Shonichi

Nagoya 2024: Shonichi Highlights

Andy Nagoya 2024, Nagoya Basho , ,

Packed house in Nagoya. With Konishiki’s crew in Nashville, I keep thinking of “Nashville Hot Chicken.” I seriously think Nagoya needs to come up with some Nagoya Spicy-Hot Nanban or something because that sauna they call, “Dolphins Arena” gets oppressive in mid-July. Expect this tournament to offer up some spicy action of its own.

Hakuoho beat Kayo. Forward-moving sumo. Remember that. Enough dawdling. Let’s get to the Top Division action.

Shonichi Highlights

Nishikifuji defeated Tokihayate. Forward sumo won. Tokihayate was in retreat most of the bout, trying to shrug Nishikifuji out at the bales. Nishikifuji had a firm grip, though. When he switched for a right-hand inside, he quickly drove Tokihayate out. Yorikiri.

Kagayaki defeated Bushozan. Backed to the bales, Kagayaki reached over Bushozan with his left hand and pulled hard on his belt, pulling him forward for the uwatenage win.

Kagayaki will face Onokatsu tomorrow while Bushozan takes on Nishikifuji.

Roga defeated Endo. Roga’s right hand was too powerful for Endo today. Once Roga got that grip he pulled Endo hard to the left. Endo recovered from the first attack by batting Roga’s hand away. Roga pursued quickly, locked on with that right hand, and drove Endo out into the crowd for some fan service. Yorikiri.

Takarafuji defeated Wakatakakage. Well, I sure got that wrong. Wakatakakage pressed hard into Takarafuji’s armpit with some powerful ottsuke. This kept Takarafuji from getting a belt grip but he deftly shifted to Wakatakakage’s left, spun him around and pushed him over the bales from behind. Wily move! Okuridashi.

Endo will face Takarafuji tomorrow in the big rivalry bout. Out of their 29 bouts, Endo has taken 15. Wakatakakage will face Roga for the first time ever.

Churanoumi defeated Hokutofuji. Another one that I got wrong. Hokutofuji started out strong and forced Churanoumi to the edge but Churanoumi got inside on the belt and drove Hokutofuji out. Yorikiri.

Asanoyama defeated Nishikigi. Asanoyama hit Nishikigi hard. He locked in on the front of Nishikigi’s belt with the right, maemitsu. Nishikigi tried to keep Asanoyama’s right hand from getting inside but Asanoyama shifted his grip and wrapped Nishikigi’s trunk up with his right arm. He then twisted him down. Sukuinage.

Asanoyama will face Hokutofuji. Nishikigi will take on Churanoumi.

Midorifuji defeated Ichiyamamoto. Midorifuji slapped Ichiyamamoto’s right arm down and this forced Ichiyamamoto to stumble forward and touch the ground. Tsukiotoshi.

Tamawashi defeated Shodai. Shodai tried to slip away at the edge but Tamawashi kept him firmly in front. A quick shove and Shodai was out. Oshidashi.

Shodai trades for Ichiyamamoto tomorrow while Tamawashi will get Midorifuji.

Oshoma defeated Kinbozan. Oshoma hit Kinbozan hard with the right hand square on the jaw and locked on quickly to Kinbozan’s belt with his left hand. He then cycled around to the left, forcing Kinbozan to the edge and driving him down and out. Oshitaoshi.

Sadanoumi defeated Ryuden. At least I got this call right. I thought we’d see a good bout and we sure did. Ryuden tried really hard to keep Sadanoumi’s left hand off his belt. But Sadanoumi worked both arms inside and once he got that bear hug, he quickly twisted Ryuden down. Great Sukuinage.

Sadanoumi will face Kinbozan on Day 2 while Ryuden gets Oshoma.

Oho defeated Kotoshoho. Forward-moving Oho won! Kotoshoho tried to twist at the edge but Oho drove forward and forced him down. Yoritaoshi.

Halftime

Shonannoumi defeated Takanosho. After a bit of a lean-fest, Shonannoumi had enough, spun Takanosho around and shoved him over the bales. Yorikiri.

