Nagoya Day 8 Highlights

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

For those catching up, Ozeki Goeido withdrew from Nagoya the morning of day 8, citing an injury to his right shoulder, and medical guidance to abstain from sumo for a month. While Goeido was not fighting well going into the middle weekend, his kyujo has far-reaching implications to the remainder of the tournament, which we shall detail.

Which leaves Takayasu as the final Ozeki still competing. But during his day 8 match, Takayasu appears to have injured his left elbow in his match with Tamawashi, as Tamawashi used his “arm breaker” hold that has betting so many rikishi in the past. Should Takayasu withdraw as well, we would find ourselves in a “Nozeki” situation for the first time in quite a while.

From Herouth

Who benefits the most from the culling of sumo’s second highest rank? I would say the injured Hakuho, who looked even rougher, more chaotic and maybe even desperate today in his match against Shodai. The lack of San’yaku opponents for the Yokozuna in week 2 means the schedulers will need to reach further down the banzuke for matches, and some mid-Maegashira may find themselves facing the Yokozuna. Hakuho has already had matches with both rikishi in from Maegashira 1-3, and faces Maegashira 4 Ichinojo on day 9. He has both Sekiwake, Takayasu if he stays in, and Kakuryu on the final day. But at some point he will look at his score, feel the twinge in that right arm and decide it’s time to go kyujo. I am sure given the increasing pain he suffers every day on the dohyo, he won’t have any problems finding a doctor to declare him in need of healing.

Highlight Matches

Azumaryu defeats Kotoyuki – Azumaryu, visiting from Juryo, employs a very skillful “not quite a henka” to dodge the tachiai and win over Kotoyuki.

Chiyomaru defeats Enho – Enho gets his submarine tachiai, but discovers that due to Chiyomaru’s enormous belly, there is not much he can do down there. Rather than attempt to grab a hold of Enho, Chiyomaru expertly thrusts him away, time and again. Enho can’t take much of this, and is pushed out for the loss.

Sadanoumi defeats Yago – An early thrusting battle turned into a stiff arm mawashi fight for grip. I am going to assume that Yago’s heavily bandaged knees are the source of some of the problems Yago has maintaining forward pressure. Yago moves to lift Sadanoumi, which only raises him up and leaves him exposed to Sadanoumi’s advance.

Kagayaki defeats Terutsuyoshi – Terutsuyoshi’s tachiai is excellent, and he succeeds in raising Kagayaki up, but he finds it tough to maintain traction, as by day 8 the Nagoya dohyo has started to take on its typical smooth finish. Terutsuyoshi keeps battling forward, but Kagayaki gets a hazuoshi (armpit) attack running that prevents Terutsuyoshi from doing much of anything, save a throw attempt that Kagayaki disrupts, sending Terutsuyoshi to the clay. Watch your footing out there, gentlemen.

Nishikigi defeats Kaisei – Kaisei has nothing to offer in terms of sumo right now. I think he should just take his lumps and work on recovery.

Kotoeko defeats Tochiozan – Kotoeko maintains his oshi-focus at Tochiozan’s center mass, and does not let the veteran distract him. Solid sumo from Kotoeko, who dropped 4 in a row.

Toyonoshima defeats Takagenji – I loved this match. Takagenji’s youth and vigor against Toyonoshima’s quiet strength and experience. I know that he’s executed that sukuinage thousands of time in daily practice, and once he set it up there was nothing Takagenji could do but enjoy the ride.

Myogiryu defeats Daishoho – Daishoho attempted a bit of a side step, but Myogiryu adjusted and took a hold of the Mongol and advanced for a yorikiri.

Chiyotairyu defeats Shohozan – When we previewed this match, we knew it had potential, but it went a bit odd when Shohozan tried a dramatic hopping shift to his right at the tachiai. Chiyotairyu adjusted an tried to tackle Shohozan, who caught him and now the two are chest to chest. Shohozan tried to lift and twist to set up a throw, but Chiyotairyu advanced and drove Shohozan from the ring. I enjoyed the surprises this match delivered.

Shimanoumi defeats Okinoumi – Tons of traction problems today with Okinoumi’s protected left foot sliding out from under him to enable that loss. Have to love that Nagoya dohyo.

Tomokaze defeats Kotoshogiku – I feel a bit down about a match like this. Kotoshogiku still has the speed and the skill, but is no longer strong enough to bulldoze guys like Tomokaze. In my somewhat faulty brain, as soon as he gets his arms around an opponent, I expect Kotoshogiku to just motor them off the edge. But Tomokaze is more than up to the task of shutting down the former Ozeki.

