The Grand Sumo January Tournament has finally begun!
This tournament is packed with highlights. Especially among the top-ranked wrestlers, every match is thrilling, with fans eagerly anticipating who will win and what kind of bouts will unfold.
The spotlight for sumo fans this tournament is undoubtedly on Kotozakura and Hoshoryu, as they aim for promotion to Yokozuna.
Now, let’s look back at their performances on the opening day.
KIRISHIMA - HOSHORYU
Hoshoryu chose to use a hari-zashi approach at the tachi-ai (initial charge). It seems his intention was to stop his opponent's movement first and secure a grip on the mawashi. Honestly, I think his tachi-ai wasn’t particularly good. His upper body rose too much, and his grip on the uwate (overhand hold) was too deep.
Still, he managed to secure both grips on the mawashi before his opponent, which allowed him to move forward. Importantly, he didn’t rush to finish the bout. Instead, he lowered his center of gravity, pulled his right uwate closer, and destabilized his opponent with a throw before winning by yori-kiri (frontal force-out).
Since the last tournament, Hoshoryu seems to have shifted away from forcing a win with throws. Instead, he is using them to break his opponent’s balance, which is a good sign.
Rather than aggressively overwhelming his opponent, it felt like his focus was on minimizing risks and ensuring he didn’t lose.
KOTOZAKURA - TAKANOSHO
Takanosho’s offensive strength comes from his powerful attacks from the right side and his fierce nodowa (thrust to the throat). Additionally, he has the strength to drive forward when he put his arm under the opponent’s arm. However, in this match, it was Kotozakura who surged forward immediately after the tachi-ai (initial charge).
Even though Takanosho put his arm under the opponent’s arm, he couldn’t advance. It seemed he was overwhelmed by Kotozakura’s weight and pressure.
Like Hoshoryu, Kotozakura also showed an awareness of "not losing," which was evident in his approach. At the same time, there was a noticeable stiffness in his movements, likely due to nerves. Hopefully, this victory will help him relax as the tournament progresses.
It’s likely that Onosato was dissatisfied with his performance in the previous tournament. This time, he must have entered with the determination to reclaim the spotlight.
TOBIZARU - ONOSATO
Onosato employed a morote-tsuki (double-hand thrust). Perhaps this was a strategy to prevent Tobizaru from getting inside.
For a large rikishi with strong pushing and thrusting skills, keeping Tobizaru directly in front and driving him back with tsuki-oshi (thrusting and pushing) is indeed an effective strategy. However, Tobizaru skillfully deflected Onosato’s thrusts by lifting them from below, causing Onosato’s attacks to miss their target and lose power.
Tobizaru then followed up by pressing upward on Onosato’s jaw from the right side, causing Onosato to lose his balance as his upper body bent backward. Taking advantage of this, Tobizaru executed a hiki-otoshi (pull-down) to secure the win.
Since Tobizaru trains with Daieisho, who is in the same stable, he may have plenty of practice dealing with similar tactics.
What Onosato needs now is to focus his mindset entirely on his next bout.
Terunofuji, returning after withdrawing from previous tournaments, faced Wakatakakage, who has finally made his way back to the sanyaku ranks. In their past encounters, Terunofuji had dominated, but.....
TERUNOFUJI - WAKATAKAKAGE
This was the match I was most looking forward to today, but it ended surprisingly quickly. The outcome—and the content—were both unexpected.
At the tachi-ai (initial charge), Terunofuji reached for Wakatakakage’s right arm, attempting a taguri (arm-pulling move). Presumably, his plan was to pull the right arm and secure a left uwate (overhand grip), but this strategy failed. It seemed to me that this was a poor choice of approach.
Why? Because Wakatakakage frequently uses ottsuke (arm-blocking technique), which means he rarely extends his arms fully. Moreover, his shorter arm length makes it even less likely that he would be in a position to have his arm pulled. Trying to execute a taguri under these conditions wasn’t a sound strategy.
By the time Terunofuji reached for Wakatakakage’s right arm, his own body was already off balance. Wakatakakage, without allowing his right arm to be grabbed, quickly inserted his right hand up to the wrist under Terunofuji’s armpit and immediately executed a kata-sukashi (under-shoulder swing down). His reaction was impressively fast.
I hope Terunofuji can trust in his own strength.
Written by 小柳公寿
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