Bilu

Indeed, hilarious captions!

Mr. Kintamayama - are you planning your intai? (Yusho winner...)

Mr. Loh! Loved your writing! Much more than your artwork, dare I say. ;-) As for my profile image - it is not me - it's the renowned Canadaian singer/writer Leonard Cohen. And the cow in my avatar - don't mess with the cow! :-) BTW - If you listen more to 70s music - you know who she is..

If he won fare-and-square - then your point (i.e. let him stay until he's toppled) has its merit. The problem is that he obviously employs back-scratching techniques for some of his wins and thus keeps his rank. (BTW - maybe this technique should be added as a new kimarite (On the banzuke...) ) ..And, I'm not sure what mark will he leave upon retirement... Many people may remember his era of disgrace and the undignified manner in which he accomplished his records...

Kaio is becoming more and more a disgrace to the rank of Ozeki. This is very sad as he once was a great Ozeki and he used to embody sumo in body and spirit. The reason he's becoming a disgrace is pretty simple: he doesn't know when to step down. He will finish this basho - at best - with a 9-6. And this basho is considered a good one for him. Asashoryu got so much criticism for dishonoring the rank of Yokozuna. Most of it was legit. However, I haven't read any comment by anyone from the sumo establishment regarding Kaio. The point is that an Ozeki is shouldering the legacy of sumo along with the Yokozuna. To a lesser degree, but still. Kaio - for at least 3 years now - does nothing but to hang in there. It's the responsibility of an Ozeki to compete for the yusho at least once in a few bashos. It's the responsibility of an Ozeki to win against a Yokozuna once in a few bashos (or at least give him a good run for the money). It is the responsibility of an Ozeki to fight in a spirited and dignified manner. If he doesn't - he just blemishes his rank and sumo. An Ozeki shouldn't just hang in there. His popularity has nothing to do with it - Asashryu is popular but that doesn't stop the criticizm. His seniority has nothing to do with it - it only means he has more responsibility. If he wants to hang in there for the rest of eternity, then he can stop the scratching, lose his rank in two bashos, and continue from there. Takanonami did that (lost his rank) and fought on for a year or two, and was very much respected.

Hmm.. If Osh loses to Kaio, and later loses to the two Yokozunas, this leaves him vulnerable, at 7-7. (I'm sure Osh doesn't expect to win against the Yokozunas - though he might). The smart OBSC Ozeki goes a long way to avoid Kadoban. Who knows what happens next basho. Maybe he's injured, maybe the other Ozekis can't help... The OBSC rule states that if one needs the win much more than the other - he'll win. Osh really needs this one. Kaio doesn't. Osh wins. But I'll wait patiently to your morning coffee. ;-) PS Kaio doesn't give a damn about disproving the theory: - First, he's not reading this forum ;) - Second, he can never be caught, assuming the OBSC is not formal in any way (i.e. it's a gentlemen agreement). - Third, Kaio had so many bad losses the last couple of years, so no loss whatsoever can make him look bad more than already expected of him.

Ok, rising up to your challenge! If Osh loses tomorrow to Kaio - I solemnly declare I will never mention 'OBSC' ever again. (Sign of approval...)

Ooops.. missed this one! My money on Osh, too.

He is not... Your last two predicitions has nothing to do with the OBSC. Myabe you should move them to another thread (Sign of approval...) Anyway, not a lot of need for OBSC this basho: Kaio already KK, Osh needs just one more. However, if Mickey faces Taikai needing a win for KK - then you should get your motor running..

As far as I could tell Harumafuji did henka... 'Heady' sumo is not the best way to 'pay' back..

No, the theory can be stated roughly as: If one of the two Ozekis needs the win MUCH more than the other - he'll win. If the above condition isn't met - the outcome cannot be predicted. All the stats just proves that: - The current Ozeki crop is mediocre (if not less than that). - None of them is significantly above the others. - Their results in the last 3 years are not at par with results expected from Ozekis (i.e. who do not scratch backs). All the above was written TIC, of course. (Sigh...)

..And just to hammer this nail down, here are some numbers of Ozekis of the near past: Takanonami (Ozeki in 1994-1999): High: 2 times 14-1, 8 times 12-3, 5 times 11-4 Low: 5 MK, 8 times 9-6, 4 times 8-7 Kaio (2000/09-2004/11 - 26 bashos) High: 4 times 13-2, 4 times 12-3, 5 times 11-4 Low: 6 MK, 1 time 9-6, 0 times 8-7, 1 time 7-8 Chiyotaikai (1999/03-2004-03 - 31 bashos) High: 1 time 14-1, 2 times 13-2, 2 times 12-3, 6 times 11-4 Low: 5 MK, 3 times 9-6, 1 time 8-7, 1 time 7-8 These 3 had much better high scores. It's interesting to note, that they also had more MKs, but far less 9-6 and 8-7.

Let's take these one by one: Well, this one doesn't need an answer, does it? None of them except Osh in May 2008 has won a Yusho in the last 120 years. This is also quite true: Osh - except for his 14-1 mentioned above, when was the last time he won more than 10? Answer: November.... 2005. Thing is - he was a sekiwake back then (he was promoted right after this basho). Mickey - when was the last time he won more than 11? Answer: July....... 2007. Incidentally, he was a... sekiwake(!) back then and was promoted right after. Chiyotaikai - won more than 10 only twice (11 both times) during the last 5 years. Kaio - last time he won more than 10 is Nov. 2004. Harumafuji - I'm leaving him out, as he's fresh and, most likely, not an OBSC member. Now, let's take the MK persepective (last 3 years - 18 bashos): Osh - 2 MK, 6 times 8-7, 6 times 9-6 Mickey (since 2007/09 - 9 bashos) - 1 MK, 3 times 8-7, 1 time 9-6 Chiyotaikai - 3 MK, 3 Times 8-7, 7 times 9-6 Kaio - 3 MK, 7 times 8-7, 5 times 9-6 This is because Jejima got a bit carried away this time. Classic OBSC theory is more concise and its predictions are almost 100% accurate (e.g. Gernobono predictions mentioned in post above). [Edit] And two more comments: 1. Mickey has a slightly better record than the rest. However, he's dragged in to help his heya-mate. 2. Its interesting to note how many times did any of the Ozekis scored 7-8 (in the last 3 years). Bear in mind - the 4 of them had 19 times 8-7 in the past 3 years. The answer: Once. Chiyotaikai in March 2007.

Who is this 'flashy' commentator?

Probably still more famous for the hissy-fit he threw on this forum when people insinuated that he's stretching the term "likeness" beyond commonly accepted limits with his caricatures... It would appear from this thread that people not previously exposed to his artwork still generally get that same impression. (Sigh...) And add 'poor taste' to that..