Taikoubana

I'm aware, but I thought I recalled some footage from last year's knockout tournament popping up online after the event? Could be wrong. Thanks anyway. Also, it's nice to see Enho on baby-holding duty! He's looking sharp. Can't wait to see how he performs in May after having gone up against sekitori.

Is there no available footage of Kise's one-day knockout tournament win? Or any footage of that tournament in general?

Ah, I didn't know this, thank you! That's more along the lines of what I was thinking when I said mixed-race. 50/50 rather than a mish-mash.

I can't see Taka being promoted even with a yusho at Natsu, but seeing him and Tochinoshin racing for the yusho until the final days would make for an interesting basho nevertheless. And, correct me if I'm wrong, but should Takayasu become Yokozuna, won't he be the first mixed-race Yokozuna in history? Seems like it would make for a nice news-worthy headline. (And would it be the first time two stablemates who aren't related were promoted to Yokozuna one after the other? Not quite so news-worthy, but I'm interested to know.)

I believe that's Nishikigi, but I could be wrong.

Takayasu has looked rather consistent and strong this year after a rough start as Ozeki. He can go toe-to-toe with anyone else in the sanyaku ranks, although the early basho losses seem to be his achilles heal. So long as he continues to improve and train hard, the Natsu yusho could be his (barring serious injuries.) But of course, another hearty congrats to Kakuryu! The big guy looks happy to finally get his hands on the cup once more.

Kakuryu yusho!!! Well-earned and well-deserved. Such a comeback from the Kakuryu of 2017.

Let's not forget: this is Goeido's house! He'll charge when he pleases, hands on the ground or not!

Enho had a great win against Takagenji today. I'm loving every single one of his bouts in juryo, they've all been very exciting. And check out Chiyomaru! He's defeated both Ozeki this basho! Glad to see him improving and making progress. Ichinojo seemed to give up right after the tachiai. Is this the "other" Ichinojo? Has the powerful Ichinojo been replaced by his weaker twin once again? And the yusho race heats up again! There goes Kakuryu's zensho. Wonderful bout, though; it reminded me of the classic Hakuho vs Harumafuji bouts.

Oof, I had a dramatic fall from yesterday to today. The lead felt nice while it lasted! Fingers crossed that Panda-zeki can bring it back in the final days and manage to KK.

With Kakuryu now sole leader, I gotta say, I'm really rooting for him to get his first zensho yusho. His sumo might not have been ideal in every bout, but at the end of the day, he's still gotten the win. Seeing him go 15-0 would really revitalize the Yokozuna spirit that lingers in the air of sumo. With so many Yokozuna kyujos in the past year, a lot of that spirit has been missing, especially during bashos. Today is Ichinojo vs Kakuryu. Should be very interesting!

One would expect Goeido to have a more respectable demeanor and fighting style in his hometown. And one would be setting their expectations far too high.

You would think, after the Harumafuji scandal, the witnessing rikishi would learn that making an effort to stop it keeps them out of hot water much better than not stopping it. But this probably goes to show how much violence happens behind doors. They're so used to it that they just let it happen and don't realize how bad that makes them look when it's in public.

He reminds me of Tuxedo Mask. He swoops in, does nothing, then leaves.

I planned on waiting until the end of the basho to put my two cents in about Enho's performance, but wow. That match against Takanoiwa has to be one of my favorite bouts I've ever witnessed. When he loses, he doesn't just lose. He goes down fighting tooth and nail. He puts in 110% and he doesn't give up. And he adapts to the match as it plays out, using every technique he can to get his opponent down or out. He may drop back to makushita after this, but I have no doubt that he has a long and bright future as a sekitori. Once he gains some weight and strengthens his lower body, he'll be a force to be reckoned with, even for the biggest of opponents. (A future bout between Enho and Ichinojo would be a spectacular sight.)

How on earth did Myorgiryu win that one? He was down before Aoiyama's foot stepped out. Aoiyama definitely won. In the very least, why wasn't there a mono-ii?

Kakuryu, Shohozan, Kaisei, Ikioi, and Aoiyama ... Five rikishi I was not expecting to be in the lead going into day 5. But I gotta say, I'd love to see Ikioi go 8-0. If Kaisei or Aoiyama somehow yusho, that would be very impressive and unprecedented back-to-back yushos by foreigners in the maegashira ranks. But I'm guessing that all the ones in the lead right now will falter in the second week, and the top contenders with 1 loss (Mitakeumi, Ichinojo, etc.) will reclaim the lead.

Ichinojo's looking strong! I could see only Kakuryu or Goeido stopping him, and that's taking into account that Kakuryu will be in for all 15 days. Poor Takayasu. Hopefully he can rebound from back-to-back losses and at least KK so he won't go kadoban again.

If day 1 is any indicator, we'll be having another Kakuryu vs. Tochinoshin basho. But day 1 is almost never any indicator. So I'm interested who we'll actually be seeing in the yusho race by day 8. (Maybe Ichinojo vs. Tochinoshin this time?)

Team: Mitakeumi, Takarafuji, Hokutofuji, Shohozan, Asanoyama, Homarefuji, Mitoryu, Enho, Wakatakakage, Chiyonoumi, Kizaki, Yamaguchi, Jokoryu, Nishikifuji, Tanabe Alternate: Daishomaru Tiebreaker Team: Takekaze and Kizenryu

He's late for his match!

I think names like Aoi and Akua, which just sound like regular words ('blue' and 'aqua'), even when they have very different kanji like in the case of Yuki (neither of his kanji mean 'snow', but his name sounds just like it), are deserving of a change. I know they tend to stand out and that's what they're probably aiming for when they choose those shikona, but part of the appeal of sumo to me is how unique all the names are. They rarely sound like any Japanese name you'd hear on TV. Other than that, maybe Hidenoumi? He's my favorite rikishi in juryo, but I've always found his name difficult to say. But the yobidashi probably have an easier time than me. And I agree, any very short shikona needs an upgrade unless it's a pretty darn good shikona.

I believe the photo is a parody of a poster from the widely popular anime film, Your Name.

Dang, Enho really made it! I knew he'd rise up quickly, but this is quite an accomplishment. I expect a MK, but let's hope it's not too much of one. Though who knows? Could he get double digit wins? His short stature really will be his downfall in his climb to sanyaku, unless he pulls out skills and techniques unlike anything the sumo world has seen before. Perhaps he'll become Mainoumi 2.0: Quicker, stronger, and smarter.

I'm on board with Takayasu being the next Yok -- I started watching sumo near the end of 2016 and I knew Kisenosato would be the next Yok despite I knew almost nothing about sumo. After he was promoted, I immediately placed my bets on Takayasu. And unless the other hopefuls surprise me, that's where I'm keeping my bets. But I also believe that it could be a year, or even three years until then. Although, I think it would be bittersweet for Hakuho to retire in 2020 without any definitive, promising rikishi (who is clear Yokozuna material) in the top division. He wants to be defeated by someone better than him before his time comes. It would be nice if that wish could come true, both for Hakuho, and for us sumo fans. Let the big guy go out with a bang of an even bigger guy in his place.