As action in that other competition heats up, our gladiators will square off this Sunday to kick off the Nagoya Basho. (I would not be surprised if a lot of sumo wrestlers are pulling for France in the World Cup. It looks like they had a lot of fun last month in Paris.)
The biggest storyline is the sudden kyujo of May’s tournament winner, Wakatakakage. He was rushed to hospital after experiencing severe pain in his thigh. He underwent surgery and we hope for a swift recovery. Thus, he is absent from the Day One match-ups. Another prolonged, multi-basho absence would be a real gut-check. He’d climbed back from the knee injury and we’d just started muttering the words, “Ozeki Run,” but now that’s gone. He will tumble into the midst of the rank-and-file for Aki, likely as far as Maegashira 10 or 11.
Hakuyozan, Juryo 13 West, will also be missing from action. He tore his achilles in June and is doubtful for a return this year. Let us hope the dohyo is suitably purified for the upcoming tournament. Matsuri broadcast will be live soon:
Welp, if you are a kadoban Ozeki, or a freshly demoted Ozeki, the Wakatakakage news is probably a welcome distraction. But let’s not forget that we will be looking for convincing performances from both Kotozakura and Aonishiki. Kotozakura will need eight wins to maintain his rank but he was not very competitive in several bouts last tournament. One feels it is a matter of time before he joins the crop of former Ozeki among the rank-and-file. He will face Takanosho on Day One. The pressure is on.
Aonishiki will need 10 wins to regain his Ozeki rank as he earned his demotion in May. Aonishiki will fight Hiradoumi on Sunday. The pressure is on.
Shall we turn to our pair of Yokozuna? Onosato was the shock kyujo from Natsu Basho with Hoshoryu pulling up lame in a disastrous tournamet start. Nevertheless, both men made the trip to Paris for the Exhibition. They returned to perform their dohyo-iri at Atsuta Jingu (above). Hoshoryu will fight his nemesis, Oho. Onosato will take on Yoshinofuji. The pressure is certainly on.
Meanwhile, Kirishima will fight Fujinokawa. Both men had a mixed-bag basho in May. A lot going for these guys but there is are certainly some faults in the armor, shall we say? Atamifuji will fight Gonoyama. Frankly, the same thing could be said of that pair. And Kotoshoho finds himself at Sekiwake, ready to battle Churanoumi. Lastly, somehow Takayasu is expected to show up and fight Wakamotoharu. Day One action might give us an early read on whether these men are “production ready.”
Apologies for the brief preview. I hope you get to watch the dohyo matsuri. As a reminder, it’s on in a few minutes.
