RabidJohn

I agree it was spectacular, but Enho did not lift and carry Abi out of the ring. Abi tried to jump sideways at the tawara, which is how he ended up so high in the air. All Enho did was lift Abi's leg and push a bit. That's not to take anything away from Hakuho's Mini-Me; he's worked hard for and thoroughly deserves his joi KK. I'm also wondering where that Takayasu has been hiding all tournament. Pity he couldn't have shown similar spirit throughout, as it would have won most of his bouts for him. Normally when an underdog is leading the yusho race, I root for him, but I'm not rooting for either Shodai or Tokushoryu. My ideal scenario is the winner of their match-up tomorrow loses on senshuraku, while Takakeisho wins out, leading to a 2- or 3-way play-off.

Some fantastic sumo today. I particularly enjoyed Daieisho's miraculous comeback and Abi's emulation of his shisho Terao (with the advantages of more height and weight). What about Endo, though? I've been increasingly impressed by his recent performances and this basho he's on fire. Today was no exception. Sad to think, however, that he could have been doing this five years ago if he'd taken time to recover from his injury...

Re: Kiribayama. I found myself in agreement with the result of the mono-ii. He was clearly losing when he made his attempt at utchari, but he bottled it/realised he couldn't pull it off and threw his legs up at the last minute, trying to float a little longer in the air. That's not utchari, pivoting to force your opponent out first; that's just a dead body. Re: Asanoyama. Could he be in for a stroke of luck? If Takakeisho is the only remaining ozeki at the end of the basho, which is looking distinctly possible, I reckon any result that sees Asanoyama with at least 32/45 wins will get him the nod for promotion. Only day 4, but at the moment it's looking good for another 1st time yusho winner in January.

And English (which I had no idea Demon Kakka spoke so well) is a very weird language.

aka rhinovirus, and it is debilitating, if not exactly deadly.

You might be joking, but I've no doubt some elements of the Japanese press will take the opportunity to try getting a bit of mud to stick. Just when I thought Hakuho's rep was on the up with the NSK publicly backing him recently (re: Shibatayama's effective "He ain't done nuffin wrong, so tell him yerself!" to the YDC). Like Kintamayama, I wish this sort of thing could be dealt with in house, but Ishiura put the kibosh on that by doing it in front of members of the public, very nearly all of whom have a camera in their hand at all times, smack bang in the middle of the anti-violence zeitgeist! Distinct lack of wisdom shown there by the small guy, but I don't expect wisdom from rikishi. The only good thing about this is Hakuho was also caught on camera promptly putting a stop to it. I hope the NSK backs him up again by emphasizing that fact.

Was that when the east/west organisation was Dewanoumi-beya vs all the others?

Ushiomaru's career fell within my lengthy haitus from watching sumo, but as a shimpan he caught my eye, primarily because he looked so young. So saddening to hear of his untimely passing. I'm not one to dwell on grief, but that question of Kintamayama's keeps dragging my thoughts away anyway: "So Furiwake will be taking over?" I wanna know more! Maybe in another thread though...

Whilst I enjoy watching sumo, I don't think I do it for fun so much as satisfying a craving for fascination. Sumo hooked me because it fascinated me. I was fascinated that these guys chose to live such a harsh and at times brutal existence for the sake of their sport. Rikishi like Chiyonofuji and Konishiki spoke openly about their treatment toughening them up. It wasn't a secret. So I can sympathise a little with Takuro. After all those years living that life, just when he'd got to where it was his place to dish it out, they changed the bloody rules! Yeah, he had to go, but I can't help feeling for him.

I'm not a doctor but Takakeisho's "torn pectoral muscle" seems to me to be different, and possibly a tad less serious, than the "detached pectoral muscle" Kisenosato suffered. Hope so anyway...

Congratulations to Mitakeumi on his second yusho, but I really hope it's not another flash-in-the-pan result. The bloke is clearly good enough to be ozeki; I just wish he'd get on with it now. A question: how come Tamajiro was officiating the ketteisen, not Inosuke?

I'm pretty sure it's not my imagination that I saw a video with Kisenosato/Araiso saying "Hello*, sumo fans." *Herrow, obviously...

Given the opportunity, a vanishingly small chance due to the sheer unlikelihood of me: a) visiting Japan; b) managing to obtain tickets for a honbasho; and c) witnessing a yokozuna losing to a sufficiently low-ranked rikishi, I most certainly would not throw my zabuton - in disapproval of the loss. However, I'd definitely throw one to celebrate a plucky underdog defying the odds!

After pic after pic of statues with tsuna and kesho-mawashi rendered in stone, this one came as a bit of a surprise. Bit of a manikin vibe for me... My first thought was that 'they shoulda put a tsuna on it', but then I wondered if there's anything in the photos (or if anyone knows) about the significance of the aged looking kesho-mawashi they've chosen to use.

Hmm, you can.