ichimon

The Oyakata Reassignment Thought Experiment

Josh K Nihon Sumo Kyokai, Oyakata, Scandal, Stables (Heya) , , , , , , ,

The venerable John Gunning dropped a banger in the Japan Times last week, discussing the fallout of the Hokuseiho bullying scandal and the Miyagino beya caretaker drama. Developments in the latter story have seen the public and media barred from the training facilities at the heya’s Osaka lodgings, as new temporary boss Tamagaki tries to steady the ship.

Tamagaki is the former Komusubi Tomonohana, and has been drafted in from Oshima beya to restore the viability of the troubled stable. In his article, Gunning expands on a point that frequent Tachiai reader/commenter/participant Asashosakari and I were discussing recently on Sumo Forum, that one of the issues that could be contributing to problems at heya that lack oversight is the wildly uneven distribution of oyakata at stables in the Kyokai:

“Despite there being 105 elder name shares in the JSA, and (currently) just 45 stables, the distribution of the former among the latter is far from even. Musashigawa stable for example has 14 wrestlers and just one elder… while in Kasugano stable, seven former top division men supervise 16 wrestlers. A more even apportioning of that experience and wisdom would go a long way toward preventing situations where immature 21- and 22-year-old wrestlers are left in control of groups of teenagers.” – John Gunning, The Japan Times

Now, before the conspiracy theorists start furiously pounding away at their keyboards, John and I have been seen in the same place at the same time, I couldn’t tell you anything about hurling and the only feelings I have for Manchester United are occasionally pity or loathing. But he is onto something and it’s rather in line with this excerpt from my Forum contribution:

“Another thing that hasn’t come up here is Takashima’s defection from Miyagino to Isenoumi a couple years ago. I don’t know if the real reason for this ever cropped up, and maybe he just didn’t want to be a part of what Hakuho was going to build, but you’d think that having a veteran presence at the heya (ie adult in the room) would help to hopefully mitigate some situations.

It seems absolutely nuts that Kasugano and Isenoumi account for 10% of all elder shares between just the two heya, and Kasugano has another 3 official staffers.

Now that everyone can be a sanyo, a good use of the role would be using their time to support new oyakata to help them develop. I could be wrong but newer shisho who have a sanyo or very senior oyakata in the backroom team (ie Oshima when he was Tomozuna, Ikazuchi with Irumagawa, Hanaregoma with Minatogawa, Oshiogawa with Oguruma, etc.) seem to have had it pretty smooth sailing so far.”

Before you make the point, I know, quoting yourself is weird and should be reserved for self-help and wellness influencers who repost their tweets on their main Instagram feed. But I digress.

I actually don’t believe heya consolidation is the answer, because while it potentially solves one problem it creates another issue in terms potentially pushing the declining rate of recruiting even further. But I do think a realignment of oyakata – and especially sanyo – makes a ton of sense.

Gunning points out a number of issues that would be caused by migration of oyakata, all of which are valid and you should go read the article. For the purposes of this thought exercise, let’s set up some ground rules:

  • No oyakata leave their existing ichimon (keeps power balance the same as it is now), with one exception
  • Prioritise support for new shisho (who inherited or opened stables in the last 5 years) by experienced oyakata and sanyo
  • Don’t move oyakata to experienced single shisho if a better option exists
  • Try to keep sub-family alignments in order to preserve culture (ie, among stables which branched from or share affiliations with other heya within the larger ichimon)
  • We will ignore the geographical locations of the heya. Obviously, in real life it would be a big deal for an oyakata based in the south of Tokyo to move to, for example, Chiba or Ibaraki prefectures. I think it’s difficult to do this as a thought experiment and consider the personal circumstances of people we don’t know all that much about.

Takasago Ichimon

  • Jinmaku (ex-Fujinoshin, 63) moves to Takasago from Hakkaku

Just one move here. I toyed with moving Tanigawa to Nishikido beya, as he’s spent 13 years coaching first at Hakkaku and then Kokonoe and is the best candidate to assume a heya. But Kokonoe has 25 rikishi and probably needs all four coaches. While Nishikido beya has been more or less dead since its own scandal(s) and has no one to inherit it, you can always move someone in closer to the time that the current shisho is ready to go.