Shonannoumi will face Oho and Takanosho will take on Kotoshoho on Day 2.

Ura defeated Onosho. Ura kept circling backwards, nearly lost his balance but recovered. As Onosho desperately pursued, Ura eventually cast Onosho off to the side and slapped him down to the ground. Concern for Onosho’s left eye after this bout. Hatakikomi.

Gonoyama defeated Tobizaru. Gonoyama just kept his balance and moved forward. Tobizaru tried to slap him down while in retreat, and balanced on the bales as long as he could. But Gonoyama gently shoved Tobizaru over. Oshidashi.

Ura will battle Gonoyama and Tobizaru will regroup against Onosho.

Sanyaku

Kirishima defeated Takayasu. After a great bout, Takayasu pulled up and Kirishima shoved him out. Takayasu just kind of stopped fighting, turned, and looked for the exit. Maybe his back is acting up? It was a bit of a wild bout. Yorikiri.

Mitakeumi defeated Onosato. Mitakeumi put his head down and drove forward. As Onosato got to the bales, he shifted to the side and tried to force Mitakeumi down. Mitakeumi maintained his balance, kept Onosato in front, and shoved him over the edge. That might have ended the Ozeki run right there. Onosato walked quickly back down the hanamichi to watch the replay. Oshidashi.

Wakamotoharu defeated Abi. When Abi shifted to Pull-Mode immediately after the tachiai, Wakamotoharu pursued quickly and pressed him over the edge. Oshidashi.

Meisei defeated Takakeisho. There was no wave action. None of that overpowering tsuppari. The Guns of Taka-Navarone have fallen silent. Meisei pressed ahead, time and time again, leading with his head as he drove the Ozeki back and out. Oshidashi.

Atamifuji defeated Hoshoryu. Atamifuji gives Hoshoryu absolute fits. I think this will be a heated and interesting rivalry for some time. Atamifuji waited patiently at the center of the ring. Suddenly, Atamifuji pulled up and drove forward. Hoshoryu desperately tried everything he could try, a kick, a throw at the edge, anything… but Atamifuji pressed forward to payday. Yorikiri.

Daieisho defeated Kotozakura. Daieisho demonstrated the initiative today. Kotozakura was content to be driven (chauffeured) to the edge where he tried to reach over and grab onto Daieisho’s belt. Daieisho kept up the attack and shoved the Ozeki out. Oshidashi.

Terunofuji defeated Hiradoumi. Calmly, Terunofuji walked Hiradoumi to the edge but Hiradoumi slipped away. Terunofuji corralled him again, reached deep over Hiradoumi’s back for a right-hand grip and heaved Hiradoumi out. Yorikiri.

Wrap-up

Takakeisho looks done, frankly. Let’s see if he can bounce back from this but he really posed no danger to Meisei as Meisei powered into him and drove him backwards. Kotozakura, on the other hand, was far too passive. He needs to wake up and take the bout to his opponent. He seriously looked like Shodai out there today, “I’ll just pull one of these Acme gizmos out at the edge.” Daieisho was sure-footed today.

There were bright spots. Hoshoryu lost but it was a great bout. Kirishima was definitely spirited in his attack. The kitchen sink might have hit Takayasu square in the belly, though. I hope he is not an early casualty but I will keep my eyes peeled for news. Well, I’ll do that later today after I get some sleep. The brightest spot, though, was where it should be: The Yokozuna.

Looking Ahead

Abi will face Takayasu tomorrow, if Takayasu didn’t pick up an early injury. Looks like Kirishima will have his hands full with Mitakeumi. Onosato will try to rebound against Wakamotoharu but it won’t be easy. Kotozakura will face Atamifuji on Day 2. He’s not lost to the maegashira yet but we know he will have his hands full.

Takakeisho has beaten Daieisho 18 times to 9 losses but I do not think Daieisho will be intimidated tomorrow. Hoshoryu has not lost to Hiradoumi and the light-weight shin-Komusubi might be just what the doctor ordered. Lastly, Terunofuji will take on Meisei.

