Aki Basho Day 1 Lower Division Intrigue

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Following our earlier, proper preview post, here are a few “ones to watch” from Day 1’s action. If you’re a follower of lower division activity then you may well look forward to some of these…

Jonokuchi

Hattorizakura (Jk34) vs Chiyotsurugi (Jk33) – The main man Hattorizakura gets the basho underway, with a current losing streak of 24 very much under threat from lowest ranked debutant Chiyotsurugi.

Senho (Jk31) vs Urutora (Jk32) – Another Hakuho recruit, Senho starts his career against Hattorizakura’s mildly higher achieving but still tiny 30 year old stablemate, who makes his return to action after a lengthy layoff.

Ayaminato (Jk29) vs Hokutenkai (Jk29) – As referenced in the recent Tachiai Podcast, I’ve been looking forward to Hokutenkai’s debut since seeing him in action earlier this year during a keiko session at Onoe beya. He’s the nephew of former sekitori Takanoiwa.

Nishikio (Jk26) vs Murata (Jk27) – Murata, who had a storming start to his career and made it to the very edge of the line separating heaven and hell at Makushita 1, is slated to return following sporadic appearances during a long injury layoff which slowed his descent down the banzuke. Will he be back or will this be it for the basho?

Jonidan

Motobayashi (Jd16) vs Imafuku (Jd18) and
Marusho (Jd15) vs Tochinoshima (Jd17):

I’ve bracketed these both together as Marusho and Motobayashi (the winner) were two of the three Naruto beya recruits to contest the Jonokuchi playoff in an intra-heya battle last time out. The third, Sakurai, is not in business on Day 1. Both of them get veterans who more or less live at this level.

Sandanme

Wakaichiro (Sd67) vs Fujitaisei (Sd67) – Wakaichiro fans will cheer him on from his highest banzuke appearance to date. Curiously he gets an opponent who was recruited into the original Musashigawa stable before Musashimaru branched off the current version (hat tip to Asashosakari for the catch). American fans will want to note that Wakaichiro’s stablemate Musashikuni is listed as kyujo from the basho, so he’ll be the sole American representative from Musashigawa at least to start the tournament.

Tokisakae (Sd44) vs Oyamatoumi (Sd43) – Jonidan yusho winner Tokisakae makes his Sandanme bow in this match, and the former university man should be expected to plough through the division again this time out before facing tougher scrutiny in November.

Yoshoyama (Sd17) vs Hisanotora (Sd17) – The 21 year old Mongolian Yoshoyama, who entered with some degree of fanfare a couple years back, has made very slow and steady progress, but the wheels came off in his last tournament when he made his Makushita debut. He’ll be looking to right the ship.

Makushita

Ayanoumi (Ms47) vs Chiyonokuni (Ms46) – The feisty man from Mie, Chiyonokuni makes his return to the dohyo, and will attempt to kickstart his career from Makushita 46. Here’s hoping he can follow the path trodden by the likes of Tochinoshin and vault himself back to even higher successes.

Shiraishi (Ms42) vs Okinofuji (Ms42) – Hot prospect and former Sandanme Tsukedashi man Shiraishi will look to follow up last tournament’s 5-2 with a second strong appearance in the third tier. He takes on a long time Makushita veteran, and no prizes for guessing he might be a stablemate of Okinoumi and Hokutofuji at Hakkaku beya.

Wakatakamoto (Ms22) vs Hatooka (Ms22) – It really would be lovely to get all 3 Onami brothers up towards the sekitori ranks, especially with Arashio oyakata set to yield the stable early next year to Sokokurai. 27 year old Wakatakamoto seems to take a step back for every step forward, so a first win here would be good progress.

Chiyoarashi (Ms18) vs Hakuyozan (Ms17) – Hakuyozan had a promising start to his sekitori career before being derailed by injury, and then had a horror show in the last basho upon his return. He needs to stop the rot in this tournament otherwise he may be facing a very difficult journey back.

Naya (Ms10) vs Toyohibiki (Ms10) – Another decent bellwether for the up and coming top talent, Naya faces longtime top division man Toyohibiki as he gets his Aki basho underway.

Midorifuji (Ms4) vs Kototebakari (Ms4) – A classic big vs small match as two very promising, perhaps second tier prospects face off on Day 1, with promotion very much a realistic possibility with a good result in this basho.

Hatsu Day 2 – Lower Division Ones To Watch

Ura Aki Day 2

Day 2 seems to be when all of the big names get their first match in the divisions below Juryo, and it’s going to be a great night / day of sumo for the fans. Where day 1 only had a handful, day 2 features many eagerly anticipated matches, including fan favorite Ura. Let’s see who is up!

