Terunofuji v Chiyoshoma. A clear win by Terunofuji, but an interesting bout nevertheless, as Chiyoshoma resisted quite well during a yotsu battle. Despite having his hands on Terunofuji’s mawashi after a makikae, he was helpless as Terunofuji imprisoned his arms and drove him back. Win by kimedashi.

Kotoyuki v Chiyomaru. Kotoyuki seized the initiative early on, and never handed it back during an expected ochi battle. Kotoyuki gets his first win, while Chiyomaru remains rock bottom.

Takayasu v Kotoshoho. The former ozeki seemed to get the advantage after a shoulder blast at the tachi-ai. Kotoshoho dances nicely around the tawara, though, doesn’t panic, and ends up sending Takayasu to the clay. He remains undefeated with that hatakikomi win.

Wakatakakage v Kotonowaka. A nice migi-yotsu offensive is initiated by Wakatakakage, who keeps his body low. Kotonowaka looks powerless as his opponent keeps his right hand on his mawashi. He looks to somehow get some grip, tries a desperate kotenage, and is sent out of the dohyo with a straight yorikiri. The pixie still breathes !

Sadanoumi v Kotoeko. Kotoeko got the advantage straight after the tachi-ai as he managed to block Sadanoumi’s right hand with his left. Sadanoumi loses any kind of grip and can’t do anything against Kotoeko’s smart forward run. That’s another yorikiri win, Kotoeko’s third of the tournament.

Kotoshogiku v Shohozan. A not very inspired Shohozan shifts to his right at the tachi-ai, tries to pull down Kotoshogiku but to no avail. He ends up losing balance and being send down to the clay himself. He is still winless as the former ozeki advances to a third win.

Nishikigi v Tochinoshin. The Georgian goes for his favorite sumo style as he searches a grip on his opponent’s mawashi. Nishikigi was aware of it, but Tochinoshin efficiently switched to plan B: Nishikigi was leaning forward too much and was sent down. Hatakikomi win for Tochinoshin who evens up his record.

Tamawashi v Shimanoumi. The one time yusho winner was looking for a favorite thrusting battle, but Shimanoumi resists, drives forward, and Tamawashi quickly loses balance at the edge of the dohyo. Tsukiotoshi win for Shimanoumi.

Myogiryu v Ikioi. Myogiryu gets the upper hand after the tachi-ai, driving Ikioi backwards as both were chest to chest. Ikioi does not allow being sent out that way, but Myogiryu smartly uses his available right hand by pushing his opponent, then by trying a pulldown. After one last charge, Ikioi shows his back to his opponent and his sent out by okuridashi.

Kaisei v Chiyotairyu. Chiyotairyu sends the first blows, but has to get close to Kaisei to do so. The Brazilian born seizes the opportunity to grab his opponent’s belt and the contest basically ends up here. Win by yorikiri.

Ishiura v Tokushoryu. A wise battle by Tokoshoryu, who does not rush forward at the tachi-ai, as Ishiura side-stepped. Tokushoryu keeps his opponent in sight by holding his neck, and easily takes advantage of the weight difference with a frontal battle. That’s an ochidashi win.

Abi v Terutsuyoshi. Did Abi took Tokushoryu’s example ? He, too, does not move forward at all at the tachi-ai, waits his smaller opponent’s visit, and convincingly wins this bout using powerful thrusts, including a final neck thrust.

Ryuden v Hokutofuji. Hokutofuji takes advantages after the tachi-ai, raising Ryuden’s center of gravity with his right hand. Ryuden is powerless to abort his opponent’s forward run. He gets outpowered and loses by ochidashi.

Enho v Aoiyama. The Bulgarian probably expected some tricks from Enho, but the Miyagino mal goes frontal! Aoiyama does not see the issue, rushes forward to Enho, who efficiently opens the door. Aoiyama crashes forward. Tsukiotoshi win for Enho.

Takarafuji v Kagayaki. Takarafuji very conveniently imprisones his opponent’s right arm after the tachi-ai, which allows him to settle his sumo brand. He gets Kagayaki’s mawashi, and if the latter resist a yorikiri attempt, he can’t prevent a fatal uwatenage. Second win in a row for the Isegahama wrestler.

Onosho v Okinoumi. After a lively tachi-ai, Okinoumi gets the upper hand over Onosho, and progressively drives him backwards. Ochidashi win for Okinoumi, and another disappointing loss for Onosho who has not delivered at all so far.