Onosho defeats Takarafuji – I am going to start being hopeful that Onosho has gotten a bit of his balance back. He certainly looked more like his former self today, completely overpowering Takarafuji.

Asanoyama defeats Endo – Beautiful sumo from Asanoyama today. That fluid “rack and roll” into the uwatenage really reminded me of Kisenosato, and brought a smile to my face.

Hokutofuji defeats Aoiyama – Not sure what they are feeding Hokutofuji right now, but please keep doing it. Aoiyama gets turned around straight from the tachiai, and Hokutofuji escorts him out. The mighty Konosuke (gyoji) barely gets out of the way as over 700 pounds of combatants come rumbling through.

Abi defeats Ryuden – We got to see some well executed Abi-zumo today, but that ending was a bit of a puzzler. Ryuden lunged to his left (where Abi was not) and stumbles out of the ring. The kimarite was listed as hikiotoshi, but I am going to assume that poor traction once again played a part in this match.

Mitakeumi defeats Ichinojo – A matta revealed that Ichinojo intended a henka against Mitakeumi, which would have been bloody glorious. But when the match finally got underway, Ichinojo struggled to contain Mitakeumi who had gotten inside at the tachiai. Once The Boulder knew the jig was up, he released pressure and stepped out.

Takayasu defeats Tamawashi – As mentioned earlier, Takayasu sustained at least a minor injury to his left elbow thanks to Tamawashi’s “arm breaker” hold that has caught many others in its painful trap. Following to elbow tweak, you can see Takayasu become enraged and just go on the attack with his one good arm.

Kakuryu defeats Daieisho – Smooth and efficient win for the Yokozuna. He is delivering the best sumo of the basho each day, and I think he is the favorite for the yusho.

Hakuho defeats Shodai – This was a running gun battle of a match, and a complete chaotic mess. While Hakuho won, it showed few marks typical of his Yokozuna sumo. For the second day in a row he ends up laying on his opponent. Shodai executed at least two really solid escapes, leaving Hakuho to try pulling him down, which worked. That expression following the win, and that glance at his right elbow tell you everything you need to know here.

Ozeki Goeido Withdraws From Nagoya Basho

Bruce H Gōeidō (豪栄道), Kyujo (休場)

In a report from Yomiuri, Ozeki Goeido has withdrawn from the Nagoya basho. As per the preview written earlier, we had assumed that he was injured, and speculated it might be the ankle that he had rebuilt a several months ago. As of this moment, we don’t have a report of the injury.

Meisei will get the funsen win, which is much needed as he came into day 8 with a 1-6 score. Meisei now improves to 2-6.

Goeido will join Tochinoshin in being kadoban for the Aki basho in September. We hope he can return to health and be in fighting form.

Nagoya Day 8 Preview

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

It’s the middle day of the glorious Nagoya tournament, and NHK World Japan will be live for the final 50 minutes of Makuuchi across their global streaming platform. Sadly I don’t think we will get to hear John Gunning, who was doing commentary with Ross Mihara for day 7, but the NHK Grand Sumo crew always do a fantastic job. If everything goes well, both Yokozuna could make kachi-koshi today, as they are unbeaten going into day 8.

Also with day 8’s preview, we take a look at the basho leader board. Act 2 is doing its job remarkably well – shaping the yusho race. There are 4 rikishi in numerical contention, with 3 actually likely to battle it out for the cup. But until someone starts putting dirt on the Yokozuna, it’s theirs to lose.

Nagoya Leaderboard

Leaders: Kakuryu, Hakuho
Chasers: Takayasu, Terutsuyoshi
Hunt Group: Mitakeumi, Ichinojo, Myogiryu, Tomokaze, Enho, Kotoyuki

8 Matches Remain

What We Are Watching Day 8

Kotoyuki vs Azumaryu – Azumaryu is up from Juryo to fill the Tochinoshin gap, and he draws against a surprisingly genki Kotoyuki who somehow is part of the leaderboard. Ok, fine – Mr 5×5, please take it into week 2. I would love to see you make a case for the cup.

Chiyomaru vs Enho – They don’t come much bigger than Chiyomaru, and they don’t come much smaller than Enho. If you wanted a bout of contrasts, here it is. Enho will need to find a way to get under that enormous belly in order to get to work.

Yago vs Sadanoumi – The series favors Sadanoumi 2-0, and Yago fans are hoping he can win his first today. I don’t have any news on what manner of malady is plaguing Yago, but it has to be something. You don’t go from a decent battler to someone squeezing by without an injury.

