Yoshikaze (嘉風)

Natsu Day 2 Highlights

Josh K Abi (阿炎), Aoiyama, Asanoyama (朝乃山), Chiyomaru, Chiyoshoma, Chiyotairyū (千代大龍), Daieisho (大栄翔), Daishoho, Endo (遠藤), Enho, Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ichinojo (逸ノ城), Ikioi (勢), Ishiura (石浦), Kagayaki (輝), Kaisei (魁聖), Kakuryu (鶴竜), Kotoeko, Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Meisei, Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Myogiryu (妙義龍), Natsu Basho 2019, Nishikigi, Okinoumi (隠岐の海), Ryuden (竜電), Sadanoumi (佐田の海), Shōdai (正代直也), Takakeishō (貴景勝), Takarafuji (宝富士), Takayasu (高安), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Terutsuyoshi, Tochinoshin (栃ノ心), Tochiozan (栃煌山), Tokushoryu, Tomokaze, Yago, Yoshikaze (嘉風), Ōnoshō (阿武咲)

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Ladies, gentlemen, and rikishi, it’s time for Day 2 highlights! With the stateside team hobbled from accessing live sumo, I’m here in Tokyo and will make a good fist – nay, Aoiyama roundhouse slap – of the commentary today.

Day 2 Highlights

Dohyo-iri & broadcast notes: It’s interesting to see Japanese Nishikigi and Shodai rocking kesho-mawashi with a Mongolian flag on it, since they have to wear Kakuryu’s kesho-mawashi ahead of the Yokozuna’s dohyo-iri. Man of culture Ishiura, free from the burden of similar responsibilities owing to Hakuho being kyujo in this tournament, has a fresh and striking new “Carpe Diem” kesho-mawashi, provided by his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu friends. Kakuryu’s dohyo-iri is executed very nicely.

During the break, Takakeisho appears on TV for an interview in a Takanohana yukata – perhaps someone can make a Takamisugi yukata for him. The Japanese feed today featured someone called “Araiso oyakata” on co-commentary. Must be some new guy they’re testing out. Ross Mihara also points out that hiragana text of the rikishi names is now included in the NHK broadcast, which makes it easier for those learning Japanese to read.

Chiyoshoma defeats Daishoho – Chiyoshoma lands a slap but it’s otherwise an even tachiai, which is deceptive, due to Chiyoshoma’s (lack of) size relative to Daishoho. Chiyoshoma gets a decent grip on his compatriot with both arms inside, Daishoho can’t definitively break his grip and gets shuffled out. Workmanlike win, and one Chiyoshoma needed down at M17.

Ishiura defeats Ikioi – Ikioi in Juryo is just something I don’t want to talk about, but this is some high octane sumo and he appears at least a little more fit at the moment. Ikioi gives it a massive blast at the tachiai and Ishiura, as usual, tries a shift to the side. Ikioi really had the bearing of the smaller man, but Ishiura’s mobility is just too much and he’s able to pull out a yoritaoshi manoeuvre at the edge as both men go out. It’s a beautiful move. Ikioi seems pained by the decision and goes straight to the replay screen to see exactly how it lost it.

Tokushoryu defeats Terutsuyoshi – Bulbous Tokushoryu just dominates the smaller Terutsuyoshi. The best the wee man can do here is just give Tokushoryu a big hug. He tries to get in low, but Tokushoryu absorbs him, and uses his leg power to march forward with the Isegahama man locked up. Both men are now at 1-1.

Kotoeko defeats Enho – Enho gets in low and shifts to the right, and seems to initially try to set his legs for a tripping manoeuvre. Kotoeko has him sideways with a grip on the front and back of his mawashi and there’s just nowhere he can go, and Kotoeko marshalls him back – the winning move is oshidashi. Kotoeko worked out if you suffocate Enho’s mobility, he can be dominated. Both of these guys are 1-1 as well.

Chiyomaru defeats Shimanoumi – Shimanoumi is heavily bandaged and you wouldn’t have thought he’s just come off two consecutive yusho in the lower level. Chiyomaru tries his usual mix of pushes followed by pulldown attempts, but it’s not really working for him. Eventually the two men come to a grappling position, but Chiyomaru still wants absolutely no part of his opponent’s mawashi. He levers Shimanoumi up high by getting one arm in under his arm and uses his left to push up on his chest, and with Shimanoumi off balance, he finishes him off. It’s not especially elegant to watch, but that’s Chiyomaru.

