juryo

Nagoya 2026: Senshuraku

Andy Nagoya 2026, Nagoya Basho , , , , , ,

JME coverage started at 2:30 this morning with the final three bouts of the Makushita yusho playoff. For those of you who couldn’t catch it live, remember JME will replay the action through the day on their dedicated sumo page.

Usually, JME coverage begins with the first bout of Makuuchi, though we occasionally see a Yokozuna dohyo-iri if the action is running a little behind. On senshuraku, JME coverage starts a half-hour early. It’s great to see these Playoffs live.

Asahifuji defeated Wakamiyabi in the Final with a henka, followed by solid migi-yotsu belt work to force Wakamiyabi out. Congratulations Asahifuji!

Next up came the four-way Juryo playoff. As Asashosakari had pointed out in the comments, I had missed the Asasuiryu vs Hatsuyama bout. Asasuiryu won it and earned his spot in the playoff. Shonannoumi lost to Tokihayate, setting the playoff into motion. Toshinofuji and Arashifuji also won their bouts to earn their spots.

The boys drew lots for the semi-final and Shonannoumi beat Asasuiryu, shifting to the side and then spinning Asasuiryu out. Toshinofuji hit Arashifuji with a solid tachiai. Arashifuji pulled but Toshinofuji stuck with him and ushered him out. Shonannoumi defeated Toshinofuji to claim the Juryo yusho. Toshinofuji’s loose mawashi still provided enough leverage for Shonannoumi when he grabbed Toshinofuji’s belt with both hands outside and spun Toshinofuji out over the edge.

Next up was the Yusho presentation ceremony for all of the lower divisions. Here, we saw that Tenshoyama had beaten Tochimusashi for the Sandanme title. Like most of the other playoffs, Abema TV posted video of the final fight on their Twitter feed (above). Day 13 action had already determined Hakugetsuro won Jonidan and Kakizoe won Jonokuchi. They picked up their certificates and the Makuuchi dohyo-iri promptly followed.

The special prize announcements went relatively as predicted. Aonishiki received the Technique prize and Atamifuji won the Fighting Spirit prize unconditionally. They shouldn’t need the added motivation for their yusho battle. However, the rest of the special prizes are dependent on victory. If Fujinokawa beats Fujiseiun, he will pick up his kachi-koshi and the Outstanding Performance Prize. Kotoeiho, Takayasu, Fujiryoga, Takerufuji, and Shishi are eligible for Fighting Spirit Prizes on the condition that they win their bouts.

NHK videos are here.

Makuuchi Action

Kazuma (5-10) defeated Sadanoumi (5-10). Kazuma rather easily dispatched Sadanoumi. He lead with his head, so Sadanoumi pulled. Kazuma chased with excellent footwork and ushered Sadanoumi out. Oshidashi.

Kinbozan (9-6) defeated Mitakeumi (2-13). Mitakeumi missed grabbing Kinbozan’s belt with his left hand. Kinbozan had no problem forcing him back and out. Yorikiri.

Nishikifuji (10-5) defeated Chiyoshoma (5-10). Nishikifuji tried to get a hidari-yotsu belt grip but Chiyoshoma’s tsuppari and pull kept him from getting a solid grip. However, Nishikifuji moved forward and still shoved Chiyoshoma out. Oshidashi.

Asakoryu (9-6) defeated Fujiryoga (10-5). Fujiryoga charged forward to attack Asakoryu but Asakoryu shifted left along the tawara, got in behind the over-eager Fujiryoga, and pushed him out from behind. One could feel Fujiryoga’s disappointment as the camera followed him up the hanamichi. Okuridashi.

Roga (9-6) defeated Shishi (10-5). Excellent hidari-yotsu battle here. Shishi tried to topple Roga with a shitatenage but Roga kept his balance and used his uwate grip to push Shishi forward to the edge. Shishi attempted to re-engage but Roga crushed him over the bales. Yoritaoshi.

Asahakuryu (7-8) defeated Wakamotoharu (6-9). Asahakuryu out-WMH’d Wakamotoharu. Wakamotoharu drove forward behind tsuppari. Asahakuryu shifted left along the bales and drove forward into Wakamotoharu, forcing him out. Yorikiri.

