Kyushu Day 9 Highlights

Bruce H Abi (阿炎), Aoiyama, Asanoyama (朝乃山), Chiyomaru, Chiyotairyū (千代大龍), Daieisho (大栄翔), Daishoho, Daishomaru, Endo (遠藤), Enho, Hakuho (白鵬), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ishiura (石浦), Kagayaki (輝), Kotoeko, Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Kotoyuki, Kyushu Basho 2019, Meisei, Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Myogiryu (妙義龍), 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), Takanosho, Takarafuji (宝富士), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Terutsuyoshi, Tsurugisho, Yutakayama, Ōnoshō (阿武咲) , , , , , , ,

There was some first-rate sumo today, and as expected the match between Takakeisho and Hokutofuji was the barn-burner highlight of the day. But Mitakeumi also seems to be shaking off the fog of his earlier concussion, and getting closer to normal fighting form. Plus great moves from Shohozan as he shifts gears and decides that while hitting his opponent is fun and good cardio, sometimes you just need to give the other guy a brutal battle hug.

Highlight Matches

Tochiozan defeats Daishomaru – Welcome back Tochiozan, you can see the experience he brings to the dohyo giving him the edge in controlling this match. Take a look at who holds the center of the dohyo for most of the match. Tochiozan has solid offense, but his defense was nearly unassailable today.

Terutsuyoshi defeats Ishiura – Terutsuyoshi drove harder into the tachiai, and Ishiura was unhappy with his resulting hand placement. As he moved to get better position, Terutsuyoshi advanced with strength and was the winner. Ishiura had solid defensive footing, but Terutsuyoshi showed a lot of strength today, and kept low.

Shodai defeats Daishoho – Hey, Shodai had a half decent tachiai today! He had both hands inside within a blink of an eye, and advanced. Daishoho had no answer and took the loss after it was clear he was beaten. Not sure what injury is plaguing Daishoho, but he may be an early favorite for the barge of the damned headed to Juryo.

Kagayaki defeats Shimanoumi – I love that Kagayaki is getting comfortable fighting, and now winning chest to chest with his opponent. His oshi-zumo form has been pretty good, but if he can get even a few solid yotsu moves in his toolkit, I predict he will frequent higher spots on the banzuke. I always preach that his fundaments are very good, and you can see them on display. His upper body is a bit awkward, but his defensive foot placement is excellent. I love how low he keeps his feet as he steps forward. That man can transmit power to ground.

Takanosho defeats Yutakayama – Takanosho exceeded my expectations today, his tachiai took him inside, and he did not waste a moment of his superior position. Yutakayama had a good defense ready, but Takanosho was able to pin Yutakayama’s right arm against his body, and lift Yutakayama as he advanced. Unable to generate much forward pressure to counter Takanosho’s attack, Yutakayama stepped out and took the loss.

Sadanoumi defeats Chiyotairyu – Wow! Look at that tachiai from Chiyotairyu. But even more impressive is Sadanoumi skids to a halt and drops immediately into attack position as Chiyotairyu rushes in. With an opponent like Chiyotairyu lumbering into him, Sadanoumi absorbs the second hit and rolls to his right, and no force on earth can slow Chiyotairyu’s advance. Down he goes. Great defensive gambit and execution by Sadanoumi today.

Kotoeko defeats Nishikigi – Kotoeko seems to finally be on a rally, and I am happy to see him fighting well at last. Nishikigi owned the first part of this match, and Kotoeko put all of his strength into slowing down Nishikigi’s attack, and keeping his feet in the ring, waiting for his chance. That chance came soon enough, as Nishikigi surged to finish Kotoeko, but Kotoeko evaded and send Nishikigi out. Defensive sumo done well, and a well earned win for Kotoeko.

Chiyomaru defeats Tsurugisho – I suspect the matta disrupted Tsurugisho’s battle plan, as the second attempt at the tachiai was all Chiyomaru.

Enho defeats Kotoshogiku – Watching Enho busily harry Kotoshogiku was kind of a wonder. I would guess that Enho was executing 2 moves to every 1 of Kotoshogiku, and it completely overwhelmed the former Ozeki. In typical Enho style, he grabs any stray body part that is closest to him and starts tugging with enthusiasm. Much like some over amorous terrier addressing your leg, the immediate reaction is “get that thing off of me!”. During this visceral, human reaction, Enho merrily defeats you. You can’t be too upset about it either, because let’s face it – he’s adorable.