So, the move that I did make is the soon-to-retire Jinmaku. Hakkaku beya has 18 rikishi, but in addition to the chairman of the association it’s also coached by a former shisho in Azumazeki and a future one in Kimigahama (Okinoumi).  Takasago-beya, meanwhile, has 24 rikishi of its own, but only two coaches at present and the shisho is one of the youngest and least experienced in the Kyokai with only 3 years as a coach before taking over as stable master amidst a scandal. While Wakamatsu (former Asanowaka) is also there, this provides a much better balance.

Tokitsukaze Ichimon

  • Kagamiyama (ex-Tagaryu, 66) moves to Arashio from Isenoumi
  • Michinoku (ex-Kirishima, 65) and Tatsutayama (ex-Sasshunnada, 66) move to Otowayama from Michinoku
  • Urakaze (ex-Shikishima, 53) moves to Arashio from Michinoku
  • Katsunoura (ex-Kirinishiki, 61) moves to Oitekaze from Isenoumi
  • Takashima (ex-Koboyama, 66) moves to Isegahama ichimon from Isenoumi

As referenced above, Isenoumi beya has 7 coaches for 15 rikishi, which is absolutely ridiculous. Let’s keep the former Oikari, Ikioi and Tosanoumi all in the heya with the shisho, as they were all Isenoumi-beya products. Kagamiyama recently shut down a basically dead heya and migrated to Isenoumi, and as a sanyo his services are better utilised with the relatively inexperienced Arashio oyakata, who has produced multiple sekitori and also seems to be an active recruiter.

Oitekaze oyakata is vastly experienced, but he has 20 rikishi that he oversees himself. Katsunoura is older than him, but by the time he reaches the mandatory retirement age, one of Oitekaze beya’s vast number of sekitori will be ready to take their steps into coaching anyway, so this can be a temporary move.

The other departure from Isenoumi beya will be Takashima. Whatever his reasons were for leaving Miyagino beya, he should certainly never have been allowed to take a fairly prestigious name out of that ichimon to go to a stable that was already overloaded with coaches, especially given the greater need for that share in Isegahama ichimon in future. It may be coincidental that Hokuseiho’s reign of terror is said to have begun in the summer of 2022, which is exactly when Takashima left Miyagino-beya.

Tatsutayama is formerly of Izutsu beya, so that’s why I found the fit for him as a sanyo who can provide senior support in Kakuryu’s new Otowayama beya. Finally, Michinoku beya closes in April and it’s said the rikishi will have their choice of stables to join within the ichimon. Word on the street is that Michinoku’s Ozeki and shisho will join up with Kakuryu, but there’s no reason for four coaches there so we’ll send Urakaze to Arashio beya.

Isegahama Ichimon

  • Takashima (ex-Koboyama, 66) moves to Ajigawa from Isenoumi

This is a tough one to project, as we have the ongoing Hakuho disciplinary issues, as well as a handful of potential names that may be needed soon.

There’s going to be a serious kabu crunch here soon, as Takarafuji and Terunofuji probably aren’t that long for the mawashi, and Isegahama is going to need to hand over his stable next year. So, we’re bringing the Takashima kabu back into the family where it should have stayed, and we’ll put him as a mentor to Ajigawa for the time being.

Every other shisho in the ichimon has a partner except for Asahiyama, who is much more experienced and also has quite a small heya of rikishi who are similar in rank. We’ll leave things as they are with respect to Tamagaki and Miyagino beya for now, as that situation will resolve itself shortly anyway.

Nishonoseki Ichimon

  • Kumegawa (ex-Kotoinazuma, 61) moves to Naruto from Sadogatake
  • Minatogawa (ex-Daitetsu, 63) moves to Nishonoseki from Hanaregoma
  • Minezaki (ex-Misugiiso, 67) moves to Shikoroyama from Shibatayama
  • Shiratama (ex-Kototsubaki, 63) accompanies Hidenoyama when the heya branches out from Sadogatake
  • Merge Otake beya into Minato beya when it probably closes next year

There aren’t many stables with a surplus of coaches in this large ichimon, apart from Sadogatake which will soon lose Hidenoyama oyakata to a branch-out. We also don’t want to deplete Sadogatake beya too much, because with 24 rikishi it’s easily one of the biggest heya in the sport.