Takayasu (11-4) defeated Asanoyama (9-6). After a lengthy migi-yotsu battle, Takayasu persevered and claimed his Fighting Spirit prize. Takayasu pulled hard with his uwatenage. Asanoyama did not go down but Takayasu followed up with tsuppari and shoved Asanoyama over the bales. Oshidashi.

Kotoeiho (11-4) defeated Takerufuji (10-5). Takerufuji pulled but Kotoeiho kept that right arm hooked under Takerufuji’s left shoulder and ran him out of the dohyo, throwing him three rows deep into the crowd below. Oshidashi.

Shodai (5-10) defeated Daiseizan (6-9). Shodai showed no signs of the injury I thought he had. He hit Daiseizan hard, got a morozashi as he hooked both arms up under Daiseizan’s shoulders, turned and forced Daiseizan out. Jerry Ziesmer’s voice: “Terminate. With extreme prejudice.” Yorikiri.

Oshoma (7-8) defeated Onokatsu (4-11). Oshoma’s tsuppari was too powerful for Onokatsu. He shoved Onokatsu back to the bales and then grabbed him to keep him from falling off. (Always a popular gesture.) Oshidashi.

Halftime

Abi (7-8) defeated Ura (5-10). Textbook Abi-zumo. Abi layed into Ura with tsuppari. He tried one pull which forced Ura to stumble forward. Abi followed up with thrusts, driving Ura out. Tsukidashi.

Ichiyamamoto (6-9) defeated Tobizaru (5-10). Textbook Abi-zumo. Rinse and repeat here, though Ichiyamamoto’s initial thrusts were more nodowa than tsuppari. So, I guess that makes it Ichiyama-zumo rather than Abi-zumo. Similar strategy, same effect today. Tsukidashi.

Gonoyama defeated Hiradoumi. Gonoyama blitzed Hiradoumi and trust him out with strong tsuppari. It was kind of like Gonoyama did his best Hiradoumi impression at the tachiai. Oshidashi.

Churanoumi defeated Takanosho. Takanosho hit Churanoumi with his nodowa. Churanoumi tried to get that left hand inside, regardless. Takanosho slapped Churanoumi to keep him away. Churanoumi spun back, grabbed Takanosho’s right arm and pulled him forward. Hikkake.

Fujinokawa (8-7) defeated Fujiseiun (7-8). Fujiseiun did not have a chance. Fujinokawa came in hot and drilled Fujiseiun in the chin with his tachiai. Fujinokawa wrapped up Fujiseiun and forced him back over the bales. Yorikiri.

Sanyaku

Hakunofuji (9-6) defeated Oho (2-13). Hakunofuji got a morozashi quickly and drove Oho to the edge. Oho resisted and tried an uwatenage but Hakunofuji stablized himself with his hold of Oho’s belt. He then shoved Oho down. Yoritaoshi.

Daieisho (10-5) defeated Yoshinofuji (6-9). Textbook Daieisho-zumo. He brawled with Yoshinofuji, meeting thrust with thrust. Finally, he shifted left and thrust Yoshinofuji down. Both Komusubi will vacate their offices. Tsukiotoshi.

Kore-yori Sanyaku

Arrows — Atamifuji (12-3) defeated Aonishiki (12-3). Atamifuji pushed out with his right hand to block Aonishiki’s left hand. Aonishiki pulled but Atamifuji was ready and shoved Aonishiki off the dohyo. We will have another play-off! Oshidashi.

Bow String — Kirishima (12-3) defeated Kotohachinana (??-??). Kirishima got a left hand uwate and pulled Koto87 forward to the edge and forced him out. Kirishima has a spot in the playoff. Yorikiri.

Bow — Onosato defeated Kotoshoho. Migi-yotsu. Onosato grabbed Kotoshoho. Kotoshoho reversed along the edge, trying to topple the Yokozuna with a sukuinage, but Onosato shoved him down. Oshitaoshi.

Playoff (決定巴戦)

First man to two consecutive wins, wins the title. The three men drew lots. First up, Atamifuji versus Kirishima.

Atamifuji defeated Kirishima. Atamifuji enveloped Kirishima and forced him back to the edge quickly, trying to get a kimedashi, double outside grip. At the bales, Kirishima resisted and Atamifuji shoved him over the bales. Next up, Aonishiki.