Terutsuyoshi vs Kagayaki – Terutsuyoshi would love to hang on to his slot in the chase group, but he has never won against Kagayaki (0-2). Kagayaki suffered a horrible case of ring rust in the first week, but seems to be back on his sumo. This will be a pivotal match.

Kaisei vs Nishikigi – Two sumo nice guys go head to head, but the outcome is fairly certain. I am sad for Kaisei. He’s hurt and not doing well, but he seems intent to solider on.

Kotoeko vs Tochiozan – Tochiozan continues to be a half step behind his normal level of sumo, and that might not be good enough to defeat Kotoeko this time around.

Toyonoshima vs Takagenji – Toyonoshima opened Nagoya losing 5 straight, and has now won the last 2. Did he learn from the prior 2 days matches against Takagenji? Lets see if Toyonoshima goes chest to chest and waits him out.

Myogiryu vs Daishoho – First time meeting between these two, but frankly I expect Myogiryu to put Daishoho without too much trouble.

Chiyotairyu vs Shohozan – Oh good, two heavily armed battle boys here to slug it out. If Shohozan can keep his balance and survive the first 10 seconds, he has a good chance of winning this one.

Okinoumi vs Shimanoumi – Another great first time match between an veteran Makuuchi mainstay who is holding his own this tournament, and a young, hard charging rikishi who seems to have some good upside potential. I give experience a small advantage here.

Kotoshogiku vs Tomokaze – Tomokaze won his first 5, and has dropped the last 2. The main weakness of his opponent today is poor strength from his lower body. If he can overpower Kotoshogiku after the tachiai, the veteran may not have enough strength to slow him down.

Onosho vs Takarafuji – I am looking for Takarafuji, who has excellent mobility, to take full advantages of Onosho’s apparent balance problems. Onosho will be well served to keep Takarafuji in front of me, and to overpower him early and keep moving him back.

Asanoyama vs Endo – Both are going to go yotsu, and it’s going to be fantastic. Endo is the far more versatile rikishi, and I expect that he will set the tone of the match. Asanoyama will try to keep it in his comfort zone, but I expect Endo to try for that shallow / mae-mitzu straight from the tachiai.

Aoiyama vs Hokutofuji – Although Hokutofuji holds a career 7-1 advantage over Aoiyama, I am expecting this to be a real brawl. Hokutofuji is looking more composed and more on point than he has in a long time, but Aoiyama has upped his sumo prior to Nagoya and is showing excellent balance and ring sense.

Abi vs Ryuden – At some point Abi-zumo is going to come roaring back, and this might be the day, as Abi holds a 3-1 career advantage over Ryuden. Ryuden has been leading with his head the past two days, and maybe that might be slowing him down.

Mitakeumi vs Ichinojo – Both are in the hunt group, both are fighting well, and both are my favorite to win this match. Mitakeumi does hold a7-4 career advantage on the Boulder.

Goeido vs Meisei – If Goeido loses to Meisei, he’s really really hurt his ankle. This is like a bait minnow you feed to your bigger, fancy fish. You feel a bit sorry for it, but you know your fish needs to eat.

Tamawashi vs Takayasu – These two used to beat each other senseless occupying the Sekiwake ranks, and their career record is 12-12. If Takayasu is going to contend for the cup, he needs this win.

Kakuryu vs Daieisho – I am expecting a straight-forward win for the Yokozuna.

Shodai vs Hakuho – Given how much I deride Shodai, you would think I am going to make some quip about The Boss catapulting him back to toon town. But this is a very serious, very important match that I think is a must-win for Hakuho. Not only because he wants “yet another yusho”, but I think he may be near the limit of what his body can support for this basho. He needs his 8th win before he starts knocking heads against Takayasu, Mitakeumi and Tamawashi. So he’s got to beat Shodai, and I expect him to use every psych-out and mind game in his considerable arsenal to make sure Shodai defeats himself before the tachiai. Bonus points to Kakuryu if he can give his tachi-moshi one hell of a pep talk today.

Bouts From the Lower Divisions – Day 7

Herouth Nagoya Basho 2019 , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Kiribayama vs. Akiseyama

We start with a look at the Naruto beya guys down at Jonokuchi. I have three of them today for you, all at 3-0 at the start of the day.

We have seen Marusho yesterday,. Here he is again on the left, facing Shimakaze from Oguruma beya on the right.

Blink and you have missed it. 4-0. Kachi koshi.