Sadanoumi defeats Yago – Sadanoumi bounces off Yago at the tachiai like one of those rubber balls they used to make for bored kids. Yago is doing everything he can to keep Sadanoumi away from him – except he’s doing it moving backwards, and that’s a mistake. Eventually Sadanoumi’s tenacity pays off and Yago has nowhere to go. Sadanoumi gets in under his arms and one thrust is really all it takes at that point to finish the job.

Shohozan defeats Kagayaki – “Tactics” Kagayaki’s game plan seemed to be to match Shohozan, but they don’t teach what Shohozan does in textbooks. With Kagayaki focused on playing Shohozan’s furious slapping game, Shohozan uses both arms to fully lock up Kagayaki and completely blunt his attack. Kagayaki prolongs the inevitable at the tawara as long as possible, but he’s got nothing but homework to do. Big Guns Shohozan is now up to 2-0.

Onosho defeats Tochiozan – Onosho seems to cheat a bit over the shikiri-sen at the tachiai. Despite this, Tochiozan initially has the stronger forward movement, but after absorbing his hit at the tachiai Onosho turns on the thrusters and has this over in 2 or 3 shoves. Anticlimactic. Onosho is also now up to 2-0.

Nishikigi defeats Kaisei – This is a match that looked like it happened at about 15 frames per second. It’s an even, ponderous tachiai. Credit to Kaisei for trying to move forward, but Nishikigi takes a step back and tosses him aside in one smooth motion with a kotenage.

Asanoyama defeats Tomokaze – Beautiful, beautiful throw. Asanoyama pursues his left hand grip as if his name was Tochinoshin. As soon as he gets it, he immediately pulls the throw. Technically, this is a level of sumo Tomokaze won’t have experienced very much at the lower levels. 2-0 start for Asanoyama.

Shodai defeats Takarafuji – Which Shodai do we get today? Shodai stands up at the tachiai and doesn’t really move for about 10 or 15 seconds as he works instead on his arm placement. Eventually he moves forward and Takarafuji, off balance, gets flushed like a porcelain Takara Standard. Takarafuji is usually pretty decent defensively in these exact situations, as he’s better skilled than most at turning a match around from defensive positions with reactive sumo, but his left foot slips and it ends up fairly easy for Shodai.

Yoshikaze defeats Meisei – Meisei takes a running start at the tachiai, but he comes in with his head down. All that the wily veteran Yoshikaze needs to do is take the hit, pivot and let his younger opponent continue his forward movement straight onward into the first few rows of seats. Easy.

Myogiryu defeats Okinoumi – While there’s been a lot of grappling action today, few of the grapplers seem to want much to do with the mawashi. Okinoumi takes Myogiryu head on, neither man gets a belt grip, but Myogiryu is a little more adept in this more traditional wrestling stance and it’s one way traffic. Okinoumi is better on the belt, and Myogiryu keeping him away made this a much more straightforward matchup.

Ryuden defeats Abi – Ryuden gets a much better tachiai but after that it’s all Abi. If you’ve ever seen Abi, I probably don’t have to describe what happens: it’s the classic double straight arm attack. Abi will be upset with himself for coughing this up. He has Ryuden on the ropes and has a couple chances to put him away, but Ryuden often is at his best when he has his back to the tawara. He finds another lever to push forward back into the middle of the ring and Abi’s long legs simply collapse from under him. Ryuden got away with one there but his hair, as usual, is an absolute mess. This was probably the best bout of a straightforward day to this point, until…

Mitakeumi defeats Tamawashi – Epic win for Mitakeumi. Tamawashi looks like he’s maybe lost a bit of thrust from his push and thrust game, but he gave it a lot here. The two men start with a bit of a tussle that has Mitakeumi penning Tamawashi back, and both men keeping each other at long-arms’ length. But when the two men separate, this match is always going to favor Tamawashi. And they do separate about 3 or 4 times, Tamawashi landing a slap and taking a charge at the komusubi. He charges about 4 or 5 times, but Mitakeumi uses his momentum against him and hits the pull down as he’s moving backward. Tamawashi will win this match 9 times out of 10 against a weaker opponent, but Mitakeumi is seasoned, skilled and composed enough to deal with it impressively.

Ichinojo defeats Chiyotairyu – This match initially looks like a bit of a wet blanket after the last one. But actually, they give it a good go. Chiyotairyu’s tachiai just doesn’t really work against the massive Ichinojo, he bounced straight back and ran out of ideas. There’s a bit of handbags, then Ichinojo gets a belt grip he decides he doesn’t really need and just moves forward and shoves the Kokonoe man straight out.