Aonishiki defeated Atamifuji. This time, Aonishiki landed his left hand grip. He used it to force Atamifuji back to the edge and out. That means Kirishima is back!

Aonishiki defeated Kirishima. Aonishiki again got his left hand grip. As Kirishima tried to figure out what to do, Aonishiki wrapped his left foot around Kirishima’s right and shoved forward. On replay, as they cycled around, you can see Aonishiki was waiting for Kirishima’s leg to drift to far forward. Aonishiki Yusho!

There seemed to be some confusion as to whether Aonishiki was supposed to go down and get his hair redone, again, before the presentation ceremony. But, well, that’s it for sumo action in Nagoya, July 2026. NHK News starts 20 minutes late with the lead story that Aonishiki claimed his third title. Congratulations, Aonishiki!

That’s not it for sumo coverage from Nagoya, though. We will hear about Juryo promotions early this week and I’ll bring that news to you. I’ll also aim for weekly Jungyo updates.

Aki 2025: Juryo Promotions Announced

Andy Aki 2025, Aki Basho , ,

“Shhhh…Aki Basho? Andy, what the hell. Nagoya just ended, hangovers aren’t even cured and you’re on about Aki? Just pass the pickles and turn out the lights, man.“

As is customary, the Banzuke Committee met and the ranking sheet for Aki has been drawn up — though it won’t be released in full for several weeks. But, we do learn about promotions to Juryo. This time, there are five and Takasago-beya has the Triple-promotion that Leonid discussed yesterday. And, as predicted, Ishizaki changed his shikona to something more appropriate for Takasago beya: Asasuiryu (朝翠龍). Of course the kanji has to be ridiculous, typing Asa-midori-ryu to get this nonsense to show up properly.

So, from Takasago-beya we have Asanoyama, Asasuiryu, and Asahakuryu coming up in the first triple promotion since Aki 1979. Joining them, we have Kyokukaiyu from Oshima-beya and Nishinoryu of Sakaigawa, in a bit of a surprise. We won’t know for certain who was demoted yet, but that might be bad news for the Daiamami fans out there.

In honor of 1979 and the Sadogatake triple promotion for Kotonoryu, Kotochitose, and Kototateyama enjoy this by the Koto-Smashing Pumpkins.

Lower Division Yusho Aki 2022

Andy Aki Basho 2022 , , , ,

We’ve still got one undecided lower-division yusho race. But since most of them are already in the books, I wanted to give you all an update.

Juryo

If you despair of the parity in Makuuchi, you may not want to see Juryo. Last night, Tochimusashi clinched the yusho when Hokuseiho lost to Kotokuzan — even though he lost his own bout to Atamifuji. Hokuseiho had been leading the yusho race into Week 2 until he lost three bouts in a row, falling to Kitanowaka, Kagayaki, and Tohakuryu. Tochimusashi’s win comes in his first tournament in the division, a feat Tomokaze accomplished back in Kyushu 2018.

 

Pardon me while I get a little teary-eyed, remembering Tomokaze’s charge up the banzuke, devastating knee-injury, and struggles to make it back to sekitori status. Sadly, he closed out Aki 2-5 from within the Makushita promotion zone. He’ll need to look to 2023.

With the news of Jokoryu’s retirement this week, we get another reminder of how grueling this climb is. Jokoryu began his career with a memorable, pace-setting string of white stars (27 w/ 3 division titles + one playoff loss). And then when Enho made his run, Jokoryu stopped him at 21 wins. Bringing us back full circle, today’s yusho hopeful, Hokuseiho, had his eyes on the streak to start his career but lost his first bouts after returning from Covid kyujo.

Makushita

In the biggest upset of the tournament, Asanoyama did not win the Makushita title. As Leonid covered, the Coyote got caught out by a wily Roadrunner who goes by the shikona, Yuma. Instead, Daiseiryu won, using much the same technique as Asanoyama. I think Yuma just had designs on taking Daiseiryu on head-on, trying for one pulldown — not as intimidated by the journeyman as he was by the former Ozeki. If he’d used his roadrunner tactic, he might have won the yusho.

I am also encouraged by Setonoumi’s strong performance. We’ve seen him come back from serious injury and win lower division yusho. Now, he’s gone 6-1 from his best rank ever at Makushita 56, opposite Asonoyama (not to be confused with Asanoyama, the former Ozeki). He’ll be thrown into the middle of the division in Kyushu so it will be exciting to continue to watch him.