Akua vs Chiyonoo – Oh yeah! Akua wants back in Juryo to light up our screens with that day-glow mawashi, and he’s got to get through Chiyonoo to have any chance. When I talk about the Makushita “wall”, you can think of Chiyonoo as a big, sturdy brick. Himself a de-throned Juryo man, he wants back in the paid ranks. Battles like this are why the top 10 ranks of Makushita may be the most brutal in all of sumo.

Hoshoryu vs Kizakiumi – Taking to the dohyo just after Ura’s match the crowd won’t quiet down in the least. Hoshoryu is climbing steadily up to the Makushita “wall” to test his mettle. His opponent, Kizakiumi, has had a meteoric rise after entering professional sumo from the college ranks, and has already bounced off the wall during Aki.

Ura vs Takakento – Are you ready to hear the Kokugikan go nuts for a Makushita match? Ura is just a bit short of “the wall” group, but the competition is going to be brutal. A former Takanohan deshi, Takakento made the move with Takakeisho and Takagengi to Chiganoura. He has been in Makushita for the past 10 tournaments.

Musashikuni vs Kototsubasa – The Musashigawa scion takes his first match of the new year against Sadogatake’s Kototsubasa. Both men are near their top ever rank, both are on an upward trend. Both need wins to advance into the elite group just a bit father up the banzuke.

Wakatakamoto vs Ryuseio – Another of the Waka* brothers, his posting at Makushita 40 keeps him in thick competition of rikishi battling to challenge for the top 10 ranks. He faces 32 year old veteran and Sandanme veteran Ryuseio for his first bout.

Shoji vs Hikarugenji – Only in his 9th tournament, Musashigawa’s Shoji is battling his way through Sandanme in a bid to return to Makushita, and faces division mainstay Hikarugenji. Shoji is looking to reverse a series of make-koshi tournaments, including a disastrous 1-6 in Kyushu.

Kenho vs Sumanoumi – Big, friendly Kenho went 6-1 at Kyushu, one of his best tournaments in a while. Now he finds himself in lower Sandanme, and frankly we hope this gentle giant knocks a few competitors into next Sunday. His opponent, Sumanoumi, is a long serving Sandanme veteran.

With this many rising stars out on the same day in Makushita, it’s going to be one of the better days of lower division sumo in a while!

Hatsu Day 1 – Lower Division Ones To Watch

naya

As hopeless sumo fans, the crew at Tachiai are following many fine rikishi who are fighting their way through he lower divisions (yes, more than just Wakaichiro!). Out of more than a dozen “ones to watch”, only a handful are in action on day 1. Some notable matches

Wakamotoharu vs. Gokushindo – Another of the Waka* brothers takes on Gokushindo, as he battles to regain Sekitori status. This has the potential to be a real firecracker of a match.
Midorifuji vs. Sakigake – Midorifuji has certainly hit the Makushita “wall” and has found the competition thick and fierce. Today he takes on former Juryo man Sakigake.
Naya vs. Aomihama – Taiho’s grandson returns to Makushita, at the very last slot of the division. This time we look to see if he can hit and hold this highly competitive division. He faces off against veteran Aomihama, who suffered a disappointing 1-6 tournament in November.
Torakio vs. Taichiyama – Torakio is still working hard to escape Sandanme, and he starts Hatsu near his all time high rank of Sandanme 28. He seems to be an even match for Taichiyama, who is still struggling to recover from injuries.
Hattorizakura vs. Denpoya – In spite of his cringe worthy career record of 2-130 (no, not a typo), people love this skinny little guy, and always hope he can find enough genki to win something. His opponent, Denpoya, who is in his first tournament as a professional rikishi, is likely happy to have a nearly assured win for his first match as a pro.

Some notables that are not on the day 1 fight card: Kenho, Musashikuni, Ura, Shoji Hoshoryu and Akua.

A reminder that NHK World Japan will have the final hour of the top division live over their streaming service overnight US time. Work has it that Gunning will be doing the color commentary, and it’s never dull with him in the booth.

The First Eleven Men of Makushita

Enho-Takayasu
… When you can see over the top of the mountain

Instead of a traditional “Ones to Watch” section this basho, we’ll mix things up with a few lower division storylines. We’ll start by taking a look at what’s going on at the top of Makushita.

This division is an absolute slog. There are 120 men in this division fighting for usually 2 to 4 of the 28 slots in Juryo. As described on a recent NHK World sumo preview, the division between Makushita and Juryo is like “heaven and hell,” given the resources and opportunities provided to rikishi once they reach the professional, sekitori level.

