Kaninoyama

According to the linked article his opponent for his debut match is still undermined, but perhaps negotiations with Sapp have been proceeding behind the scenes.

Sorry to see Noborifuji go but it's probably for the best. Watched him train last year at Isegahama's training camp in Niigata. Worked his tail off, but he weighed maybe 70K soaking wet and was rail thin. Probably a better future for him elsewhere.

Actually, the announcers indicated that he needed a win today in order to remain in Makuuchi, which he was able to pull off in true Yoshikaze fashion. Glad to see him stick around in the top division where he belongs.

Ichinojo seems to pull that stop-and-completely-give-up move at least once per basho.

Got to be very disappointing for those fans at Nagoya who were looking forward to seeing a live Yokozuna ring entrance ceremony.

Two weeks to recover from a fusensho? Man this guy needs to get in shape!

Based on observations of active or recently active foreign rikishi (as a reasonably advanced non-native speaker): Kakuryu: Near-native (limited mostly to sumo and yusho interviews) Hakuho: Near-native (based mostly on sumo and yusho interviews but also some more extensive pre-basho interviews, TV appearances, etc.) Kyokutenho: Near-native (based mostly on his NHK commentator appearances) Kotooshu: Extremely good when talking about sumo in commentator role, but somewhat less so (though still more than adequate) when speaking on other topics Baruto: Seemed limited when he was active, but post-retirement appearing on TV as a tarento, I was quite impressed with his improvement Harumafuji: Had a noticeably thick accent (based on yuusho and pre-basho interviews), but I believe he pursued a degree at a Japanese university so perhaps is more advanced in reading/writing Tochinoshin: As others have noted, sounds quite good in post-match interviews; can't comment beyond that

He said awhile back that he'd be putting his career on the line the next basho he entered. If he enters and withdraws again his intai will likely be imminent. With that in mind, I believe he'll sit out one more and then give it a go in September. Of course I'd love to be wrong and see him back healthy in Nagoya.

If I had to place my bet today I'd wager that we only see two Yokozuna at Nagoya--the same two we saw this basho.

A similar episode of seating etiquette I observed this basho was a Japanese man who likewise stole some time on an empty cushion near the ring until the real ticket holder came. As he got up, he flipped the cushion over so the patron would have a fresh, clean side to sit on.

So that means both Ozeki, Takayasu and Goeido, will be kadoban next basho.

If I remember his interview afterward correctly, he said something to the effect that he had a feeling right at tachi-ai that Goeido would come charging hard so in his mind his plan was to evade but in fact he ended up pulling down and it worked out.

To be precise, it is Takanohana the audience is cheering for, loudly, along with any association to him. Suddenly, Takanoiwa is also a massive crowd favorite, as well as Takakeisho (far more than I can ever recall them being previously), along with their stablemates, all of who now receive rousing ovations any time "Takanohana-beya" is announced in the arena. It goes beyond the ovations. When Takanohana takes his spot for shinpan duties, cameras flash throughout the venue as the audience goes into a frenzy to get a photo of the embattled oyakata.

There's typically a security guard stationed at the bottom of the stairway leading to the seating below the box seats who checks tickets, but as you mention there are plenty of fans who take the liberty of enjoying the early action from vacant box seats. If you really want to take a shot at the front seating, I would hit the empty box seats early, and then progressively move lower down from the middle, from which you can probably steal some time at the very front until the actual ticket holders come, which is often quite late. In fact, on Day 3, the person to the left of me arrived at around 5:00 and the one to the right of me around 5:30 (!), and likewise, a couple of the box seats behind me remained empty until quite late in the day, so if you get lucky you may be able to enjoy the action down there pretty deep into the card.

Yeah I might have been thinking of the opening day Hakuko-Endo match, which I also watched from the exact same seat. But I will say it is quite a different experience viewing from that area, as you are looking up at the ring from below rather than down from above as on TV, so you can't see the floor of the ring. Everything happens quickly, and there are no replays. From that close up, you really get a sense of not only the strength and size of the rikishi, but their speed as well. And perhaps the best part of being down in the sunakaburi-seki is the palpable energy of the crowd. It is definitely something every true sumo fan should experience at least once, and is well worth the considerable cost.