Shohozan defeats Onosho – Wow! Big Guns starts his day with rapid fire double hand face massage to Onosho, and scales it up to volleys of haymakers to Onosho’s enormous head. In self-defense, Onosho closes the distance and goes chest to chest. Ever the full-service opponent, Shohozan obliges and gives Onosho a jolly heave-ho via an expertly delivered uwatenage, with a spicy leg lift to give it an extra flair. Great match.

Aoiyama defeats Takarafuji – As happens most times these two match, Takarafuji suffers terribly and gets a trip to the clay at the hands of Big Dan and the V-Twin attack.

Meisei defeats Myogiryu – Meisei expertly deployed a hard tachiai, a quick thrust combo into a side step at Myogiryu charged to take advantage. Exquisitely timed by Meisei.

Asanoyama defeats Daieisho – Daieisho tends to dominate his matches with Asanoyama, I think in part because Daieisho can really move hard into the tachiai. Today Asanoyama was able to get a workable outside grip and focused on getting Daieisho off balance, and succeeded. Asanoyama stays 1 behind Hakuho.

Okinoumi defeats Endo – Another great match, both of these rikishi are master technicians, and they brought out their extensive sumo toolboxes today, and put it all into the match. Feel free to watch it a few times, because it’s a guidebook on attack, counter-attack and improvisation.

Abi defeats Ryuden – As predicted, Ryuden was struggling, and by the time Abi landed the second volley, he was completely disrupted and headed for the clay. You can see him using his best counter-attack strategy, lifting Abi’s elbows from underneath. This has managed to shut down Abi-zumo a couple of times, but Ryuden can’t make it stick today.

Mitakeumi defeats Tamawashi – Mitakeumi expertly closed the distance to Tamawashi, and used his massive body as both a shield and a plow to contain and eject Tamawashi. Given that Mitakeumi still seems to be suffering from the effects of that blow to the head, this was a simple, and quite effective plan.

Takakeisho defeats Hokutofuji – We thought this might be a barn-burner, and indeed it set the dohyo on fire. Both men through everything they could muster into this fight, and I was quite impressed by Hokutofuji’s speed and combination attacks. Takakeisho knew he could not out-reach the Komusubi, or out maneuver him, but focused on what he does best, overwhelming force applied center mass. Hokutofuji landed solidly, but left his chest wide open. Good match, and I dare say that we sumo fans can look forward to these matches for years to come.

Hakuho defeats Kotoyuki – Points to Kotoyuki for taking the fight to Hakuho, but The Boss is not even susceptible to this kind of sumo. Right now The Boss looks a bit bored. Sadly none of his usual challenges are around this November.

Kyushu Day 9 Preview

Bruce H Abi (阿炎), Aoiyama, Asanoyama (朝乃山), Chiyomaru, Chiyotairyū (千代大龍), Daieisho (大栄翔), Daishoho, Daishomaru, Endo (遠藤), Enho, Hakuho (白鵬), Hokutōfuji (北勝富士), Ishiura (石浦), Kagayaki (輝), Kotoeko, Kotoshogiku (琴奨菊), Kotoyuki, Kyushu Basho 2019, Meisei, Mitakeumi(御嶽海), Myogiryu (妙義龍), 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), Takanosho, Takarafuji (宝富士), Tamawashi (玉鷲), Terutsuyoshi, Tsurugisho, Yutakayama, Ōnoshō (阿武咲)

Day 8 was a day of surprises and the unusual. While I am sad that Takayasu went kyujo, I am happy to see that there is still great sumo to be enjoyed. That extends to day 9, where the scheduling team is doing their best to bring us fantastic matches every day.

The late kyujo from Takayasu caused all manner of shuffling in the fight card, forcing them to re-build the match list after it had already been announced. This extended down the banzuke as suddenly talent was needed to move higher to fill the imbalance.

Kyushu Leaderboard

A number of rikishi took the exit ramp from the leaderboard on day 8, but Asanoyama stays in the hunt. Though Hakuho has beaten him already, he has the size and the sumo to challenge the Yokozuna, should it ever get to that. But first someone else has to get Hakuho dirty.

Leader: Hakuho
Chasers: Asanoyama, Kagayaki
Hunt Group: Takakeisho, Daieisho, Tsurugisho, Shohozan, Sadanoumi, Yutakayama, Shodai ,Chiyotairyu, Chiyomaru

7 Matches Remain

What We Are Watching Day 9

Daishomaru vs Tochiozan – Welcome back Tochiozan! He returns to the top division to provide an opponent for the first match in day 9, and we get a peek at how he’s faring. Given that he Tochiozan seems to be on a kachi-koshi path, it’s quite possible he may return to the top division (hopefully with Ikioi) in January.