Tochinoshin defeats Daieisho – This one’s a quickie. Daieisho is a bit of an awkward customer for Tochinoshin because his particular style is the kind of sumo that Tochinoshin is vulnerable to generally. Daieisho desperately tries to keep Tochinoshin’s left hand from reaching its intended target, but Tochinoshin homes in on it and once he lands the grip, Daieisho is completely helpless. Tochinoshin has this match won, but picks up the little man at the tawara just for good measure and some good, clean, cheeky fun. 2 down, 8 to go in the Ozeki Challenge.

Goeido defeats Aoiyama – Great match. Aoiyama actually decides to go chest to chest with the ozeki in lieu of his usual twin piston pushing attack. I think this was a good game plan, because with his enormous frame, he’s able to blunt Goeido’s almost unmatched speed and offense from the tachiai. Goeido in worse form (physically or mentally) would have coughed this up, but he’s able to use the big man’s momentum against him and ends up pulling a beltless arm throw. It’s another really lovely throw, in the same bracket as Asanoyama’s from earlier. Goeido 2-0 and looking good.

Takakeisho defeats Kotoshogiku – Takakeisho’s tsukebito gives his back a vigourous scrub before he makes his way into the arena. Here are two guys with two of the most opposing styles you could wish to see. But really, are any of us that different? Kotoshogiku gives Takakeisho the eyes at the tachiai, and survives an early pull down attempt. This is the opposite of the Meisei situation from earlier, as this could have been over much sooner had Kotoshogiku not been watching his opponent. As it happens, however, the shin-ozeki stays centered, making sure his missed pull-down doesn’t create a vulnerable opening for Kotoshogiku to land any kind of grip. He takes control of the match against the former ozeki, landing a couple significant thrusts to the Sadogatake man’s chest and takes the win… and the head to head advantage 3-2.

Takayasu defeats Endo – Something looked not right to me about Takayasu as he prepared for the tachiai. But he got an opponent that was less prepared than he was, and decides to level a tsuki-oshi attack against the most popular Maegashira in the land. Endo would have had some chances to get back into this match given his superior mobility, but could never get his feet set. After Takayasu’s third wave of forward moving attacks it was inevitable that Endo’s fans 6 or 7 rows back were able to get some much desired face time. A dominant win in the end. Kind of like Bowser against someone playing Super Mario for the first time.

Kakuryu defeats Hokutofuji – Kakuryu just absolutely destroys Hokutofuji and there will be no sixth kinboshi today for the Saitama man. It’s possible this match lasted less than two seconds. Hokutofuji launches in from the tachiai, but Kakuryu turns all that energy back on him and returns it forward, getting one hand under his armpit and another one around his neck and winning with one shove. Hokutofuji keeps moving about 15 rows back before he has to turn around and come back and bow to complete the day’s action. Not much shame in that though, the Yokozuna looks in good form, and advances to 2-0.

Natsu Day 1 Highlights

Bruce H Abi (阿炎), Aoiyama, Asanoyama (朝乃山), Chiyomaru, Chiyoshoma, Chiyotairyū (千代大龍), Daieisho (大栄翔), Daishoho, Endo (遠藤), Enho, Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ichinojo (逸ノ城), Ishiura (石浦), Kagayaki (輝), Kaisei (魁聖), Kakuryu (鶴竜), Kotoeko, Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Meisei, Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Myogiryu (妙義龍), Natsu Basho 2019, Nishikigi, Okinoumi (隠岐の海), Ryuden (竜電), Sadanoumi (佐田の海), Shimanoumi, Shohozan, Shōdai (正代直也), Takakeishō (貴景勝), Takarafuji (宝富士), Takayasu (高安), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Terutsuyoshi, Tochinoshin (栃ノ心), Tochiozan (栃煌山), Tokushoryu, Tomokaze, Toyonoshima, Yoshikaze (嘉風), Ōnoshō (阿武咲) , , ,
Did you cheer when you saw this? Skycrane ahoy!

I found myself headed for bed at a surprisingly early hour for the first day of a basho. With AbemaTV now lost to me, and no real way to watch the lower divisions, I decided it was better to just pack it in, and enjoy the DVR’d NHK-G two hour top division program in the morning. While I wish I had seen the lower division matches, Makuuchi featured some absolute gems. With Hakuho out, the stage is set for some surprising story lines, and the possibility of a new champion for the new era.

A note to regular readers, highlight posts may come later this basho, due to changes in how we source our information. If we are late, never fear, Team Tachiai is just forwarding through video…

Day 1 Highlights

Toyonoshima defeats Chiyoshoma – No henka from Chiyoshoma today, who chose to meet Toyonoshima head on and fight. Chiyoshoma got a decent right hand outside grip, and tried to use it for an Uwatenage. Although this failed, it left Toyonoshima out of position and off balance. Chiyoshoma lunged to push his opponent out, but Toyonoshima managed to step aside and send him into the front row.

