This tournament, the wrestler drawing the most attention from sumo fans is undoubtedly Onosato, as he pursues promotion to yokozuna.
His Day 1 opponent was Wakamotoharu. Although Onosato held a 4-2 edge in their past head-to-head record, the bouts had often been close, making Wakamotoharu a dangerous foe. They typically engage in kenka-yotsu—a clash of opposing grips—which has led to Onosato frequently losing the sashite battle and being forced into difficult situations. For Onosato to reach yokozuna status, he must overcome two major challenges: Never lose the sashite battle, and demonstrating effective response strategies when he loses the sashite battle. As such, today’s bout carried significant weight. （※ sashite : Inserting one's arm under the armpit or inside position of an opponent, or the inserted arm ）
Onosato’s game plan was clear: rather than getting caught up in a sashite battle, he prioritized forward momentum and pressure. He opened with a double-hand thrust (morote-zuki) at the tachi-ai to immediately drive his opponent upright. While advancing, he forced Wakamotoharu’s upper body up and skillfully inserted his right hand from below—a smooth and effective sequence.
Last tournament ended in disappointment for new yokozuna Hoshoryu, who had to withdraw mid-basho due to injury. On Day 1 of this tournament, he faced Wakatakakage. Despite riding a three-bout winning streak against him, their all-time head-to-head stood evenly at 6–6. Like Onosato, Hoshoryu was up against a formidable opponent in a high-pressure situation.
Interestingly, ahead of the tournament, Hoshoryu and Wakatakakage held 11 practice bouts. Hoshoryu won 7 of them, and reports say he consistently used a strong right-handed nodowa (throat thrust) to lift Wakatakakage's upper body and seize the initiative. That same approach played out on the real dohyo today as well. It seems clear that Hoshoryu had gained confidence and a sense of rhythm from those practice bouts leading into the tournament.
Once on the verge of yokozuna promotion, Kotozakura instead found himself in the midst of a nightmare run, with performances unworthy of an ozeki. The question now is: can he stage a comeback? His Day 1 opponent was Oho. Although Oho dropped from sekiwake to maegashira after a losing record last tournament, it’s widely acknowledged that he's steadily improving his fundamental strength and sumo ability.
Their bout turned into a crowd-pleasing battle that electrified the arena. Kotozakura’s tachi-ai was excellent. From the opening charge, he drove forward with purpose—pressing against Oho’s throat with his right hand and under the armpit with his left, taking strong second and third steps. The initial sequence looked promising. However, several issues became apparent:
1. He misjudged whether Oho was an opponent who could simply be forced out with oshi-based pressure.
2. His tsuki-oshi (pushing and thrusting) should have been used primarily to lift Oho’s upper body and create an opening to migi_zashi(insert the right hand).
3. He ended up in a hidari-yotsu (left-hand inside grip), which is not his preferred position.
4. His attempt to switch grips (makikae) was too straightforward—Oho clearly anticipated it. Before going for the switch, Kotozakura needed to unbalance his opponent or at least use a feint to disguise his intent.
In his post-bout interview, Oho credited his win to "being patient" and "keeping a lower stance."
Although Kotozakura came up short today, this was not the kind of weak, one-sided loss he suffered in the past two tournaments. It’s too early to be discouraged.
Last tournament, Aonishiki made a sensational makuuchi debut, racking up 11 wins and earning the Fighting Spirit Prize. I had been watching him with interest for some time, but even so, his performance far exceeded my expectations. Today’s bout, however, served as a reminder of why my expectations last tournament weren’t as high to begin with.
Comments
Post a Comment