Sandanme

Oshoumi blitzed poor Wakanosho at the snap, capping off his zensho-yusho in Sandanme. That string of wins included bouts against Hakuho recruit Ishii and former Jonokuchi title winner and Oshiogawa recruit, Kazekeno. Kototebakari’s hopes were dashed in an earlier loss to Shosei, who is competing in Makushita. Kototebakari will fight for a 6th win tonight. While he’s likely earned his promotion to Makushita, that 6th win will lock it in and probably a 20-rank difference when the Kyushu banzuke comes out.

Jonidan

The Jonidan title comes down to a senshuraku playoff between Takahashi and Chiyodaigo. I will post an update after that is decided. Takahashi won the Jonokuchi yusho race back in Nagoya, defeating Kazuto in the playoff. Chiyodaigo is a journeyman whose peak rank was in Makushita, so clearly no slouch but he’s had several non-Covid kyujo lately, along with the Kasugano-beya Covid kyujo. Given the way he knocked out Toshunryu, I’d say this kid wants it. Those were some haymakers. They say hatakikomi but that’s one of the most fierce hatakikomi I can remember.

Jonokuchi

In a surprise to absolutely no one, Miyagino-oyakata’s mammoth-thighed recruit, Otani, obliterated all comers in the lowest division to claim the yusho. His dame-oshi (shoves “after the bell,” so-to-speak) will hurt his chances at growing a significant fanbase. Aoiyama comes to mind as someone who fans dislike because of this, while Kaisei gets plaudits for helping his opponents avoid falls. ダメ, pronounced “DAH-MEH,” (not like the title as in, Dame Judi Dench), is a Japanese admonishment which basically translates as, “don’t!” and oshi is from “push,” as in the kimarite oshidashi. If you’ve already won the bout, you’re not supposed to shove your opponent off the dohyo.

Hopefully our regular Jonokuchi division coverage will make its return in Kyushu, but there’s a rather small recruiting class again which might make for another dud of a race. I may double-up by following the Jonidan (or Juryo?) race, as well. But we’ll see.

Nagoya 2022: Jonokuchi Match Day 7

Andy Juryo (十両), Makushita (幕下), Nagoya Basho 2022 , , , , , ,

Who said that winning anything would be easy in this tournament? Well, it sure looked like it for about two weeks in the bottom division. A win for Takahashi here would have clinched the Jonokuchi division yusho. Kazuto would not go quietly into that good night. After the tachiai, Kazuto buried the crown of his head into Takahashi’s chin. This disrupts Takahashi’s game plan, lifting his upper body.

Kazuto tried to get some forward momentum going but when Plan A failed, he moved to Plan B and tried a quick slap-down… but missed. Plan C? RUN! Kazuto backed away, cycling around the dohyo with Takahashi in hot pursuit. Seeing no options, Kazuto planted at the tawara and made a last ditch effort, collecting it all to launch forward into Takahashi. What do you know, it worked! He corralled Takahashi squarely and drove through the dohyo, sending Takahashi to his first loss. This win sealed a ticket for a rematch in a prime time yusho playoff on senshuraku.

The Jonidan yusho was claimed by Hitoshi. That’s his second yusho in Jonidan. He won last year but after several tournaments kyujo, re-entered Jonokuchi last tournament. He featured in the opening days of the yusho race in May before losing to Yamato and Kazekeno, both of whom eventually fought in that play-off, Kazekeno claiming the title.

Speaking of Kazekeno, he finished with a strong sixth win. His only loss was to Miyagino prospect Ishii. This is another strong group of competitors who will find themselves in Sandanme in September. Unfortunately, Yamato won’t be able to join them yet because he got caught up in Musashigawa’s covid kyujo earlier in the tournament, and will finish with a 2-2-3 make-koshi including a loss to veteran Tochihayate. It will be very interesting to see where he ends up on that banzuke.

Moving up to Sandanme, Asanoyama claimed the yusho there. But, as Leonid covered, the Makushita yusho was also a bit of a surprise with Yoshii’s close win over Kinbozan. Lastly, Ryuden claimed the Juryo title with his win over Myogiryu last night.