Shodai v Kiribayama. Kiribayama gets the better of the tachi-ai, but, strangely enough, does not offer much against Shodai’s strength. Shodai moves to 3-1, Kiribayama gets a mirror record.

Yutakayama v Mitakeumi. Still very solid from Mitakeumi. A failed pulldown attempt forced him to move back, but he regains ground before impressively moving forward. Yutakayama offers some resistance before being pulled down sideways. Tsukiotoshi win for the sekiwake who remains undefeated.

Takakeisho v Endo. Takakeisho does not easily lets his opponents having a grip on his mawashi, which is a problem for Endo who always remains a bit helpless without that possibility. The ozeki looks certain to win by ochidashi, but he loses his balance as Endo opens him the door at the edge! A mono-ii takes place, and confirms the gyoji’s decision to award Takakeisho the win.

Daieisho v Asanoyama. Daieisho initiates some furious thrusts, preventing the ozeki from coming any close to the mawashi. Asanoyama defends by seizing his opponent’s neck, but Daieisho’s attack prevails. Asanoyama is driven to the edge, but he sidesteps and Daieisho is deadly caught! Asanoyama finishes the job with an okuridashi win. He stays on the leaderboard.

Hakuho v Takanosho. The yokozuna produces a strong tachi-ai, but ends up losing a left hand grip on Takanosho’s mawashi, fails to regain it and seems to be simply driven back by his younger opponent… But Hakuho safely moves to his left, and Takanosho goes to the clay. Tsukiotoshi win by Hakuho, not in a truly convincing style, but that’s enough to advance to 4-0.

Kimarite of the day: the original hikkake has been seen twice today: in makushita (Aozora v Okinohana) and in sandanme  Kanryu v Ryuseio.

For the record, that kimarite’s definition: ” A kimarite in which the attacker grabs his opponent’s arm with both hands and pulls him past him while moving backwards and to the side.”

The san’yaku wrestlers are currently performing admirably well. Except Kakuryu who went kyujo, everyone has more win than losses. I hope this trend will go on…

So, what to expect from day 4 ?

Terunofuji v Chiyoshoma. Terunofuji’s makuuchi renaissance remains spotless, and he will face a Juryo guest on day 4. He should be able to endure Chiyoshoma’s slapping attacks, and will be looking, once again, to seize his opponent’s mawashi. Chiyoshoma is 0-3 and urgently needs some wins if he wants to be promoted to makuuchi in September.

Kotoyuki v Chiyomaru. That should be a feisty battle between two pushers, as both are winless and, sitting low on the banzuke, desperately need to collect some wins. The odds are wide open, with their matchups being even (4-4). I tend to favour Kotoyuki on that one.

Takayasu v Kotoshoho. Kotoshoho’s makuuchi debut is admirable, and spotless. For his fourth battle, he’ll already face a former Ozeki. That should be an interesting test, as Takayasu is off to a good 2-1 start. The Ibaraki native will count on his experience, and perhaps play extra time before breaching the newbie’s defence. Quite an intriguing contest.

Wakatakakage v Kotonowaka. Wakatakakage started his first basho in makuuchi with a 3-0 performance, and now he gets a mirror record. Worryingly, as Herouth pointed out, he seems to suffer from his previous injury, and his bouts lack resistance. It’s Kotonowaka’s second basho in makuuchi, and the odds are clearly in his favour here.

Sadanoumi v Kotoeko. Both wrestlers convincingly won by yorikiri on day three, and both are comfortable on their opponents’ mawashi. That should be an interesting yotsu zumo contest. Sadanoumi leads the matchups by 5 to 3.

Kotoshogiku v Shohozan. Both veterans will meet for the twenty-fifth time. While Kotoshogiku is sitting deeper and deeper on the banzuke, Shohozan has stabilized himself quite comfortably in the middle of the maegashira ranks. He is yet to win this basho, but if he can avoid Giku’s gaburi sumo, he’ll definitely hold the keys to victory.

Nishikigi v Tochinoshin. Neither of them has been looking too good during the first three days; if one of them will even his record after that bout, the other one’s woes will deepen with a 1-3 record. Tochinoshin’s first opponent, Shimanoumi, did not offered great resistance during their bout, and the Georgian might as well take advantage of seeing Nishikigi far from his best, too.

