I am certain they will try to go chest to chest at the tachiai. Hopefully Nishikigi is ready to block Endo’s left hand at the first step.

Takarafuji (6-4) vs Abi (4-6) – The second 15 rank gap match in a row, we have an even 6-6 career head to head between the master of defend and extend and the all out double arm thrusting attack master. Neither one of them are in top form this July, plus its hotter than Satan’s front porch in the venue. But this should be a fun contest.

Kotonowaka (6-4) vs Shonannoumi (7-3) – They could not quite muster another 15 rank gap match, so they had to settle for 14. You might think this one is going the way of the Komusubi, no questions asked. But no sir! These two have fought twice before, and split them 1:1. These were back when Kotonowaka was known as Kotokamatani. They had a match on day 15 of Osaka 2019 that Kotonowaka won, and then all the way back on day 3 of Hatsu 2017, Shonannoumi won. Hey, Act 3 is all about these kind of fights. Bring them on!

Hoshoryu (8-2) vs Tamawashi (6-4) – Ok, the fun stuff is good, but it’s time to torture some Ozeki hopefuls, and maybe a yusho race leader too. Hoshoryu has dominated his matches with Tamawashi at 7-3 over their careers, winning 6 of the last 7 matches. So it’s a fair chance that he will dominate Tamawashi today. That being said, don’t count Tamawashi out. He may want to play spoiler, and give a most potent nodowa to Hoshoryu for good measure.

Hokutofuji (9-1) vs Wakamotoharu (7-3) – As mentioned above, Wakamotoharu has to win all of his final 5 matches to reach 33 wins. Put that up against a surprisingly genki Hokutofuji who needs to win to stay in the leader slot for the yusho race. Make sure you have a big glass of sake and a bowl of popcorn for this one. I predict fireworks.

Daieisho (8-2) vs Kirishima (4-4-2) – Daieisho comes up against the lone, partially functioning Ozeki. He needs 3 wins out of his final 5 to hit 33, and I wonder how much sumo Kirishima can deliver. He needs 4 of his last 5 to avoid kadoban for September, which is most likely why he came back to competition after going kyujo, and still appearing to be hurt. The career score is 7-6, narrowly in Kirishima’s favor, with Kirishima winning the majority of their prior matches this year.