Daishoho defeats Ishiura – Ishiura also forgoes elusive sumo, meets Daishoho head to head, and applies some effort to the match. Ishiura does well by staying mobile, and works to stalemate Daishoho. Ok, good, but that’s not winning. Ishiura’s gambit to get inside and drive forward results in Daishoho applying an arm bar and winning the match by kimedashi.

Terutsuyoshi defeats Kotoeko – I suspect we may be glad that Terutsuyoshi managed to stay in the top division, in spite of a horrible score at the end of Osaka. Kotoeko took control at the tachiai, and was driving Terutsuyoshi around the dohyo like he was the boss. But Terutsuyoshi loaded and executed a tsukiotoshi while in reverse gear, taking the match. Great sumo!

Enho defeats Tokushoryu – Enho takes his first match as a Maegashira in solid Enho fashion. Tokushoryu had the size and reach advantage, but Enho took him for a ride on the tiny-town express. While Tokushoryu was working to lock on to Enho’s shoulders, Enho was on the mawashi, turning the larger rikishi and escorting him to the tawara. Enho gives his 2 kensho envelops to his mother for a Mother’s Day gift. She is even smaller than he is!

Chiyomaru defeats Sadanoumi – Blink and you might miss it. Chiyomaru is getting better milage with Akua’s green mawashi than Akua ever did. A very simple stand him up, slap him down win for the man in green.

Yago defeats Shimanoumi – Yago won the match, but to my eye Shimanoumi had better sumo today. Yago repeatedly worked to pull or slap Shimanoumi down (and eventually succeeded), but the shin-Maegashira was focusing center-mass and moving forward with power. After taking two consecutive Juryo yusho, Shimanoumi has the skill to succeed in the top division. Let’s hope he can settle into a working rhythm.

Shohozan defeats Tochiozan – It looked like Tochiozan’s battle plan was to stalemate Shohozan and look for an opening. He executed that with his expected top-level skill, until Shohozan lost his patience and drove in for an atypical combat-hug. Tochiozan moved to win in the blink of an eye, but could not finish the rotation to execute his throw.

Onosho defeats Kagayaki – My candidate for “ring rust match of the day”. Mr Fundamentals, Kagayaki, gets taken to the wood shed by a rather genki Onosho. Hard core sumo fans, you know, the ones who pine for AbemaTV access, are hoping that Onosho can get his body back to good form, and we can see some Takakeisho – Onosho Ozeki rivalry in the future. Onosho had the full happy meal today: Hips low, thrusting strongly against center mass, and strong forward movement.

Tomokaze defeats Nishikigi – Special mention in the “ring rust” category goes to Nishikigi, who seemed to change his mind about opening attack midway through the tachiai. Tomokaze works him hand to hand like he is pulling an enormous ball of taffy, and Nishikigi really can only struggle to stay on his feet.

Asanoyama defeats Kaisei – Closing our trifecta of ring rust, Kaisei did not fail to deliver on his expected oxidation. I really liked Asanoyama’s drive after the tachiai, and that shallow left hand grip was solid. Kaisei struggled to get a throw going at the bales, but Asanoyama just used the Brazilian’s balance shift to deliver a yorikiri.

Shodai defeats Meisei – Those of you wondering why so many fans think Shodai has a lot of potential, watch this match. He is sky-high at the tachiai. He’s practically trying to lose here. But following that, look at his agility, his ring sense, and the fact that even in defensive action, he maintains an element of offense. Could we please get Araiso Oyakata to teach this guy how to come off the line?

Takarafuji defeats Yoshikaze – Yeah, Yoshikaze knows he’s beat about 5 seconds into it, and decides not to risk injury with a tawara defense. For fans of one of the most intense rikishi in many years, this match is tough to watch.

Ryuden defeats Myogiryu – Shin-Ikioi (Ryuden) continues to shine. Today’s match showed really outstanding patience, and top level balance as Myogiryu changed offensive plans at least twice. Ryuden waited them out, and took his opportunity to get Myogiryu turned around and propelled him out.

Abi defeats Okinoumi – The double arm attack was shut off fairly early, but Abi was able to convert it to a powerful two hand nodowa, which he withdrew suddenly to perform a pull-down. Points to Okinoumi for shutting down the typical Abi-zumo offense (and to Abi for having a plan B –PinkMawashi).

Aoiyama defeats Tamawashi – This anticipated slug-fest did not fail to deliver. Tamawashi took command at the tachiai, and backed Aoiyama to the east. A massive shove from Tamawashi, intended to send Aoiyama out, only stood the Mongolian up as he slid back. Aoiyama cocked that meaty right arm and delivered a blow that made the crowd gasp, then took control.

