Top of the post, we have to salute Terunofuji, who is 8-0 at the end of Nakabi. The former and shin-Ozeki could go on vacation today, and not have to mount the dohyo again until September, and be just fine. But its clear that is not his plan. He is the favorite for the yusho now, and should he take the cup again in May, the talk of him beginning a campaign for Yokozuna would rightly begin. As we have laid out in prior commentary, Terunofuji’s win / loss record makes him the most dominant man in sumo right now. He has, at least by score, been turning in Yokozuna grade performance.

Further down the banzuke, Akiseyama has withdrawn from the tournament. He was 1-6 going into day 8, and was clearly not up to full power sumo this month. Whatever injury sidelined him, we hope he heals up and returns strong. This gives Akua a much needed second win to improve him to 2-6. Speaking of which, we look forward to seeing none other than Aoiyama tomorrow on day 9. It seems whatever crippling back pain he was suffering last week has passed, and he’s ready to come knock some heads. A rested up Aoiyama at the start of week 2 could be a formula for fun just as everyone is pushing to get their 8th win.

Highlight Matches

Ura defeats Kaisei – Ura follows the rules of get low and get inside very well. You can watch him not settle to grapple with Kaisei until he is good and ready, and when he settles in it would almost seem that Kaisei has him wrapped up and contained. But you can see that his right hand is fingers up around Kaisei’s shoulder. Kaisei did stop him from the first set up for the sukuinage, but Ura grabs for Kaisei’s leg, and Kaisei reacts. Ura immediately shifts his grip back to being palm up and pulls the sukuinage. Brilliant sumo from Ura today against a much larger opponent. The crowd loves it, and so did I. He improves to 7-1 and leads the Juryo yusho race.

Kotoeko defeats Daiamami – Beautiful counter-move at the tachiai by Kotoeko, deflecting Daiamami left hand grip attempt. By leading outside and left, Daiamami surrendered inside and right to Kotoeko, who attacked with gusto. Daiamami eventually got a right hand inside, just to be met by Kotoeko’s ottsuke, a heartbeat before Kotoeko lifted Daiamami across the bales. Its sumo like this that really impresses me with Kotoeko. That was such a solid match in so many ways. He improves to 5-3.

Okinoumi defeats Chiyomaru – Chiyomaru opens with a tradition attempt at his “brand of sumo” – standing Okinoumi up and trying to immediately pull him down. Okinoumi’s too dialed in for that to work today, so the two trade thrusts, but it’s clear that Chiyomaru’s getting nowhere. Okinoumi gets a right hand deep inside grip, and he’s in business. There’s a lot of Chiyomaru to lift, so he just settles for wearing the round one down. Chiyomaru bearing down on Okinoumi, using his enormous bulk to attack, actually changes Chiyomaru’s body position enough to give Okinoumi a chance to lift with his hips, bucking Chiyomaru out for a win. Okinoumi improves to 6-2.

Terutsuyoshi defeats Ishiura – Terutsuyoshi fans around the world cheer as he picks up win #2 of the tournament. If you ever wanted to see two guys start low and fight lower, this is your match. The glorious sukuinage to finish the match was marvelous to see. Sure, I am pulling for Ishiura to have a solid kachi-koshi, but how can you not love that throw? Terutsuyoshi improves to 2-6.

Chiyotairyu defeats Kagayaki – Did you see Chiyotairyu reach for the mawashi in the tachiai? I am having a bit more hope that Chiyotairyu has some kind of yotsu-zumo trying to break through. It did open the door for Kagayaka to take over the match, and blast a series of blows to Chiyotairyu’s face. It was looking bad for Chiyotairyu, but a twisting thrust down at the bales took Kagayaki apart, sending them both to the dohyo. Chiyotairyu improves to 6-2.

Kotonowaka defeats Tsurugisho – This seems to be a very sloppy match at first, but if you look closely, you can see Kotonowaka doing some rather impressive off-tempo moves that leave Tsurugisho off balance and out of step. This opens Tsurugisho up for the uwatedashinage, which Kotonowaka uses to send Tsurugisho tumbling to the clay. Kotonowaka improves to 4-4 and still has a decent shot at a kachi-koshi for May.