If you’re a college rikishi of good pedigree, usually you will cruise through the bottom 2-3 tiers before meeting your tougher matches here. Rikishi who have left school before college often take several years to reach the level as they get acclimated to the sport and the lifestyle. One of the reasons it’s tough to escape the level is because there’s a crush at the top – but Nagoya 2018 is unique. With respect to Natsu whipping boy Amakaze, usually there are a couple rikishi around the top of the division who have departed Juryo due to injury or performance, not soon to return back, and these guys get beat up by the hot young up-and-comers on the upswing of their career.

This time, however, there’s no filler at the top of the division and it’s going to be an all out melee to reach the professional ranks when sumo returns to Tokyo for the Aki tournament in September. Let’s look at who’s jockeying for position:

The Battle Scarred Veterans

I’m going to put 29 year olds Jokoryu (Ms5E) and Asabenkei (Ms4E) in this category, though their careers have taken different routes to the same location. The former Komusubi Jokoryu spent 4 years as sekitori before dropping down the divisions due to serious injury. He’s been stuck in the wilderness for 2 years, but has fought his way back up to striking distance of promotion. Asabenkei, who has been in sumo since 2007, recently made it back to Juryo after an 18 month hiatus. He then suffered a humiliating 3-win tournament in May, which started 0-7, en route to an immediate demotion back to the third tier.

While these guys have a wildly different pedigree and career accomplishments, it’s probably fair to say they have been operating on a similar talent level and with an ambition to scrape back up and re-establish themselves as professionals.

The Hot Shots

Enho (Ms2W) – the first man to open his career 21-0 since Jokoryu – arrived on the scene earlier than predicted in Osaka, but it was clear he was over-promoted before his time and was swiftly demoted back to Makushita. It’s good news for him that he has such an esteemed some-time sparring partner in Hakuho, however, and the hard work he’s put in has seen him rebound after a solid Natsu to the fourth position on the banzuke. We’ve been hot on Enho so long it’s hard to believe it’s still only his 8th tournament. 5 wins should see him back up.

Meanwhile, fellow “Ones to Watch” honorees and college men Murata (Ms1W) and Ichiyamamoto (Ms3E) reach the division’s summit in just their 9th tournaments (though Ichiyamamoto gets bonus points for having got here just as quickly from Jonokuchi). Murata is a big bopper who loves a good ol’ fashioned oshi-fuelled brawl. Ichiyamamoto mixes it up a little more but is still mostly a pusher-thruster.

The Brother

The youngest of Arashio-beya’s three Onami brothers, Wakatakakage not only made it first to Juryo but then stuck at the level, managing a kachi-koshi in his first trip to the pros. Middle brother Wakamotoharu (Ms4W) now finds himself on the brink – with the third and oldest brother Wakatakamoto not so far behind at Ms10. Having only eked out 3 wins from similar positions on the banzuke in the past, he’ll be looking to improve his record in this part of the sumo world this time, to set up a promotion challenge either this time or next. It’s a sprint between the two remaining brothers to catch Wakatakakage now, but Wakamotoharu is in the pole position.

The Cups of Coffee

27 year old Akua (Ms5W) and 23 year old Hakuyozan (Ms1E) both spent years making the long and winding trek through the lower reaches of the banzuke before managing just a “cup of coffee” in the pros, each returning back to Makushita after one tournament where they both clearly looked overmatched. They’ll be wanting to make sure the chance to establish themselves at a higher level does not go begging again.

The Wild Cards

22 year olds Gokushindo (Ms2E) and Kiribayama (Ms3W) have different origin stories and routes to this point, but what they have in common is a certain inconsistency. Kiribayama at times has looked utterly dominant in this division, and is the current yusho holder. Gokushindo has tended to take 2 steps forward followed by one step back as he adjust to the differences in quality in what is a Makushita tier which effectively has divisions within the division, such is the gulf in class between various areas of the ranks. Having posted a 6-1 record last time out, it would seemingly stand to reason he would need an adjustment period again this time, but he will face familiar foes having beaten Ichiyamamoto, Murata and Wakamotoharu in May (the latter two using a style best described as “Ichinojo” – a ponderously lengthy wait-out of a grapple in the centre of the dohyo followed by an escort over the bales and a throw respectively), losing only to Kiribayama.

The Terunofuji

At the time of writing, it appears to be unclear whether we’re going to see Terunofuji (Ms6E) in Nagoya. The man has undergone plenty of work on both knees, and suffered a less than fruitful spell in Juryo, which was also apparently hindered at times by diabetes related treatment. What his tournament ability is, at this point in the game, is still unclear. While it’s possible and even likely he may drop further (either due to performance or kyujo-status), the very presence of a former Ozeki in this part of the banzuke should give pause to each of the other names listed here – if he does show up, it’s obviously to compete and to win.