Kaninoyama

Since the beginning of his comeback, Terunofuji has wrestled 86 times. His record over that span is 74-12, with two lower-level yushos and a Makuuchi Yusho. He has been dominating.

The real Enho finally showed up.

Don't look now but Ichinojo is 4-1. With those at the top feasting on one another, this basho seems primed for another Makuuchi bottom dweller to rise up and steal the yusho.

Terunofuji's win against Shodai, who was looking unbeatable to that point, was savage. The sleeping giant may have awakened.

Interestingly, prior to the basho he said that last tourney he had been fighting too light and that this basho, he wanted to fight "heavy." He seems hell bent on doing just that, trying to meet opponents far heavier than him head on. It's not working. He'll never be able to match his peers in size, even with added weight, so one would think he should go back to doing what got him to where he is in the first place.

His interview on Day 1 after picking up his Makuuchi debut win was a joy to watch. He was completely unable to contain his excitement. He says he aspires to wrestle like Yoshikaze. Add the fact that he's eager to learn English so he can communicate with foreign fans, and he's someone who will be very easy to root for.

Looking at his recent performances, it seems he flipped a switch last November, when he went 11-4 and picked up the jun-yusho, and has been a new rikishi ever since. His issue has always been his tachi-ai, and he has clearly improved that area thanks to noticeable added strength. He's always had Ozeki potential, and he finally seems to be on the verge of realizing it.

Exciting finish with both Ozeki following Futagoyama Oyakata to the crapper. Tomorrow will be a pivotal day, with Shodai facing Terunofuji and Asanoyama, now perhaps thinking about avoiding kadoban more than gaining he rope, facing Hokutofuji.

Potty break. Seriously, that's what they said.

It appears the other rikishi have spent their downtime watching Enho videos, and have him fully figured out now.

Indeed, ex-Kotonowaka, his stablemaster, is in the opposite side announcer's booth today and mentioned the possibility of a return this basho. "Taking it day by day," he said.

The word on Kotoshogiku is a torn left calf muscle. Two weeks required for recovery. If that's the case, we won't be seeing him back this basho.

The thing about Hokutofuji is that he's capable of beating anyone at any time. He just needs a bit more consistency to join the upper echelon of Ozeki hopefuls. it would be nice if he could pull a Shodai and take that next step.

He's underappreciated. He broke the 10-year dry spell of a Japanese-born yusho, which for a time was akin to the 4-minute mile barrier. After he did it others followed, but someone had to be the first, and he was the one who stepped up and got the job done. I hope we haven't seen the last of him just yet.

Wasn't in response to your post specifically. Just the overall narrative about Takakeisho that has been ongoing since his name was still Sato. He was a child sumo prodigy, and has won at every level. He's not where he is by accident.