Ishiura vs Terutsuyoshi – Looking for this to be a great match. Both are quite handy with a henka, but I would love to see them both go at it full-throttle. After Ishiura’s wonderful winning move day 8, I have to re-assess what he is capable of. Simply put, I have hope that he’s got upside potential.

Daishoho vs Shodai – First match ever between these two, and I am looking for Shodai to run up the score. With any luck he can be mid-Maegashira for January, which I think is a better rank for him than M10W. Daishoho seems to not have his body or his sumo in order, and is having a miserable tournament.

Shimanoumi vs Kagayaki – Demon Kaka’s favorite, Kagayaki, holds on to a slot 1 behind The Boss in the race for the cup. He’s going up against the compact and powerful Shimanoumi on day 9, and we will see if Kagayaki’s solid sumo fundamentals can keep him in the hunt.

Takanosho vs Yutakayama – I know there were some fans who complained about Yutakayama’s handling of his day 8 Enho match, but I loved it. Coming up against Takanosho, he’s instead facing a strong, straight ahead sumo practitioner. So I doubt we will see him trying to keep his distance at the tachiai. I am still looking for Yutakayama to get his 8, but no likely to go to 9. He’s a favorite for the lower edge of the joi-jin for January.

Chiyotairyu vs Sadanoumi – These two are evenly matched, despite their vast difference in size. Sadanoumi likes to wrap and contain his opponents, and it’s been working well this tournament. But recently, Chiyotairyu has re-discovered his chest to chest sumo, and has been using it to win. This match does indeed have potential.

Nishikigi vs Kotoeko – Nishikigi has lacked the force needed to go from fighting well to winning. This was true for Kotoeko for the first 4 days of the basho, but he has won 3 of the last 4, and I think he’s finally dialed-in to his sumo.

Tsurugisho vs Chiyomaru – A pair of 5-3 rikishi meet to knock one out of the hunt group. I strongly favor big Tsurugisho in this one over even bigger Chiyomaru. Tsurugisho seems to be in fighting shape now, and moving very well. Tsurugisho also has a 6-1 career advantage.

Kotoshogiku vs Enho – Total clash of styles, and it’s going to be a shame to see the power-pixie completely disrupt and defeat former Ozeki Kotoshogiku. This November, he’s looking more damaged and degraded than ever. It’s a bit of a heartbreak for some sumo fans.

Onosho vs Shohozan – Shohozan is in good form, and seems unworried about engaging anyone in a slapping match. This is probably going to be quite effective against Onosho, as he continues to show poor balance.

Takarafuji vs Aoiyama – Takarafuji tends to operate by closing in on his opponent and tangling them up. This is contrary to Aoiyama’s preferred approach of beating his opponents into submission from about one giant meaty arm’s length. Hence he holds an 18-3 career record over the Isegahama man.

Myogiryu vs Meisei – With these two, it will come down to inside position at the tachiai. Whomever can claim it and get in the first volley, should win the match. Possibly even on the first volley. Both of these rikishi are compact and strong, and one of them usually goes flying in the first couple of seconds.

Daieisho vs Asanoyama – Daieisho is Asanoyama’s foil. Holding a 7-1 career advantage over the Natsu yusho winner, he seems to be able to deliver a beat down on Asanoyama any time they meet. This is a big deal because a loss today would likely punt him out of the group 1 behind Hakuho.

Okinoumi vs Endo – Two high skill, technique-rich rikishi facing off. I suspect that Okinoumi is once again plagued by a recurring injury that knocks about 20% off of his sumo. But we may see some great moves and counter moves in this match. As always, watch for Endo’s shallow grip straight out of the tachiai. His technique for this is fantastic.

Abi vs Ryuden – I am going to look for Ryuden to generate 1-2 matta today, in order to try and disrupt Abi’s launch sequence. This is really his best hope, as once Abi connects with those long arms, you have just a few seconds to disrupt him. Ryuden has shown in the past that he can do this, but he has to get there before the second volley or its too late.

Mitakeumi vs Tamawashi – In his discombobulated state, I don’t give Mitakeumi too much bias over his long time Sekiwake rival, Tamawashi. Although he holds a 19-2 career record, Mitakeumi has been fighting poorly since he took a blow to the head on day 3. Stay safe guys!

