Hatsu Basho is long over and Haru Basho is still a month away (March 10) but there is still plenty of sumo news to report this weekend. And nothing else beyond these few news items. There is absolutely nothing else in the World of Sports going on this weekend. I am sure you all will be at work tomorrow, well-rested and fresh as daisies.
NHK Charity Event
On Saturday, Kokugikan hosted the NHK’s annual charity sumo event. Along with the usual Jungyo-style sumo bouts, rikishi interviews and question corner, Yokozuna belt-tying, as well as taiko drum, jinku and shokkiri performances, the NHK has celebrities sing with rikishi in a star-studded affair. The NHK sets up a stage behind the dohyo for the rikishi to join the celebrities in singing pop and enka songs, like having a giant karaoke box.
Hoshoryu wins Fuji TV Tournament
On Sunday, Kokugikan hosted the 48th edition of Fuji TV’s annual sumo tournament. There are really two tournaments: Juryo first, then Makuuchi. It is a one-day, single-elimination-style tournament. One of the special things about this tournament is that we can often see bouts between stablemates and brothers, which are only possible in yusho playoffs during hon-basho.
For instance, a few years ago we saw Hakuho take on Enho. At this year’s tournament, in Juryo we saw Isegahama stablemates, Nishikifuji and Takerufuji go head-to-head. In Makuuchi, Endo faced stabemate and last year’s champion, Daieisho, in the third round and Tobizaru in the fourth.
The run-of-show begins, as I mentioned, with Juryo. There’s the Juryo dohyo-iri, followed by their tournament. Next up, as a bit of an intermission, we get “OB” exhibition bouts. This was followed by the makuuchi dohyo-iri and Terunofuji’s Yokozuna dohyo-iri and then the top division tournament. Full brackets are available here.
Aside
Before getting to the tournament action, I wanted to bring up the OB bouts, in particular. This year we had two fights between recently retired sekitori: Ishiura defeated Chiyonokuni and Tokushoryu forced out Tochiozan. I was especially happy that Tokushoryu was able to take part — and that he won his bout. I hope he stays in it for the long haul.
Many of you likely saw “Sad Toku” during Hatsu Basho. This clip of Tokushoryu in the blue-jacket brigade is yet another one of those great endearing sumo moments. As the Makuuchi wrestlers silently file past for the dohyo-iri, you just get this powerful sense that he misses being one of them and wants to get back out there. The subtle acknowledgement from the rikishi as they pass, hit him hard. And that in turn hit me, the viewer, hard.
Obviously, he was the famous maku-jiri yusho but he could not really establish himself as a top-division regular and slowly sank into Juryo, and then Makushita, before hanging up his mawashi for good in 2023. So for two years, he was a world away from “Prime Time” sumo but still hungry. And he has probably been fighting off some of the talk that his yusho was an accident, or somehow unworthy. There might even be lingering desire to prove them wrong. Or maybe he just dropped his churro…I don’t know.
Tournament Brief
In Juryo, Chiyoshoma prevailed in the three-way playoff with Oshoma and Daishoho. Keep this in mind: Chiyoshoma won the Juryo yusho. And he did it without a henka. So, let’s see what the action was like in Makuuchi.
Hoshoryu beat Hiradoumi for the top division yusho with a bit of a henka, which seemed to be his strategy this tournament. His quick sidestep at the tachiai gave him access to Hiradoumi’s belt and he yanked him forward for the win. He had henka’d Takayasu in the fourth round.
Abi had also henka’d Ura in the fourth round to set up a semifinal bout with Hoshoryu. Hoshoryu side-stepped Abi to make it to the final. Hiradoumi defeated Endo in the other semifinal via yorikiri but may not have been watching Hoshoryu’s bouts to see just how henka-happy Hoshoryu had been. Though he missed out on the yusho, Hiradoumi did get to claim a Fighting Spirit Prize, though.
Ichinojo Danpatsushiki
Ichinojo had his self-organized danpatsushiki last night. You may remember that due to his estrangement from Minato-oyakata and the testy relationship with the Kyokai, the former sekiwake and top division yusho winner was not going to have his retirement ceremony at Kokugikan. Instead, he organized his own ceremony at a local hotel.
Many Mongolian rikishi did show up to pay their respects and help take a snip of Ichiko’s topknot. Ishiura’s father, his high school sumo coach at the infamous Tottori Johoku HS, took the final snips instead of Minato-oyakata. I would say that this moment symbolically severed his ties to the sumo world but that would not be accurate. Clearly, his ties to the Kyokai and his stable had been severed long ago. But he will always have his fans and there are clearly still some friends among current and former rikishi. As we learn more about his second career, we will post it here.
A Pair of Hakuho-Championed, Kids’ Sumo Events
On Sunday, Hakuho hosted the Dream Girls sumo tournament. You are able to watch it on YouTube, Dohyo A and Dohyo B. The competition is broken down by age group and the senior divisions have weight classes. There are some great competitors here, and some wild throws. Mostly, it was great to see so many young girls out there with obvious sumo talent and passion for the sport. My favorite bouts inevitably involved a come-from-behind win and some tawara magic.
Hakuho’s daughter competed in the first grade division, coming in second place. Oh, man. What a way to start the day, with a controversial ending to her first bout there. Honestly, there were three or four bouts there in that first grade division which could have easily been called torinaoshi. No mistake in the final, there. Her opponent had a great mae-mitsu grip, there in the front, and pulled Mayuha down.
My favorite wrestler didn’t even make it to the quarter finals but it was so close each time. The scenario was generally the same each time, one competitor forces the other to the tawara, the dohyo giwa. The competitor with inside position tries to force the other out, while the one on the outside just hangs on for dear life. Several times, including at least twice with the young Hakuho Mayuha, they appear to step out first before the opponent steps back.
Tomorrow, junior sumo is back with the boys fighting at Kokugikan in the Hakuho Cup. I will have an update later in the week with results from Monday’s wanpaku action as well as any other sumo news.