Chiyoshoma defeats Tochinoshin – Tochinoshin really looks like he needs to regroup and find some way to bring that right knee at least partially back online. Once again we see the straight-ahead sumo version of Chiyoshoma, and for another day is solid fundamentals and good mechanics that hand him another white star. Chiyoshoma improves to 5-3, and I am enjoying his new format quite a bit.

Takarafuji defeats Tamawashi – Tamawashi invested too heavily on that left hand near where Takarafuji’s neck once was, but Tamawashi right hand placement was really good. Twice Takarafuji was able to break contact, disrupting whatever match momentum Tamawashi thought he had already established. This was all about Tamawashi trying to block Takarafuji from setting up a working hand placement, but it fed Takarafuji’s natural inclination to prolong matches. As Tamawashi tired, he became susceptible to Takarafuji’s probing attacks, and once he had tired enough, a quick combo to Tamawashi’s chest sent him out. Takarafuji picks up a much needed win to improve to 3-5.

Endo defeats Hidenoumi – Hidenoumi came to this match looking to execute straight ahead fundamentals, but Endo had a plan. Three steps into the match, Endo had his right hand locked in, and loaded the throw. Hidenoumi went for a roll to the clay, and Endo improved to 6-2.

Ichinojo defeats Shimanoumi – Shimanoumi deflected at the tachiai, and it was nearly enough to let Ichinojo’s own considerable momentum carry him out. But not quite enough. Ichinojo turns and puts his right hand inside, and just marches forward, driving Shimanoumi out. Ichinojo improves to 6-2.

Onosho defeats Meisei – Meisei came in strong at the tachiai, rocking Onosho back. Meisei took his second step to press forward, but Onosho was already off balance, and decided to just work with it, and stepped to the side. Meisei found himself lunging into open air, and landed for a loss. Onosho joins the 5-2 crowd that now seems to be a 6-2 crowd.

Hokutofuji defeats Tobizaru – I counted at least 5 pull down attempts between these two as the fight raged across every open inch of that dohyo. Seriously, I don’t recall seeing that much movement and frantic action since the last time that Yoshikaze and Harumafuji went after each other with gusto. Hokutofuji finishes this high-energy match with a mighty shove, and Tobizaru once again goes to greet the fans all the way up in the box seats. Needless to say, they were all thrilled to get some close up time with the Flying Monkey. Hokutofuji improves to 2-6, and is running the risk of putting his make-koshi at stake.

Takayasu defeats Kiribayama – Points to Kiribayama for really putting a lot of energy into his attempt to take down Takayasu. I think this indicates some good things in the future for Kiribayama, but his score this May is a pretty dismal 2-6 following today’s action. He made the mistake of locking up Takayasu, who in fact has super-human levels of stamina. It has been rumored that he will frequently spend afternoons pulling stumps out of newly cleared rice fields in his home town, putting several pieces of farming machinery out of work, and he will still be genki for evening matches against the former Kisenosato. The look on Takayasu’s face as this wears on clearly declares, “I have all day for this, kid. Please do continue”. Too late Kiribayama understands what is happening, and tries for something, anything to break the stalemate. Takayasu, only partially satisfied, tosses Kiribayama into an exhausted heap a the west end of the dohyo. That’s 6-2 for the human stump breaker.

Wakatakakage defeats Takanosho – A grand demonstration of why Team Tachiai things Wakatakakage has a fair amount of potential for higher rank. I love how he expertly stays just a hair width outside of Takanosho’s optimum attack range, using hit and shift sumo to keep the Sekiwake moving where he wants him to go, and finishing him with a big shove. Wakatakakage improves to 5-3, while Takanosho needs to win 5 of his last 7 to hit the safety of 8.