Tochinoshin defeats Chiyotairyu – Chiyotairyu could not muster enough force at the tachiai to effectively disrupt Tochinoshin, who waded into the slap fest with gusto. In spite of Chiyotairyu focusing well on keeping Tochinoshin away from his mawashi, the Georgian found his mark. You can hear the crowd rally as both hands find their grip. We all know what’s coming. Hell, Tochinoshin has been waiting to do this for a couple of months. You can hear the motors roar as he lifts Chiyotairyu, who obliges by pedaling his legs in free air like some cartoon character, suddenly finding himself over a cliff. Let’s admit it, we all want to see him get his 10 and take back his Ozeki rank.

Daieisho defeats Ichinojo – Runner up in the ring rust prize is Ichinojo, who clearly struggled to execute his planned attack strategy. Multiple times he tried to pull down Daieisho, who evaded well. This left Ichinojo high, off balance and fairly easy pickings. A solid win for Daieisho.

Takakeisho defeats Endo – The thing that is really striking is that Takakeisho has gotten better at initiating the wave-action attack earlier and earlier in the match. Endo has no time to even begin any offense. Endo foolishly tried to match the shove, aiming for Takakeisho’s head and neck. This gave the shin-Ozeki a open lane straight to Endo’s center-mass, and it was over. 41 kensho banners. Wow.

Kotoshogiku defeats Takayasu – I can’t recall how long its been since I have seen Kotoshogiku at this level of intensity. For recent fans, this was what Ozeki Kotoshogiku looked like at his peak. Granted, Takayasu is nursing a bad back right now, but that was awesome.

Goeido defeats Hokutofuji – I love this match because it shows Goeido’s speed. Hokutofuji likes to set up a nodowa at the tachiai, and take control before his opponent can do anything other than react. But Goeido is so fast and so low, you can see the surprise in Hokutofuji’s reaction. I am so very happy that Goeido seems to be healthy and on his sumo.

Kakuryu defeats Mitakeumi – Mitakeumi could not generate forward pressure against the Yokozuna, who executes a textbook oshi battle plan. This was interesting to me in that Kakuryu is usually going to start a match and react to his opponent. Today he took charge and dictated the win. This shift may have surprised Mitakeumi. It sort of surprised me!

Natsu Day 1 Preview

Bruce H Abi (阿炎), Aoiyama, Asanoyama (朝乃山), Chiyomaru, Chiyoshoma, Chiyotairyū (千代大龍), Daieisho (大栄翔), Endo (遠藤), Enho, Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ichinojo (逸ノ城), Kagayaki (輝), Kaisei (魁聖), Kakuryu (鶴竜), Kotoeko, Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Meisei, Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Myogiryu (妙義龍), Natsu Basho 2019, Nishikigi, Okinoumi (隠岐の海), Ryuden (竜電), Sadanoumi (佐田の海), Shimanoumi, Shohozan, Shōdai (正代直也), Takakeishō (貴景勝), Takarafuji (宝富士), Takayasu (高安), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Terutsuyoshi, Tochinoshin (栃ノ心), Tochiozan (栃煌山), Tomokaze, Toyonoshima, Yago, Yoshikaze (嘉風), Ōnoshō (阿武咲)

Welcome back dear readers! It’s honbasho time, and the team behind Tachiai are very excited about the potential of this tournament. As we have seen in the past two years, any basho that has Kakuryu as the lone Yokozuna tends to be a battle royale, with a much wider field of competitors for the Emperor’s Cup, even into act 3. The scenario favors two rikishi in my mind – Takayasu and Tochinoshin.

Takayasu because he has been “just short of” yusho level sumo a few times. The big question is his back, which he has been struggling to keep in working order. There was a lot of commentary following the joint keiko sessions this week, and the comment at the YDC soken that Takayasu was not doing “his brand of sumo”. Sadly I have yet to see it in any detail, but I suspect we are seeing continuing evolution of Takayasu into a form that can compete closer to Yokozuna level.

Tochinoshin will come as a surprise to some readers. The fellow is on the outs now, having at least temporarily lost his Ozeki rank due to back to back make-koshi, brought on by a foot injury. Thanks to a commentator, we think of Tochinoshin as a “glass cannon”, with tremendous power as long as he is structurally intact. If Tochinoshin shows up healthy and in good working order, that enormous strength (he has the strength of a bear, that has the strength of two bears) can overcome practically anyone.

A reminder about how these basho start: Act one (the first 5 days) is all about getting people up to basho intensity, knocking off the ring rust, and starting to tune up the named ranks for the big fights later in acts 2 and 3. We may see some iffy sumo today, so don’t take it too seriously, and enjoy the next 15 days – it’s bound to be intense.