Tamawashi v Shimanoumi. Tamawashi is quietly having a nice basho, being undefeated. He faces Shimanoumi, who is not looking good here. The Mongolian will be looking to add a fourth win by delivering some fierce pushes and thrusts.

Myogiryu v Ikioi. Just like Tamawashi, Myogiryu is having a quiet but strong 3-0 start, whereas Ikioi is probably disappointed to prepare his fourth bout with just one win to his credit. Both men can work on the opponent’s mawashi, as well as win by oshidashi. Let’s see which brand of sumo will prevail tomorrow.

Kaisei v Chiyotairyu. Kaisei had a somewhat unfortunate loss on day three, enduring Tamawashi’s thrusts for a long time before succumbing to a last hatakikomi attack. He will face a similar challenge with another pusher thruster, Chiyotairyu, who has a mirror 2-1 record. The Tokyo native’s first task will be to avoid seeing Kaisei grab his mawashi.

Ishiura v Tokushoryu. Both rikishi have had a slow start to this tournament, but both got off the mark on day three. Ishiura will look to come from below to drive Tokushoryu off the dohyo, but will have to be careful: if he gets too low and gets off balance, Tokushoryu will slap him to the ground.

Abi v Terutsuyoshi. Abi will face a pixie for the second day in a row. Having crushed Enho today, he will look to replicate this performance against Terutsuyoshi. This won’t be an easy matchup for the Isegahama wrestler by any means, although Abi is struggling to find his way back to the san’yaku heights.

Ryuden v Hokutofuji. An interesting contest between a pusher and a yotsu wrestler. As neither of them produced a winning record in san’yaku, their current spots look close to their comfort zone. With a 4-4 record between these two, the outlook remains wide open. 

Enho v Aoiyama. The crowd favorite is not having a bright start to this basho, which promises to be another kachi-koshi struggle. He managed to overcome the impressive weight difference with Aoiyama during their only encounter, and would be ill-advised to find an efficient gameplan in order to defeat Big Dan a second time.

Takarafuji v Kagayaki. Both rikishi’s fortunes have changed on day three, as Takarafuji got off the mark, whereas Kagayaki’s fine start has surprinsingly been ended by Kiribayama. Both of them are in the joi, and need to mount some wins before facing the san’yaku regulars. Here too, Takarafuji’s yotsu zumo will face Kagayaki’s feisty thrusts.

Onosho v Okinoumi. If Onosho showed his undeniable talent last basho by defeating Hakuho, I’m puzzled to see him winless this time. He’s facing Okinoumi, who is yo-yoing between maegashira and san’yaku opponents, but has a creditable 2-1 record to start. Having just defeated Takakeisho, he is favorite to pile up misery on his younger opponent.

Shodai v Kiribayama. This is a great opportunity for Kiribayama to turn tables to his fortunes. After a difficult start, he finally got his first win against Kagayaki, and defeating a sekiwake would raise his spirits even more, for sure. Shodai is not the most solid of sekiwake, and just got kicked out by Takanosho. A Kiribayama win would remain an upset, however; but a doable one.

Yutakayama v Mitakeumi. Mitakeumi has impressed me since shonichi. His yustu zumo is strong, and he is perfectly capable of switching and delivering a finishing hatakikomi if needed. Yutakayama is full of potential, too, and has not wrestled badly, but he remains winless and I doubt he’ll get his shonichi on day 4.

Takakeisho v Endo. There’s danger here for Takakeisho. The kadoban ozeki lost his third bout by some kind of slippiotoshi, which will inevitably raise questions about his knee’s condition. Although trailing in their matchups, Endo has recently been a threat to the twenty-three-year-old.

Daieisho v Asanoyama. Daieisho’s second komusubi stint enjoys a good 2-1 debut, whereas Asanoyama’s ozeki record has remained perfect after three days. So, which rikishi will benefit most from his fine form? Asanoyama’s ozeki quest has been marred by some unnecessary losses, and, interestingly, Daieisho leads the matchups by 7 to 4.

Hakuho v Takanosho. After a scare on day 1, Hakuho is back on bulldozer mode. After having bullied Yutakayama and Endo, the yokozuna will look forward to doing the same against Takanosho. If the Chiganoura beya resident has finally got his shonichi on day 3, containing Hakuho’s fury is likely to prove a daunting task for him.