Mitakeumi defeats Shodai – Shodai is back to his crummy tachiai. Even Kakuryu, who was guest commentator on the NHK broadcast, pointed it out. Of course perennial spoiler Mitakeumi was happy to make him suffer for his sloppy sumo, wrapping him out and bundling him out of the ring before he could unleash any cartoon sumo from his bag of Acme kimarite. Mitakeumi joins the growing herd at 6-2.

Takakeisho defeats Myogiryu – I love how efficient Takakeisho is in this match. If you look, he moves maybe a foot from where the tachiai takes place. Three hits and Myogiryu’s face down on the clay. That’s some Ozeki dominance! Takakeisho stays one win behind Terunofuji, improving to 7-1.

Hoshoryu defeats Asanoyama – Like Wakatakakage, we can see flashes of brilliance from Hoshoryu on the right day. Not with the same consistency, but its in there. I think he surprised Asanoyama with the force and aggression he went to the belt, and just drove the Ozeki down. A glorious uchigake, and a direct attack at that taped ankle for a win. Now Asanoyama needs to worry about what it will take to get to 8 wins over the last 7 days. I am guessing Asanoyamam’s ankle is becoming more of a problem as the honbasho days tick by. Hoshoryu improves to 3-5, and was giddy with joy at his win.

Terunofuji defeats Daieisho – Terunofuji missed his tachiai attempt at a mawashi grip, so he settled for just overpowering Daieisho, who ran out of space for his traditional thrusting attack before he could really start. Terunofuji is kachi-koshi for May, improving to 8-0, and is the sole leader for the cup 1 week from today.

Welcome to the middle day of the basho, know as nakabi. This is the point where the tone of the tournament starts to shift, and it’s the point where rikishi begin to reach their 8th win, and the safety of kachi-koshi. There is a fair chance that tournament leader, Terunofuji, will hit his 8 today, and be the first man to secure his spot on the July banzuke.

He is followed by Takakeisho, one win behind. We are not yet to the stage where the Ozeki will focus on fighting each other, but that day is fast approaching. There are a few lower ranked rikishi who have to take their turns being ripped up by the Ozeki first, and we have a spread of those matches today. Thus far all of the Ozeki seem to be on course for a successful 8 with finish, with Asanoyama the closest to the make-koshi trend at 4-3, and looking somewhat iffy on some days. Maybe that heavily taped left ankle is in worse shape that we know.

What We Are Watching Day 8

Kaisei vs Ura – Welcome back to the top division, oh man in pink! We are hopeful that you can score 2 more wins and return to your home in Makuuchi. There are plenty of rikishi who have never had the pleasure of facing against your quantum sumo, and I hope that your reality bending moves are ready for a big opponent today. They fought once before, 4 years ago. Ura was the winner.

Akiseyama vs Akua – I expected this match was coming, and here it is…. Two of the worst performers of this touranment facing off to see who is more banged up and damaged. Their career record is tied up at 4-4, they are roughly the same weight and somewhat the same size. Best to get this out of the way now.

Kotoeko vs Daiamami – A pair of 4-3 rikishi working to see who will edge closer to their 8th win. I really like Daiamami’s chances today, he’s won 3 of his last 4, and seems to be getting into his sumo.

Chiyomaru vs Okinoumi – We see symmetry once more with both rikishi having 5-2 records, and both of them are likely headed for at least a kachi-koshi. I also think both of them are under-ranked if they are healthy. It will be a clash of sumo styles as Chiyomaru will work to keep it a thrusting babble, and Okinoumi will want to grab a handful of silk and muscle Chiyomaru around. Chiyomaru holds a narrow 5-3 career lead.

Ishiura vs Terutsuyoshi – Terutsuyoshi seems to be accumulating aches and pains at an alarming rate. As someone I hope to be a mainstay of the top division for a few years to come, I am looking for him to withdraw as soon as he has enough wins to ensure he can stay in the top division. He won’t likely find it today, as Ishiura has a well mapped history of putting him on the clay.

Chiyotairyu vs Kagayaki – the easy road would be for this to be a quick oshi-zumo battle. Some thrusting, some sloppy foot work, and someone tumbles off the dohyo. But we saw some solid mawashi sumo from Chiyomaru on day 7, and I am really hopeful that Chiyotairyu surprises us, and uses that approach once more.