So I’ve made five recommendations here, in an attempt to exercise restraint. Shibatayama beya, with just eight rikishi and a very senior shisho, doesn’t feel like the best home for a sanyo like Minezaki, a former stable master in his own right, despite their long standing connection. So, I’ve sent him to support ex-Homasho at Shikoroyama-beya where he is the new shisho following the former Terao’s passing. Homasho has plenty of seasoning as a coach, but as a large stable which has had some issues in the past, a veteran oyakata seems better placed to assist there.

Sadogatake beya ultimately gets its allocation reduced by half here, as the very senior Shiratama could accompany Hidenoyama upon his branch-out to offer senior support. Hidenoyama, presumably, will be slightly reducing the overall number of deshi at Sadogatake when he leaves, anyway. We’ll also send Kumegawa oyakata to Naruto beya, to offer support to an oyakata who has shown tremendous scouting and recruiting prowess but whose rikishi have suffered plenty of issues on and off the dohyo.

Hanaregoma beya, with just nine rikishi, probably isn’t the best home for three oyakata, including the very senior Minatogawa. As a former Nishonoseki man himself, we’ll send him to assist ex-Kisenosato, who is the youngest shisho in the Kyokai and with one of the largest heya, thanks to the deshi brought by his deputy Nakamura (ex-Yoshikaze). But in an effort to avoid the Hakuho scenario, sticking a veteran presence in a very junior heya might be helpful, even if temporarily.

Finally, Otake beya will probably close next year. If the oyakata intends to continue as sanyo (provided the Kyokai is open to it), it might make sense to send him to Minato beya where there have been some behind-the-scenes issues in recent years in an attempt to lend some additional stability.

Dewanoumi Ichimon

  • Wakafuji (ex-Otsukasa, 53) to Shikihide from Kise
  • Nishikijima (ex-Shotenro, 42) to Futagoyama from Fujishima
  • Sekinoto (ex-Iwakiyama, 48) to Takekuma from Sakaigawa
  • Dekiyama (ex-Hochiyama, 42) to Musashigawa from Sakaigawa
  • Mihogaseki (ex-Tochisakae, 50) to Tatsunami from Kasugano
  • Iwatomo (ex-Kimurayama, 42) to Tamanoi from Kasugano

Some of these moves were obvious and some were less obvious, and in the end I decided to be somewhat conservative rather than doing anything radical. Each of these moves adds an oyakata to a single-oyakata stable.

Wakafuji’s move to Kise always seemed a little bit weird. The heya has a few other oyakata, none of whom really made sense to move (Futeno might ultimately be the successor and seems to have worked closely with many of the sekitori, while Tokushoryu and especially Akiseyama may only be in situ temporarily, depending on Shimanoumi’s situation). In any case, another veteran presence at a Shikihide beya which has had some internal issues in the past few years seems prudent.

Nishikijima was the only oyakata that seemed to make sense to move to Futagoyama, as all of the other Fujishima beya oyakata would be senior to a shisho who by now has some decent experience. On the flip side, Takekuma is a brand new heya and it seems prudent to stick a senior oyakata from the parent heya with the former Goeido, who is one of the youngest stablemasters in the Kyokai.

I pulled another oyakata out of Sakaigawa beya as well, with Dekiyama going to Musashigawa beya. This was an imperfect fit, but I felt better about pulling from Sakaigawa (itself, like the original Musashigawa, branched from Dewanoumi beya) rather than Kasugano beya for two reasons: 1) Sadanoumi and Myogiryu – who may well be the eventual successor – are both soon to retire, potentially giving the stable yet more oyakata; and 2) it’s possible that Tochiozan (Kiyomigata oyakata) is a branchout candidate from Kasugano himself, especially if Tochinonada (Takenawa oyakata) is the eventual successor to the heya in 3 years’ time.

I did however pull two oyakata from the bloated Kasugano beya: the first was the more obvious move, with the junior Kimurayama going to Tamanoi beya which branched from Kasugano, and which has a large volume of rikishi. The second was less obvious, and probably the biggest debate, as Tatsunami beya is another large stable. It also has a number of sekitori with more likely soon to follow, so it felt like an experienced coach was better than moving the likes of Tokushoryu, which is why I settled on Mihogaseki, the former Tochisakae. With Tatsunami not having any connections within the ichimon due to its relatively recent realignment, it was tougher to find a suitable candidate.

