No, I’m not talking about the bout you’re thinking of. He lost that one. As we established, sumo is not strictly about “who touched first.” I’m talking about special prizes. I think Mitakeumi should have picked up a second special prize to go along with his Outstanding Performance prize. He should have got the Gino-sho, or Technique prize. He won using eight distinct kimarite, more than any other wrestler in the July tournament. Terunofuji, who was actually awarded the prize, used five, as did Terutsuyoshi (which included ashitori and an amiuchi).
As with so many things I do lately, I’ve included a visualization to help make my point. This visualization also got me thinking about a possible new feature. What if we weight kimarite based on rarity or flashiness? Izori, for example, would be multiplied by a factor substantially higher than the humdrum yorikiri/oshidashi. This way, we at Tachiai can give an alternative special prize, one based on data.
I’m going to flesh out the details in this week and by next weekend hope to have a methodology. So while Terutsuyoshi may have used only five kimarite, maybe with the bonus factors he’d edge Mitakeumi? I still think Mitakeumi’s throws, especially the uwatenage against Asanoyama, are quality.
By the way, it’s also interesting to check out the other names up here near the top. Tamawashi’s oshi/tsuki/kotenage style is rather versatile. Hakuho, obviously, knows how to win. How’s Ura up here, though, considering he doesn’t even get half the bouts? I’m really looking forward to seeing him compete every day, and even eligible for special prizes.