Takakeisho vs Hokutofuji – For me, this is the big match of the day. We know that Hokutofuji will try to set up a nodowa or an armpit grip against the Tadpole Ozeki, but he’s got to hold on once the waves hit. Hokutofuji has almost uncanny balance at times, so he can in fact whether a few of these blasts. Should be fun to watch.

Kotoyuki vs Hakuho – Hakuho will be sending the Penguin air express back to the east side in short order, I expect. Although Kotoyuki is fighting better than he has in years, I think he’s not quite up to beating The Boss.

Kyushu 2019, Day 8, Bouts From The Lower Divisions

Herouth Kyushu Basho 2019 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

It’s nakabi, the middle day, which means more rikishi who may get a 4-0 kachi-koshi, or a 0-4 make-koshi.

Unfortunately, it’s also a Sunday, which means most of my usual sources are low on content. So this post is going to be somewhat shorter than you’re used to.

Continue reading →

Kyushu Storylines, Nakabi

lksumo Kyushu Basho 2019

We’ve reached nakabi, the middle Sunday of the tournament, halfway on the journey from shonichi to senshuraku. Let’s check in and see how things have evolved from a few days ago.

The yusho race

Yokozuna Hakuho is the sole leader at 7-1. He is also rapidly running out of credible opponents—the only rikishi in the named ranks still in the tournament that he hasn’t faced are Ozeki Takakeisho, Sekiwake Mitakeumi, and the Komusubi duo of Abi and Endo. The Yokozuna’s record against this group is 24-4. Tomorrow, Hakuho is matched with M4w Kotoyuki, likely followed by M5e Aoiyama and M5w Ryuden; against these maegashira opponents, he is undefeated in 24 tries.

One off the lead are Komusubi Asanoyama and, somewhat improbably, M13 Kagayaki. Nine rikishi stand one win further back at 5-3, most notably Takakeisho and M1e Daieisho. And then we have a whopping 14 men whose records are even at 4-4, and whose fate will be decided in the final week. Note that this is fully 1/3 of the top division, and 40% of those still competing.

The Ozeki and aspiring Ozeki

As Bruce has described, this group is a mess, and it looks like we’ll end up with the under on my over/under line of 2.5 Ozeki at Hatsu. We already knew that Tochinoshin’s injury ended his hopes of regaining the rank, and now it looks like a near-certainty that Takayasu’s injury woes will cost him his. Even if he can return after today’s fusen loss and tomorrow’s absence from the torikumi, the kadoban Ozeki would need to pick up 5 victories in at most 6 days, and against the toughest part of his fight card this seems exceedingly unlikely. Takayasu’s best hope is to try to heal up and get his 10 in January, which frankly would have been the right call instead of entering this basho.

The Ozeki hopeful Mitakeumi’s chances of promotion are almost certainly gone after a 4-4 start, and he can probably afford only one more loss if he is to keep the Ozeki run going into Hatsu. With Goeido absent and kadoban for January, it says something that still-recovering Takakeisho (5-3) is the last man standing with a good shot at being a “regular” Ozeki on the next banzuke.

The San’yaku ranks

At the moment, 5 of the 6 incumbents are holding serve: the aforementioned Mitakeumi and all four Komusubi: Abi (4-4), Endo (4-4), Hokutofuji (4-4) and Asanoyama (6-2). The latter has the inside lane for promotion to Sekiwake. And M1e Daieisho (5-3) could make things crowded for the second-straight basho by finishing with a winning record; we now have a clear precedent that he should be promoted with 9 wins, even if no “regular” slot opens up.

Demotion danger

First, the absent injured: Ichinojo and Wakatakakage are set to be demoted to Juryo for Hatsu, and Tomokaze may or may not join them depending on how the rest of the demotion/promotion picture looks by the end of the basho. Among those competing, the deepest hole belongs to M15w Daishoho (2-6), who needs 6 victories in the remaining 7 days to be safe, and 5 to have any chance of escaping demotion. He is followed closely in the demotion queue by M14w Nishikigi (2-6) and M15e Daishomary (3-5). Others with work left to do include Terutsuyoshi, Kotoshogiku (!!), Takanosho, Shimanoumi, Chiyomaru, and Ishiura.

And for once, Juryo may produce a long list of deserving promotion contenders. These are led by J3 Ikioi (7-1) and also include J1 Azumaryu (5-3), J2 Tochiozan (5-3), J5 Kaisei (6-2) and J5 Kiribayama (6-2). Only the last of these would be making his Makuuchi debut, as most of the others are long-time top-division regulars seeking a return.