Conclusion

All in all, this was an interesting exercise. What it showed me was that it’s possible to improve the balance of coaching within the Kyokai by making around a dozen or so moves and without any radical realignment of the existing ichimon structure.

There will be more scientific ways of doing this, and more forensic ways that take into account the various personalities. As a back of the napkin exercise, however, I think it does show that if the Kyokai put some proper time into researching how to realign their coaching resources, they can probably come up with something even better that would be even more impactful.

It’s also worth linking to this recent article from the Asahi Shimbun. The piece details another solution, which is allowing coaching credentials and ideas to dictate the ability of a former rikishi to operate a stable, rather than the duration of their time on the dohyo. Perhaps we can visit some suggestions for concepts like that in a later post.

What do you think of all of this? Obviously this isn’t the standard Tachiai thought experiment and might be limited in scope to a handful of die-hard readers, but if anyone has any thoughts they’d like to share in the comments then I’d certainly love to kick those around as we get ready for the upcoming basho.

Addendum: Isegahama Ichimon

Andy Heya, Stables (Heya) ,

Reader jmotzi had a very interesting question that I felt needed more/better explanation on my part. First of all, the reports do not indicate that Isegahama-oyakata will be appointed to supervise Miyagino-beya. As jmotzi points out, Isegahama had his own bullying controversy which resulted in the loss of his powerful position on the Kyokai’s board. Instead of Isegahama-oyakata, the reports indicate that an oyakata will come from Isegahama-ichimon and if that name has been determined, I have not seen it reported.

“Interesting that the caretaker is from Isegahama-beya which had it’s own bullying episode in 2022. Or maybe I am confused by the names. Anyway we can hope that this puts everybody on notice regarding these type of behaviors and all stables become more proactive.”

jmotzi

The various (usually around 40) stables are organized into associated groups, or factions, called Ichimon. I’m not going to dive into the politics and the leadership contests and leadership struggles because, well, I am still just trying to bring myself up-to-speed on that. But if you are trying to run an organization and achieve consensus on issues, it’s easier to work with a smaller group of factions than 40 independent leaders, no?

The Isegahama Ichimon includes Miyagino-beya, as well as Oshima, Asakayama, Asahiyama, and Ajigawa. The latter two of these stables do not have subordinate oyakata, or coaches but the others have a number of subordinate coaches who might be able to pick up the mantle here. I have not seen any indication that the Kyokai is planning to choose a current stablemaster, or a subordinate oyakata. If anyone has seen that, please let me know.

Isegahama Ichimon

I would not be surprised if the Kyokai would prefer an existing stablemaster. Then again, I would not be surprised if the Kyokai thinks it would be too much and would prefer the caretaker be one of the subordinates. I have listed a table of the oyakata available here and there are a number of very interesting possibilities. I think a lot of people would love to see Kaisei take a leadership role but that would be quite the surprise, no?

Heya Hunters International

Josh K Gōeidō (豪栄道), Hakuho (白鵬), Heya, Kisenosato (稀勢の里), Stables (Heya), Takekaze (豪風), Yoshikaze (嘉風) , ,

As detailed by Andy in his recent post (and via Twitter from Herouth, and throughout the usual dispatches from our friend Kintamayama over the preceding weeks), a number of heya changes have recently taken place. Additional changes will follow in the coming days… and in fact, there will be even more changes yet to follow later this year!

The kabu stock market tends to be an interest that’s restricted to the most intense of sumo anoraks. It’s not a topic of conversation for most normal sumo fans, confusing to others, and many changes and name transfers are often administrative in nature. However, for those wishing for a deeper dive, it seems like a good time to do some recap and analysis.

Nishonoseki Ichimon

The major story is the former Yokozuna Kisenosato taking over the prestigious headline Nishonoseki name, renaming his relatively new heya from Araiso beya to Nishonoseki beya. We have often wondered what kind of heya Araiso beya would be, and we don’t have to wonder anymore, because it won’t exist. Nishonoseki beya will be augmented by the arrival of eight rikishi from the soon to close Oguruma beya.