What We Are Watching Day 1

Chiyoshoma vs Toyonoshima – With Hakuho kyujo, there is a torikumi imbalance that will see a daily visitor from Juryo, unless and until someone else in Makuuchi decides to go kyujo as well. At Juryo 1 East, Toyonoshima could be back in the top division for the sweat-box in Nagoya if he can rack up 8 wins. Chiyoshoma will possibly be working on his henka.

Terutsuyoshi vs Kotoeko – While both men were make-koshi in Osaka, both of them managed to remain in the top division because so many rikishi at the bottom of Makuuchi had such terrible records. Watch for the glorious Terutsuyoshi salt throw, and for Kotoeko to work to keep Terutsuyoshi to his own front quarter.

Tokushoryu vs Enho – Enho’s first ever match ranked as a Maegashira, and I hope everyone who has not had a chance to watch his sumo before gets a high energy, enjoyable match. That fellow is indomitable.

Chiyomaru vs Sadanoumi – The bulbous Chiyomaru returns to the top division, and his first match is against fellow veteran Sadanoumi. Chiyomaru leads the series 8-3.

Shimanoumi vs Yago – After back-to-back Juryo yusho, Shimanoumi makes his Maegashira debut. In spite of his 6-9 record for Osaka, Yago is not out of his element in Makuuchi, and I expect him to find his pace this tournament, and become a mainstay of the top division.

Shohozan vs Tochiozan – A battle of the “ozan”, where the typically agile Tochiozan will attempt to out maneuver the street brawler Shohozan.

Kagayaki vs Onosho – It’s clear that Onosho is not quite back to his old fighting form which saw him kachi-koshi at Komusubi during Kyushu 2017. His 5-10 record in Osaka was a big setback for a rikishi that many see as an upgraded version of Takakeisho.

Nishikigi vs Tomokaze – A first time match between sumo’s underdog in Nishikigi, and young rising star Tomokaze. Many fans (myself included) were surprised that Nishikigi was able to survive for three tournaments in the joi-jin before a solid make-koshi pushed him back down to Maegashira 9.

Kaisei vs Asanoyama – Asanoyama has manage to beat Kaisei only once in their 5 prior matches, but this may be a different day. Kaisei tends to exhibit a good amount of ring-rust at times, and if Asanoyama comes into the match sharp and ready, he may get the jump on the Brazilian.

Shodai vs Meisei – I give Shodai an over-sized portion of grief most tournaments. He seems to have all the pieces for top level sumo, but just cannot seem to bring them together consistently. He is up against a surging Meisei, who is fighting at his highest ever rank. Shodai won their only prior match.

Takarafuji vs Yoshikaze – Can Yoshikaze muster the energy to dominate his matches? For fans of the Berserker, it’s been tough to watch him fade a bit in the past year. Likewise Takarafuji seems to have lost a half step in his sumo. This match is sure to be encrusted with ring rust, so bring one of those green scratchy pads if you are showing up at the Kokugikan to watch.

Ryuden vs Myogiryu – In the midst of the blood bath at the bottom of the Makuuchi banzuke in Osaka, Ryuden managed to finish 10-5, and neatly identify himself as ready to return to higher rank. Today is a great test, as he has not beaten Myogiryu in either of their prior matches.

Okinoumi vs Abi – Are you ready for more Abi-zumo? I know I am! So what if he’s a bit one-dimensional, it’s always a good day when he is on the torikumi. He’s against Okinoumi, who is an excellent technical rikishi, and holds a 2-1 career lead over the man with the flailing arms…

Aoiyama vs Tamawashi – I was disappointed when Tamawashi finished Osaka 5-10, as he is a solid Sekiwake-class rikishi. But today he gets to put his brutal shove-piggy-shove attack against the bludgeoning meat mountain Aoiyama. Given the propensity for day 1 ring rust, this might not be the slug fest that one would want to see from these two.

Chiyotairyu vs Tochinoshin – I liken Chiyotairyu to taking a Brinks armored truck, and fitting a top-fuel dragster engine to it. There will be a lot of mass moving at extreme speed, but past that you may be in trouble. If Tochinoshin can survive the tachiai and following slap down move, he should be in good position to use the skycrane and rack his first win on the road to 10. (He has a convincing 6-2 record against Chiyotairyu, whose style of sumo plays right into Tochinoshin’s enormous hands –PinkMawashi)

Ichinojo vs Daieisho – Which Ichinojo is going show up? The cuddly Ichinojo, or the pony tosser? If we see even a hint of his Osaka style sumo, it’s going to be a tough basho for a lot of rikishi. Plus, it looks like Ichinojo put on some extra mass…

Takakeisho vs Endo – Welcome to the Ozeki ranks, Takakeisho! Its great to have some young blood up at this level, and I think you are going to do well. Up first is a distinct challenge in Endo, who brings a very intelligent, maneuver-centric sumo to the dohyo. If Takakeisho can get his offensive rhythm established, he should have this match.