We have also met Motobayashi. Here on the left, facing Tomiyutaka from Tokitsukaze beya on the right:

Moving forward like a road roller, Motobayashi is also 4-0 and kachi-koshi.

The third one is Sakurai, attacking from the right this time, vs. Garyu from Futagoyama beya:

I’m guessing the huge brace on the man’s leg at such an early stage in his career is something he brought from home (he is 22 years old), but it’s clear he also brought some sumo skills with him. Again, 4-0 and a kachi-koshi.

In fact, these three and one non-Naruto make up the leading pack of Jonokuchi, with Mishima, their heya mate, having his fourth bout in a few hours, hoping to join them there. Mishima is, in fact, going to wrestle with a 2-1 opponent, as the division ran out of potential 3-0. These guys can’t be matched against each other until the yusho playoffs, so if they keep winning, there is a distinct possibility of a big, fat, four-way playoff between members of the same heya at Jonokuchi. I bet that will draw some press to a normally forgotten division in senshuraku. I’m guessing the torikumi guys will start matching them against Jonidan wrestlers at some point to try to cull that down a bit.

Jonidan

Continuing our watch of Crew-Cut-Roman, here is the trimmed Tatsunami man on the right, facing Kiyota from Dewanoumi beya on the left. Both 3-0:

This time Roman’s skills fell a little short – see what I did there? – and Kiyota is the one stepping away with a kachi-koshi. Kiyota is 15 years old, it’s merely his second ranked tournament. He was a meh 4-3 in the previous tournament, but he actually looks like an interesting wrestler.

Another one we have been following through Jonidan is Kitanowaka, Prince Charming from Hakkaku beya. Here on the left, he faces Tokisakae on the right:

Tokisakae gets the kachi koshi. Kitanowaka suffers his first loss, and will not take the Jonidan yusho. Tokisakae had him in a morozashi he really didn’t know how to solve.

Sandanme

My only contribution from Sandanme today is Tachiai’s favorite Texan, other than Bruce, of course. Wakaichiro on the left is going against Narumi from Onomatsu beya on the right. Both 2-1 before this match.

Alas, though Wakaichiro was in control of most of the match, Narumi turns the tables on him at the end, and the boy from Texas is now 2-2.

Makushita

Shiraishi, the henka man from Tamanoi beya, seems to have suffered some sort of shoulder injury since his last match. He is here on the left, facing Hatooka from Kise beya on the left. If the name sounds familiar, it’s probably because he won the Jonokuchi yusho last Kyushu, followed immediately with the Jonidan yusho this Hatsu.

Hatooka is kachi-koshi, and that injury seems to have been exacerbated in this bout. Ouch. Shiraishi will have to fight for his kachi-koshi through increasing pain.

Next up, Midorifuji, the Isegahama deputy pixie, who is tsukebito to the head pixie Terutsuyoshi. He attacks from the right, and Daishoryu from Oitekaze attacks from the left. This, too, is a 3-0 bout.

Midori does the push-me-pull-you dance, and gets his kachi-koshi. In fact, Terutsuyoshi has three tsukebito – Midorifuji, Hikarifuji and Isamufuji – and all of them won their bouts today, which is a rare event, as it turns out. He said that he felt pressure when he got up to his own match: “Imagine how it would feel if I were to be the only one in the car heading back home who had a loss today?”. He saved himself that humiliation with that, ahem, henka today, and there was much rejoicing in the “Team Terutsuyoshi” car.

Next up, we have two of our objects of attention facing each other today. On the left, we have Akua from Tatsunami beya. On the right, Kototebakari from Sadogatake.

Although Kototebakari opens aggressively, Akua twists around in a way that renders his attack ineffective, and then starts chasing him around. Akua is the one with the kachi-koshi and a leg in the yusho race, and Kototebakari is out.

Juryo

I would be remiss if I didn’t bring you footage of this rare event: Ikioi winning his first match of the basho.

Yes, Ikioi is now 1-6, somehow scraping that win off of Kizakiumi, who may have been still celebrating his win against Hoshoryu of yesterday.

Finally, my new Juryo favorite, who keeps evoking memories of Harumafuji – Kiribayama, Michinoku beya’s Mongolian sekitori. Here on the right, he faces our friend Akiseyama:

This is a nice match, but Kiribayama is in fact 4-3. His hoshitori (win/loss standing, depicted as white and black stars respectively) looks like this:

◦•◦•◦•◦

There is a term for this kind of win-lose-win-lose hoshitori: “Nukenuke”.