Oguruma oyakata reaches retirement age this spring, and the stable had long been rumoured to split into Yoshikaze (Nakamura oyakata) and Takekaze (Oshiogawa oyakata) factions. We have known for some time that Oshiogawa beya would be a new stable opening this year, but the division of the rikishi and what would happen to the existing stable and Nakamura oyakata had yet to be announced.

It was somewhat of a surprise, then, that Nakamura oyakata will make the big move up to Ibaraki prefecture to join up with Nishonoseki beya. And it was equally a surprise that the vast majority of Oguruma beya’s rikishi will not accompany the outgoing oyakata or the former Takekaze, with whom they will have had a much longer relationship, but instead be heading north with the former Yoshikaze to work under the former Yokozuna at his new stable. Kisenosato had long spoken – and even published a paper as part of his studies – about how to run a new type of modern sumo stable, and it seems that alongside his own recruits, 8 of the Oguruma beya rikishi will get a chance to experience that first hand when his new lodging opens.

Additionally, Nishonoseki beya gets an immediate quality boost with the presence of former sekitori Tomokaze, who will now almost certainly be the first sekitori of the new Nishonoseki beya as he continues his rehabilitation in the Makushita joi over the next couple of basho. While the former Yoshikaze certainly could have inherited and renamed the former Oguruma stable, and also qualifies as someone able to branch out and create a new heya in the future, he is also known to have a number of extra-curricular circumstances outside of sumo that would seem to have prevented him from running a stable at this time.

Working with Nishonoseki oyakata in the meantime, of course, does not prevent him from branching out in the future, and would appear to be a great experience for all involved: a number of the former Oguruma rikishi will certainly relish the opportunity to work under a former Yokozuna known for his fundamentals, and both coaches had very different sumo styles serving them well throughout their lengthy top division careers. And with Nishonoseki oyakata known to be both ambitious about his plans for the stable and shorthanded in the support department (most stables have an okamisan on hand to help with stable running – although this is certainly not a requirement and may be viewed as another way that Nishonoseki is progressing the tradition of stable management), the addition of a capable, young new coach should certainly help a stable master who is known to be extremely busy, between overseeing heya construction, kyokai and frequent media duties, and his various brand partnerships and endorsement deals.

As for Oshiogawa beya, former Takekaze will bring Oguruma oyakata, current sekitori Yago, and a couple others along with him to his own innovative new building (which was at one point said to include lodgings for students, and with the absence of a gym as his rikishi will apparently make use of community facilities as he seeks to integrate the stable with the local community).

Meanwhile, the man who held the Nishonoseki name for most of the last decade, former Ozeki Wakashimazu, continues as a consultant using Kisenosato’s former Araiso name. A number of his stable’s rikishi have retired following the Hatsu basho, but those opting to continue will do so under the tutelage of former Sekiwake Tamanoshima, who has long held the name of Hanaregoma oyakata, and as such, with the transfer of power complete at the former Nishonoseki beya, will run the stable – also soon to be at new premises – under the name Hanaregoma beya. The longtime shimpan and sometime heartthrob Hanaregoma will look back fondly at his move from Kataonami beya – where he was developed himself as a rikishi – to work under the former Wakashimazu, a move that certainly paid off in the long run as the legendary Kataonami beya (once home to Yokozuna Tamanoumi) fell into sharp decline.

Hanaregoma oyakata will preside over a stable with no fewer than three sekitori, as Wakashimazu’s (presumably) final recruit to make the jump to the salaried ranks, Shimazuumi, will move to Juryo in the forthcoming basho (joining stablemates Ichiyamamoto and veteran Shohozan there). I had pegged Shohozan to retire and inherit both the name and stable from Wakashimazu, having been his greatest success story as an oyakata and given Shohozan’s advancing years, but the wheeling and dealing behind the scenes, transferring names and stables, caught many sumo observers as a bit of a surprise. It’s probable however, that the deal for former Tamanoshima to take over the stable from former Wakashimazu had been in the works for a long time.

Dewanoumi Ichimon

It’s not quite as complicated here, as former Ozeki Goeido (Takekuma oyakata) and his new haircut have branched out from Sakaigawa beya, taking Makushita champ Nishikawa and promising youngster Goseiryu with him, to form Takekuma beya.