Kotoshogiku vs Takayasu – With a 11-4 finish at Osaka, Kotoshogiku looked a bit like his old, Ozeki class self. We get to see if he has been able to keep up the intensity with this day 1 match with Takayasu, who seems to be struggling a bit if pre-basho scouting reports are accurate.

Goeido vs Hokutofuji – Hokutofuji’s sumo has many aspects in common with Goeido’s, they both tend to blast out of the tachiai and stake everything on a big opening gambit. Goeido clearly knows how to shut down Hokutofuji’s “handshake tachiai”, so maybe Hokutofuji won’t go for the nodowa, and we will see something new.

Mitakeumi vs Kakuryu – Kakuryu has not been able to dominate Mitakeumi, and their career record is tied at 5-5., with Mitakeumi taking the last 2. There are remaining questions about Mitakeumi’s knee, and general overall health, while Kakuryu appears to be in excellent form. I am keenly interested in this match.

Haru Day 15 Highlights

Bruce H Abi (阿炎), Aoiyama, Asanoyama (朝乃山), Chiyoshoma, Chiyotairyū (千代大龍), Daieisho (大栄翔), Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hakuho (白鵬), Haru Basho 2019 (Osaka), Ichinojo (逸ノ城), Kagayaki (輝), Kakuryu (鶴竜), Kotoeko, Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Miyogiryu, Nishikigi, Okinoumi (隠岐の海), Ryuden (竜電), Shohozan, Takakeishō (貴景勝), Takayasu (高安), Takekaze (豪風), Tochinoshin (栃ノ心), Yoshikaze (嘉風) ,

The Haru basho is a wrap! Day 15 closed out the tournament with some decent matches, and a couple of worrisome developments. While there will be plenty of talk about promotions and demotions in the days to come, the real story to me is just how much of the Makuuchi division was make-koshi this time (25). Sumo is in fact a zero-sum sport, but to see so many rikishi underwater at once is quite the throwback to an earlier time, when the giants of sumo were all healthy and active.

Now that the spoiler buffer is out of the way, we bring you the news. Yokozuna Hakuho took the cup for his 42nd yusho, his 15th zensho yusho. In the process he injured his right arm, enough that he was not able to move it following his match with Kakuryu. How bad is it? I would say bad enough. From a wild guess, it could be a pectoral injury or a bicep injury. Hopefully unlike Kisenosato he will seek immediate attention. We may not see “The Boss” for a while.

Takakeisho was able to win against struggling Ozeki Tochinoshin, to pick up his 10th win. Ounomatsu Oyakata and Hakkaku Rijicho have confirmed that Takakeisho will be promoted to Ozeki this week, and I think the sumo world is quite happy about that. The stone-faced Takakeisho, who it seems had kept his emotions in check for this whole time, finally realized that he had reached a significant goal, and succumbed to the moment.

Tochinoshin will be demoted for May to a Sekiwake rank, or in this special case, we call it Ozekiwake. With 10 wins he will regain his Ozeki rank. We know that a healthy Tochinoshin can clear 10 wins, especially if Hakuho and some of the others are in less than stellar condition. But the question comes down to Tochinoshin’s injuries, and how much they limit him. Sadly, Tachiai took a look at Tochinoshin’s history when he was on the cusp of promotion, and forecasted this scenario with fairly good accuracy.

Highlight Matches

Shohozan defeats Chiyoshoma – I think Shohozan was certain that Chiyoshoma was going for a henka, and so Shohozan launched early (a clear matta) but took a moment to slap Chiyoshoma and launch him into the east side zabuton. When the match started, Chiyoshoma tried a leg sweep, but Shohozan was unphased. He cased Chiyoshoma down and personally welcomed him to make-koshi, and Juryo.

Terutsuyoshi defeats Ikioi – Ikioi had no business being on the dohyo after day 5, yet here he is doing “dead man sumo”. The good news is that maybe, just maybe, Terutsuyoshi with 6 wins can stay in Makuuchi. This is in part due to the wholesale make-koshi outbreak in the bottom ranks. 6-9 from Maegashira 14 should normally punt you back to the 2nd division, but there are so many bad records at lower ranks ahead of him, it’s possible that he stays.