Tsurugisho vs Kotonowaka – Back to the battle of the disappointments. I really want Kotonowaka to have a strong. basho, but it almost seems to not be in the cards this time. If it helps at all, Tsurugisho is doing even worse. I am looking to see if he has some enormous bandage on his head where he had a bleeding gash from his day 7 face plant courtesy of Tamawashi.

Tochinoshin vs Chiyoshoma – Tochinoshin, sadly, continues to fade. It’s not something he can control, in my opinion. He pushed what was left of his lower body past the limit to achieve the rank of Ozeki, and to hold it for a time. He’s going to need to work to get a left hand outside on Chiyoshoma, and remove his mobility advantage.

Tamawashi vs Takarafuji – 25 career matches between these two, and they are 12-13, essentially even. The big factor today is that for Natsu 2021, Tamawashi is fighting well, and Takarafuji is not dialed into “his brand of sumo”. As such, it’s going to be Tamawashi’s match to lose.

Hidenoumi vs Endo – I am looking for to bottle up Hidenoumi early, and to have him out of the ring in fewer than 6 steps. If Hidenoumi can find a way to extend the match, his chances of winning his first ever from Endo go up.

Shimanoumi vs Ichinojo – While Ichinojo is fighting well this May, to my eye Shimanoumi seems to have finally clicked into the honbasho groove. So if there is not a lot of kensho on this match, we may see Shimanoumi pick up his 5th win today.

Meisei vs Onosho – I continue to be amazed that so few rikishi are able to exploit Onosho’s biggest gap – his balance. He is getting better at keeping his feet, but he’s still wide open to a side step once Onosho starts hi mega-push. Meisei holds a 5-2 career record over Onosho, and I think he is one rikishi who knows exactly what to do.

Tobizaru vs Hokutofuji – As Hokutofuji continues his march toward “The most powerful make-koshi in all of sumo”, he comes up against Tobizaru today. Tobizaru came into Natsu with a lot of hope, and a double-wide attitude of can-do. Now that he’s been bashed about and had his head shoved to the chikara-mizu bucket a few times, he probably knows he needs to tune up a bit more to survive at that rank. I have zero doubt he’s going to do just that. But not today.

Takayasu vs Kiribayama – Takayasu probably has a thick layer of frustration to peel back, after winless Hokutofuji scored his first win against the former Ozeki on day 7. With his 3-0 career record against Kiribayama, he’s likely to get some satisfaction from putting this fellow into the dirt.

Wakatakakage vs Takanosho – Takanosho holds a 5-1 career lead over Wakatakakage, but this may not be indicative of how things are going to go today. Wakatakakage is fighting surprisingly well for someone at Maegashira 1, and I expect he may actually hit 8 wins at this rank. So i look for a fast fight, with Wakatakakage trying to get inside Takanosho’s thrusting range and remove his primary weapon.

Shodai vs Mitakeumi – While we are not into the Ozeki vs Ozeki matches, this one comes close in terms of interest. They have 23 career matches, and they are 11-12. Mitakeumi has taken 5 of the last 7 so I am interested to see if he can get amped up enough to dispatch the human daikon on the clay today.

Myogiryu vs Takakeisho – Twelve times Myogiryu has tried to beat Takakeisho, and 12 time he has either left the dohyo at speed or hit the clay. I see no reason for any of that to change today.

Asanoyama vs Hoshoryu – First ever match between these two, and it would be a good result for Hoshoryu to take an Ozeki scalp. Hoshoryu has some skill on the mawashi, and if he can keep Asanoyama’s left hand busy or wide of his body, he’s got a real chance to upset the man I thought would be in the lead for the cup.

Daieisho vs Terunofuji – The career score says 3-2 in favor of Terunofuji. But right now Terunofuji is just looking unstoppable. I do think that Daieisho has about a 1 in 5 chance to pull out an upset, but only if he can keep his thrusting attack strong enough to prevent the Kaiju from getting a hold of any part of his body.