Given that Goseiryu has taken the first character of Goeido’s shikona, it will be interesting to see if this is an indicator of future shikona in the new Takekuma beya, and if more rikishi will take a “Go” prefix in deference to the new yusho-winning stablemaster. That said, the character also matches the first character of the rikishi’s given name, so it’s a little early to call.

Curiously, it’s the first time since the war that Takekuma beya will exist outside of the Tatsunami-Isegahama ichimon, and Goeido’s assumption of the name upon his retirement a couple years back marked what may become a more normal transfer of less prestigious names across ichimon lines.

Isegahama Ichimon

2021 had been a big year for this group of stables, but largely for reasons on the dohyo, with the retirement of Yokozuna Hakuho (Miyagino beya), the elevation of Yokozuna Terunofuji (Isegahama beya), and the kanreki dohyo-iri of Isegahama oyakata.

But a series of moves are now in the offing outside of the ring, and the first of these is the administrative name switch of Tomozuna oyakata (former yusho winner Kyokutenho) and Oshima oyakata (former sekiwake Kaiki), who ran Tomozuna beya for many years before his retirement, developing current sekitori Kaisei and long-time former Ozeki Kaio (for the vast majority of Kaio’s career, anyway).

Kyokutenho was brought up in the now legendary former Oshima beya under the tutelage of ex-Ozeki Asahikuni, who oversaw a decades-long production line running from Yokozuna Asahifuji (possibly now the best developer of talent in sumo as Isegahama oyakata) all the way through to Kyokutenho and his younger mates Kyokutaisei (as detailed in the film “A Normal Life”) and the newly-retired Kyokushuho.

Following the successful merger of the former Oshima beya with Tomozuna beya following former Asahikuni’s retirement, Kaiki ran the stable until his mandatory retirement in 2017 when Kyokutenho switched elder names to continue running the stable under the Tomozuna banner, in deference to Kaiki. Kaiki continued as a sanyo (consultant), and as he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 70 for sanyo this summer and leaves the kyokai for good, the two have switched names again to allow Kyokutenho to revive the Oshima beya name, which he will presumably run for many years to come. There are no fundamental changes to the stable beyond the name swap.

This, of course, will generate debate as to who will take the Tomozuna name when it becomes available later this year. Isegahama ichimon has no shortage of aging rikishi that may require a myoseki. And while there are those in other stables (Miyagino, Isegahama) who meet the requirements, Oshima beya will have its own coaching logjam. Former Asahisho is already using a loaner kabu (Kiriyama), which, coming from the Isegahama stable, is presumed to be Takarafuji’s in waiting. Meanwhile, Kyokutaisei, having been beset by numerous injuries and punted out of the salaried ranks, may need a kabu himself in the near future if he wishes to continue his career as an elder in the kyokai, having reached the required number of basho. While he hadn’t always seemed an obvious choice to become a coach, he assisted in the recent recruitment of one of the stable’s relatively few new recruits under Kyokutenho, the fellow Hokkaido native Kyokutaiga. It is possible he may unlock further recruits in the future from his home in the north.

All of this of course ignores the presence of 35 year old Kaisei, the veteran most closely linked to the Tomozuna name, having been the last sekitori to have reached the top division from the old heya under Kaiki’s tutelage. The Brazilian born rikishi has already taken Japanese nationality, but has also given mixed signals in the past about his desire to remain in sumo. In any case, it would be a major surprise not to see the Tomozuna name ultimately go to Kaisei, but in the meantime the name may be shuffled around the heya to protect the employment statuses of others.

If you’ve made it this far, you can accuse me of burying the lede a bit, because August brings the mandatory retirement of Miyagino oyakata in what will signal the official power transfer of the storied stable to the former Yokozuna Hakuho. Hakuho – now Magaki oyakata – has of course already become one of the sport’s most prolific recruiters and developers of talent in recent years, even while still active (to some extent) on the dohyo.