Ryuden defeats Kotoshogiku – Kotoshogiku’s special prize was contingent on a day 15 win, and he could not overpower Ryuden, who picked up win #10 to finish Haru with double digits. Sometime around day 12, Kotoshogiku’s stamina just seemed to fade out. 11 wins is his best finish since his yusho in 2016, and it was a great basho for both of these rikishi.

Kotoeko defeats Asanoyama – Asanoyama loses the last 5 in a row to end with a make-koshi. Kind of an epic collapse on his part – injury? stamina? Bad batch of takoyaki?

Aoiyama defeats Tomokaze – The winner of this match took home the kanto-sho / fighting spirit prize. Tomokaze did well in his first top division basho, but Aoiyama was completely dialed into his sumo this March, Tomokaze attempted a pull down early, but Aoiyama rallied and showed Tomokaze what that salt basket looks like… up close.

Abi defeats Kagayaki – Abi gets win #8 on the final day, and we can assume that Abi-zumo will not evolve for a while longer.

Okinoumi defeats Yoshikaze – As expected, Okinoumi was able to pick up his kachi-koshi in his match against Yoshikaze today. Yoshikaze was very low at the tachiai, and Okinoumi did not give him a second chance.

Chiyotairyu defeats Myogiryu – Some different sumo from Chiyotairyu today, and his choice of mawashi sumo at the open nearly cost him the match, but with his feet sliding back toward the bales, he changed course and poured on the oshi-yaki, which Myogiryu could not answer. Chiyotairyu gets his kachi-koshi.

Ichinojo defeats Daieisho – 14 wins in frequently more than sufficient to take a yusho, but for Ichinojo it was only good to take him to runner-up against a Hakuho zensho campaign. His sumo this basho has been formulaic, but oh so effective. Can he continue to make it work for him? Next chapter is written in May. This is his second Jun-Yusho, with his first being his 2014 debut tournament where he turned in an impressive 13-2. We expect him to join Tochinoshin at Sekiwake for May.

Mitakeumi defeats Nishikigi – Mitakeumi finishes with a minimal, 7 loss, make-koshi. He has a number of issues to address including his knee injury and his difficulty in carrying the “big” matches. Interestingly enough, its possible both both Komusubi (Hokutofuji also finished 7-8) may have an odd demotion path, as there are not that many rikishi who are making the case for joining the san’yaku.

Shodai defeats Tamawashi – Both men end the tournament with 5-10 records, and the Shodai’s rally is just as big a story as Tamawashi’s collapse. I do tend to rip on Shodai, mostly because he has really enormous potential that he just can’t seem to capitalize. Perhaps his rally in Osaka will give him new confidence that will show itself in Tokyo this May.

Takakeisho defeats Tochinoshin – This match was won at the tachiai. Takakeisho delivered his first push, inside, at the moment of contact. You can see Tochinoshin impotently reach for that left hand mawashi purchase as his torso is propelled to the rear by the force of Takakeisho’s impact. Unable to deliver offense, he finds himself immediately under “wave action” attack. Tochinoshin allowed Takakeisho to dictate the form of the match, and lost. Takakeisho takes his Ozeki rank, and picks up the Gino-sho technique award. At just a pip over 22 years of age, we are looking at the future of sumo in this young man. His sumo is fairly one dimensional, and that is his biggest risk to maintaining the Ozeki rank. But we congratulate Takakeisho for persistence, hard work, and the courage to get it done.

Goeido defeats Takayasu – Some of the best Goeido sumo since Aki 2016, where he went undefeated and took the cup. When Goeido is healthy and focused, like he was in Osaka, he is a great example of a rikishi with absolute focus on offense. Again Takayasu went for the shoulder blast at the tachiai, so that is 2 attempts, 2 losses. I continue to think Takayasu is in a transitional state, and we are going to possibly see it result in a step change to his sumo that could see him bid for higher rank.

Hakuho defeats Kakuryu – Exceptional sumo from both men, this is the kind of match you would expect from two Yokozuna, one of them being the best that has stepped on clay in my lifetime. Three times Kakuryu forced an opening that gave him a shot to win, and three times Hakuho shut him down. The big worry is that the final shitatenage seems to have injured Hakuho’s arm. Both men fought well this March, and both of them are worthy to be considered the top men in sumo.

With that, we bring to a close our daily coverage of the Haru basho. What a great adventure it has been, and we have enjoyed sharing our love of sumo with you, our treasured readers. Join us in the coming weeks as we cover the promotion of Takakeisho to Ozeki, and events leading up to the Natsu basho in Tokyo. [but first, stay tuned for a post later today wrapping up the Haru storylines and making some predictions for Natsu -lksumo]