While we had some fun with the number of 4-2 head to head matches that cropped up on the day 7 torikumi, a surprising number of 4-2 rikishi are now 5-2, and I am going to guess that the scheduling committee will end up with a day of 5-2 head to head matches as well. Sadly, that now includes Takayasu, who lost his second match of the basho. That leaves 2 Ozeki in contention as we await the tournament’s middle day on Sunday.

Highlight Matches

Chiyonoo defeats Ishiura – They even imported a 4-2 rikishi from Juryo to help out with what was “4-2 day”. I think we are probably going to see Chiyonoo return to the top division in July, for the first time since 2017 or so. He had his hands inside at the tachiai, beating out Ishiura. Ishiura responded with a left hand outside grip attempt, but went nowhere. They stayed chest to chest, but Chiyonoo kept moving Ishiura back, eventually getting the yorikiri to improve to 5-2 (get used to that, you will see it a lot today).

Chiyomaru defeats Akiseyama – Akiseyama continues to struggle this May, and I would guess he’s going back to Juryo unless he rallies strongly starting now. Chiyomaru got in the first strike at the tachiai, and pressed ahead for the 3 steps to take Akiseyama out. He improves to 5-2.

Okinoumi defeats Kaisei – This was a surprisingly good match. Kaisei did try to just be enormous at first, but Okinoumi had a plan for that. Much like picking up a refrigerator, Okinoumi kept inching his arms around until he found Kaisei’s belt. The Kaisei showed some great sumo chops and shifted grip, shutting down Okinoumi’s attack. But with as much front-loaded mass as Kaisei transports, he was a bit off balance, and Okinoumi pulled him down as Kaisei moved forward. Okinoumi improves to 5-2.

Chiyotairyu defeats Kotoeko – This match was not Chiyotairyu’s standard battle plan, but he did quite well chest to chest against Kotoeko. That big forward rush to finish the match? Kind of magical to be honest. If Chiyotairyu made this a standard part of his sumo arsenal, I think he could go somewhere with it. Chiyotairyu improves to 5-2.

Chiyoshoma defeats Akua – Ok, it stinks when Chiyoshoma henkas every day, but when he pulls out a theatrical whopper like this one, it’s kind of fun. I feel bad for Akua, who picked up his 6th loss, but how can you NOT go into a match with Chiyoshoma looking out for that kind of move? Chiyoshoma goes to 4-3 via flying henka.

Daiamami defeats Kotonowaka – Daiamami ran this match from the tachiai, until the moment where Kotonowaka rallied and shut him down. I did like that big belly slap as the two locked up for what turned into a period of chest to chest struggle near the center of the dohyo. But Kotonowaka ran out of stamina, and Daiamami eased him over the bales to end the day 4-3.

Shimanoumi defeats Terutsuyoshi – Whatever they transplanted from Terutsuyoshi to keep Terunofuji’s knees working took the better part of his sumo along with it. Shimanoumi was able to shut down all of Terutsuyoshi’s preferred attack routes, and found himself fighting from a crouch for a few moments as Shimanoumi moved him incrementally out of the ring. Shimanoumi has won 4 of the last 5 after a cold 2 loss start to the basho, he is now 4-3 and looking close to expected form.

Tamawashi defeats Tsurugisho – Wow, that was some huge sumo from these two. Tamawashi opened oshi-zumo style, and Tsurugisho used his bigger body to press for a belt grip. He was able to plow through Tamawashi’s attacks and get his grip, and went to work. But just as Tsurugisho looked ready to win, Tamawashi took control of the throw and drove Tsurugisho’s face into the bales with a resounding meaty thud. Tamawashi improves to 5-2, Tsurugisho leaves the dohyo with a bloody gash on his face.

Kagayaki defeats Takarafuji – The reverse of the multiple 4-2 battles today was this 2-4 battle, between two rikishi who are much better than their scores would indicate. Kagayaki successfully shut down Takarafuji’s attack plan, but Takarafuji was unable to switch to “defend and extend”, and Kagayaki took control and brought him over the bales. Kagayaki ends at 3-4.