Hakuho was made to sign a statement by the Kyokai with regards to his future conduct and behaviour upon retirement, but this is not thought to be an impediment to the future transfer of the stable into his control at this time. We already know that Hakuho has indicated an intention to build a new home for the heya, but the two questions currently unresolved are 1) whether he will switch names with the current Miyagino oyakata so that the stable can continue to operate under the Miyagino name, or if it will be given a fresh start and renamed Magaki beya; and 2) whether the current Miyagino oyakata and Takashima oyakata, who reach age 65 within a few days of each other, will both continue as sanyo for another five years in support of Hakuho. If either the current Takashima or Miyagino decide to leave, it could free up a name to be used for – speculatively – Ishiura. Hakuho has longtime links to the Ishiura family – Ishiura’s father runs the powerhouse Tottori Johoku sumo club, and the continued employ of the 32 year old Ishiura in the stable after his career could further deepen the recruitment pipeline for Hakuho’s stable over the next two decades.

Takasago Ichimon

Not much happening here, but the Oyama name will become available for the first time in 36 years by October, when former Onobori reaches the mandatory sanyo retirement age of 70. The Nishikijima name was also occupied by the former Takasago oyakata and Ozeki Asashio before his scandal related departure from the Kyokai last year. Speculatively speaking, either name could come into play on loan for the former Kotoyuki, who is currently borrowing soon-to-be-37-year-old Okinoumi’s myoseki Kimigahama. Both names could also be acquisition targets for Hokutofuji, who turns 30 later this year.

Tokitsukaze Ichimon

Michinoku beya’s Tatsutayama oyakata reaches the retirement age of 65 in June, and has yet to indicate whether he intends to continue as a sanyo. This will be of interest largely because of the situations regarding the former Toyonoshima (currently borrowing Izutsu from the deceased former shisho of that stable, Sakahoko) and former Yokozuna Kakuryu (currently operating under his ring name as the rank allows for a temporary period of up to 5 years). At some point, both former rikishi will need to acquire their own name.

Toyonoshima was said to have been making payments towards the Nishikijima name for years, and the Nishikijima name belonged to the Tokitsukaze ichimon for decades before being picked up by the Takasago family more recently. So, it would not be a surprise to see it come back into play as an option for him, especially if Tatsutayama (or Isenoumi beya’s coach and a former stable master in his own right, Kagamiyama, upon his retirement in 12 months) elects not to continue as a sanyo.

The wild card in all of this is that the former Izutsu’s widow was rumoured to be adamant the name would go only to the rikishi who married her daughter, and the rikishi to have taken that particular challenge on is none other than current maegashira Shimanoumi, of Dewanoumi ichimon’s Kise beya. While Shimanoumi seems likely to qualify for elder status by 2023, it seems incredibly unlikely that the prestigious Izutsu name, having never been associated with any other ichimon (barring a brief period under Kitanofuji’s control in the 70s), would be moved to Dewanoumi ichimon (though stranger things have happened).

So, in summary, watch this space in 2022 as there may be an update regarding the statuses of former Toyonoshima and Kakuryu, as any one of the Nishikijima, Tatsutayama, Izutsu or Kagamiyama names could come into play… or maybe not!

Heya Power Rankings: Kyushu 17-Hatsu 18

Josh K Hatsubasho 2018, Kyushu Basho 2017, Stables (Heya) , ,

We’re back with the Heya Power Rankings. A lot has happened since the last time we released a set of these rankings, and a lot of those things have influenced the direction of how these rankings will trend, not only for this edition, but also for probably the next several editions. Let’s get into it:

chart-10

Usually with these rankings we see rises and falls attributable to basic stuff like winning a yusho one tournament or getting a special prize versus, well, not doing that in the next tournament. But when you have a heya that’s usually at the top which not only usually is in the yusho race or at least has a lot of high ranking rikishi grabbing kachi-koshi, and then their rikishi do not get kachi-koshi and a couple of them go kyujo, that does alter the landscape a bit.