Nagoya is off to a spicy-hot start! Have a great day, everyone.

Nagoya 2024: Shonichi Preview

Andy Nagoya 2024, Nagoya Basho , ,

Shonichi is here! In just a few hours the familiar sound of hyoshigi will signal the start of action in Nagoya. This is scheduled to be the final tournament in the intimate, spicy-hot Dolphins Arena, built in the 1960s. From next summer they will move a few blocks to the new, larger IG Arena, on the other side of moat in front of Nagoya Castle. The new venue has an advertised capacity of 17,000 so we hope tickets will be cheaper and easier to come by from 2025.

Pivoting to Ngoya 2024, we have two sekitori who are kyujo from Day 1: Chiyoshoma and Takerufuji. Takerufuji is still nursing a ligament injury in his right ankle, suffered during his historic championship run earlier this year. He has fallen to the second rung on the Juryo ladder while Chiyoshoma has just earned a promotion back to Makuuchi. It is quite possible that one or both men will participate later in the tournament. News out of Isegahama states that Takerufuji has not been practicing with sekitori yet, still working with lower-ranked wresters. But he likely only needs one or two wins to secure his own sekitori status for Aki.

Day 1 Bouts

Top Division action will open with bottom-ranked Nishikifuji facing Tokihayate, visiting from Juryo. Kagayaki and Bushozan face off next, followed by Roga versus Endo. Wakatakakage should breeze past Takarafuji as he seeks to rejoin his brother at the top of the division.

Then, Hokutofuji will face Churanoumi and Asanoyama will fight Nishikigi. Hokutofuji and Asanoyama are ranked much lower than their abilities and could clean up down here. The difficult bit is that really seems to be the case for loads of guys. The next three bouts, for example, feature a mix of maegashira mainstays, former champions, and up-and-comers in Ichiyamamoto vs Midorifuji, Shodai vs Tamawashi, and Oshoma vs Kinbozan. I really hope both Shodai and Tamawashi are up to it this basho.

After those heated battles, we’ll have Ryuden vs Sadanoumi, which is a bout most people will sleep on. But on Day 1 these two belt-specialists could give us a real highlight. Next, Kotoshoho and Oho are still trying to find their way. Let’s hope Oho’s way is not stuck in reverse. Takanosho and Shonannoumi follow with Onosho battling crowd-favorite, Ura. The final rank-and-filer match features Tobizaru, who has yet to find an answer for Gonoyama.

Sanyaku

If Kirishima is to get his quest for 10 wins off to a good start, he will have his work cut out for him against fellow former Ozeki, Takayasu. Onosato is also eyeing Ozeki rank, and the Kyokai have put another former Ozeki as the first challenge on that path. Kirishima AND Onosato need wins.

Abi versus Wakamotoharu will be a firecracker bout…while I am eager to see what condition Takakeisho is in for his fight with Meisei. We’ll close out the night with three interesting pairings: Atamifuji vs Hoshoryu, Kotozakura vs Daieisho, and finally Yokozuna Terunofuji will face Hiradoumi in the musubi-no-ichiban.

Frankly, it will all come down to who is in relatively good condition and which wrestlers are still fighting with significant injuries. Shonichi will bring it all into focus. We could very well have a raft of upsets tonight with another free-for-all yusho race.

Lower Division Action

Enho will not begin his comeback tonight. He will be in action on Day 2. We will see Kotomotomura-kun fight his first professional bout against Isegahama’s Miyafuji. From next tournament, Kotomotomura will be fighting under Kotoshogiku’s banner in a newly-opened heya. Up in Makushita we will see both tsukedashi fighters in action. For more background on the men themselves, check out Justin’s introduction. Kawabuchi II will fight against Daishoki, under the shikona Kazuma. Ishizaki II will fight Daihisho. We’ll also be watching the Hakuoho – Kayo bout with rapt attention.

Let’s go, Miyagino Beya! Gambare!