Endo defeats Tochinoshin – Endo chose to go chest to chest with Tochinoshin, a bold move indeed. Tochinoshin quickly gained superior body position, but his damaged right knee removed any ability for Tochinoshin do to anything offensive. Endo used his body to move Tochinoshin back, and take the match by sending the former Ozeki out. Endo improves to 5-2.

Ichinojo defeats Hidenoumi – Ichinojo opened strong, but Hidenoumi stayed calm, and worked his hands to a double inside grip. At that point, Ichinojo shut him down by simply being enormous, and staying in one place. Truth be told, holding Ichinojo up is a job his on body struggles to do, and Hidenoumi quickly ran out of stamina. Ichinojo improves to 5-2.

Onosho defeats Tobizaru – Tobizaru flubbed the tachiai by going high, and allowing Onosho to bring more of his weight forward. But he quickly gained advantage and a left hand deep hold, and set up an over-arm throw. But in the process of being rotated down, Onosho imploded the throw, and Tobizaru went down with him. The gyoji pointed to the East, giving the match to Onosho and a monoii ensued. They touched down together, and a rematch was called. The second match was a high-energy slapping and thrusting battle that sent Tobizaru into the 4th row for some fansa. Onosho improves to 5-2.

Meisei defeats Wakatakakage – Meisei almost rammed Wakatakakage straight out of the ring at the tachiai, but Wakatakakage showed lightning reflexes and escaped Meisei’s finishing push. Wakatakakage rallied and took at least partial control of the match, taking the fight to Meisei. He was moving Meisei back, but got off balance and Meisei put him face down on the dohyo. Meisei improves to 3-4.

Mitakeumi defeats Daieisho – Daieisho got the inside lane at the tachiai, but he could not overcome Mitakeumi’s mass in motion forward pressure. Realizing he was moving back at an alarming pace Daieisho tries a pull, and in doing so surrenders the match to Mitakeumi. Mitakeumi improves to 5-2.

Hokutofuji defeats Takayasu – I love seeing a Hokutofuji like what he brought to today’s match. I marvel at how such a massive fellow can lunge forward with such speed and aggression. It does Hokutofuji some good, but Takayasu rallies and goes on the attack. Hokutofuji realizes he’s in trouble and attempts a pull as he is losing ground, and it succeeds in sending Takayasu off the dohyo for Hokutofuji’s first win of May.

Takakeisho defeats Hoshoryu – Hoshoryu side stepped the tachiai, hoping to land a mawashi grip. But given how vulnerable Takakeisho is to that attack route, I am sure he practices what happened next multiple times a day. With Hoshoryu nearly doubled over to the side, Takakeisho grabs a handful of his neck and slaps him to the clay. Valiant effort from Hoshoryu, but that was going nowhere. Takakeisho improves to 6-1 and remains one win behind Terunofuji.

Asanoyama defeats Myogiryu – Asanoyama yotsu is not quite as strong as it has been recently, and it seems to be inviting opponents to battle him chest to chest. Today he struggled to overcome some fairly solid attack sumo from Myogiryu. But overcome he did to hurl Myogiryu down with a sukuinage that took some time to put together. Asanoyama improves to 4-3, but everyone has a way to shut down his left hand grip now, it seems. He either needs to improve his right hand attacks, or improve his defense so he can stretch matches out while he gets his left hand attack in place.

Terunofuji defeats Takanosho – Takanosho successfully keeps Terunofuji at arm’s length with a spot on thrusting attack. After three attempts to get inside, Terunofuji abandon’s any try to get a hold of Takanosho, steps back and slams him to the clay. Terunofuji remains unbeaten at 7-0, and in sole possession of the lead.

Shodai defeats Kiribayama – Kiribayama opens strong, but finds he cannot move Shodai back, even with a nodowa driving Shodai’s head back. Once he exhausts that opening gambit, Shodai maintains contact and advances to drive Kiribayama out. Shodai improves to 5-2.