So now let’s look at this in our usual “Billboard” style Top 20 chart form (ties broken by previous ranking with the most recently better heya ranked higher):

  1. (+5) Miyagino. 101 points (+61)
  2. (+13) Hakkaku. 95 points (+75)
  3. (-2) Isegahama. 83 points (-64)
  4. (+-) Tagonoura. 65 points (+10)
  5. (+2) Takanohana. 54 points (+6)
  6. (-4) Sakaigawa. 41 points (-26)
  7. (-4) Kokonoe. 40 points (-16)
  8. (+11) Kataonami. 40 points (+25)
  9. (-1) Oitekaze. 38 points (+2)
  10. (+-) Izutsu. 30 points (even)
  11. (-6) Oguruma. 28 points (-20)
  12. (+1) Sadogatake. 27 points (+3)
  13. (-2) Dewanoumi. 25 points (even)
  14. (-5) Kasugano. 23 points (-7)
  15. (-3) Onomatsu. 20 points (-5)
  16. (+2) Tomozuna. 20 points (+3)
  17. (**) Arashio. 20 points (+18)
  18. (+2) Tokitsukaze. 18 points (+3)
  19. (**) Isenoumi. 18 points (+5)
  20. (**) Minato / Minezaki. 15 points. (both +2)

Movers

3 or 4 stables got some great results last time out. Miyagino-beya has been here before and that’s because Hakuho wins a lot of championships. Ishiura comes back to makuuchi at Hatsu and they have another couple rikishi just outside the top two divisions, so there’s the possibility things could get better here before they get worse.

The former Hokutoumi jumps over his rival Yokozuna, the former Asahifuji’s heya in the charts as the now-Hakkaku climbs above Isegahama. Hakkaku is the greatest gainer this time out – usually this happens because one rikishi has had a crazy-good tournament. However, both Okinoumi and Hokutofuji grabbed the jun-yusho and special prizes and that’s a recipe for a lot of success on this chart. While the former has been inconsistent owing to injuries in the past year, one wouldn’t bet against a repeat from the latter if he shows up genki to the Kokugikan next week.

Kataonami and Arashio are 2 “feast or famine” stables reliant on the performances of just one rikishi – Tamawashi and Sokokurai respectively. So when one of those guys has a monster showing, their heya is likely to bound up the chart and fall down quickly when they don’t. Fortunately for Arashio, there are four very promising rikishi knocking on the door of the sekitori ranks (3 of whom we’ll talk more about later this week). That’s more rikishi than exist in total in Kataonami-beya, so it’s likely that Tamawashi will continue carrying the load for the foreseeable future.

 

Losers

Three stables again had absolutely miserable tournaments:

There’s no escaping the unfortunate, awful storm that beset Isegahama-beya. A pair of kyujo and a number of disappointing records meant that a heavy tumble (in terms of points) was always likely, and had it not been for Aminishiki’s inspiring performance, it could have been worse. And it likely will get much worse before it gets better, as the stable loses two sekitori (including one permanent Yokozuna retirement) for Hatsu, their former Ozeki has slipped to the middle of Maegashira, and we probably can’t count on another special prize from Uncle Sumo even though we’d clearly all love it.

Kokonoe, on the other hand, are due a bit of a rebound. Of their six sekitori, only J9 Chiyonoo posted the slenderest of winning records at 8-7. Their four top division rikishi will all be fairly comfortably placed in the middle of the Maegashira pack this time out, so we’d expect at least a couple of them to improve their showing.

Kise-beya falls off the charts entirely owing to a similarly poor tournament. Ura’s injury meant they only scored points from the Juryo ranks, and despite a number of rikishi hanging around the top end of Makushita, it’s likely going to be a couple of tournaments before they return to the charts. A final word for Sakaigawa-beya, whose decline is simply owed to Goeido putting up a yusho challenge in September and not November – they should continue to hang around the top end of the rankings.

Ichimon

chart-11

Here’s a three tournament progression of the ichimon rankings, above. These are really going to need many tournaments for us to see any kind of true trends owing to the volatility of the charts and the amount of rikishi involved in the listings. However, a new wave of debutants in the top divisions – as established wrestlers decline due to age or retire – will change the shape of this chart as well.

Given the recent political issues involving Takanohana, it will be interesting to see if his stable as well as the group of stables bearing his name will continue their progression. Not only has the rise of Takakeisho given him a top 5 heya by our rankings, but in the twins Takagenji and Takayoshitoshi, he has two more rikishi tipped to entrench themselves in the professional ranks. Additionally, the ichimon features another budding star in Onosho, and the respective recent and upcoming Juryo debutants Takanosho and Akua. Continued success from those associated with Takanohana would be something to note as we continue to watch and speculate on his future ambitions at the center of the sport.