Asashoryu vs other sanyaku

[Kaikitsune Makoto 210]

For the life of me, I still can't tell if Asashoryu is consistently lucky and in the right place at the right time, or if he incredibly skilled and has the heart (and speed) of a lion. On the one hand, he wins two basho when almost all of the Ozeki and Yokozuna are injured, and his wins since against Kaio and Chiyo and Koto often have a disclaimer attached to them (mostly injuries

Welcome aboard Chinonofuji!!

My opinion is that luck comes along with greatness. Asashoryu is very lucky because of his skill, speed and especially heart. That combination with his bulked self confidence of the moment is a perfect package. Disclaimers about injuries of his foes (in this thread for instance) had to be made because that has been an undisputable fact. As yokozuna he is yet to face genki Tochiazuma or Kotomitsuki, both who have the skill to avoid morozashi and quality to beat Asashoryu consistently and his wins over KaioU do have a strong injury factor involved. Then again he is beating genki Wakanosato and Chiyotaikai well.

On the other hand, Asa has a way of making other rikishi look bad or clumsy, and it comes off as his being lucky. Maru and Musoyama look slow and out of sorts against Asa, so maybe he could have done well against Akebono too? He seems to be bulking up, so he's increasingly less vulnerable to Kaio's thrusts, and Chiyo can't seem to stay fired up for a sustained stretch. And he is a master of technique, including his last-ditch sotogakes. His tachi-ai also seem to be improving. He seems to take his responsibility as a Yokozuna seriously in this regard, at least, driving forward and winning with yori-kiri more, etc.

Musoyama is a perfect example of a rikishi whose sumo is ineffective against Asashoryu whose speed is too much for him. Asa making other rikishi look bad or clumsy is definitely caused by his speed. He often "slips off" from grips with a sudden lateral twist followed by a lightning grip change and this makes many rikishi look slow and incompetent. Asa gains superior grips and positions as a result of his speed and certaiin unmatched wriggling art. He ditches bullets when he is forced back on the dohyo. I think that has been the key element in his ascension to yokozuna and will be in his quest to maintain yokozuna sumo. Situations of being forced into defensive he often counters so fast that it doesn't even seem he was in trouble at all. "I almost beat Asashoryu".

So, my heart is always in my mouth when he wrestles, but maybe that's part of his charm. A couple of basho from now, I could see a healthy Kotomitsuki, Dejima, Musashimaru, Kaio, Chiyo, and Wakanasato all beating Asa easily! But I could also see Asa bulking up without losing speed and continuing to make those split-second adjustments that seal the fate of the other rikishi.

Easily beating Asa will only come into play if Asa suffers a bad injury. For now he is perfect in this aspect too having speed and power without rehabilitation burdens. If Asa continues bulking up without losing speed, his injury risk may increase quite sharply. He seems pretty optimal in size now for his sumo.

[Kotoseiya Yuichi 3]

2) Quick question: are only yokozuna allowed to become oyakatas, or only yokozuna and ozeki? Or can any rikishi with enough money take over a stable?

Daaramu-zeki already answered this one but I'll add here a link to the toshiyori page of Nekonishiki-zeki's excellent site. Here you can see the former top ranks of the current oyakata. An average oyakata seems to be a former sekiwake or komusubi. Maegashira are plentiful as are naturally the ozeki and yokozuna. Take note of Sanoyama... (Laughing...)

[Zentoryu 154]

If you meet any of these requirements, you must then purchase a toshiyori-kabu ("elder stock") before you retire (or if you are a Yokozuna, you have until five years after retirement to purchase one). There are only 105 of these available, and the asking prices are quite high.

They can range from 30,000,000 yen to as much as 300,000,000 yen, depending on the availability of the kabu and the prestige of the kabu name. This makes them even harder to come by unless you have good connections.

[Yoavoshimaru 0]

(Applauding...)

That's from 300,000,000.00 JPY = 2,535,873.74 USD to a tenth of that: 253,587 USD. A lot of money.

But I thought these numbers were highly guarded: how did you find them? :-P

[Asashosakari 20,200]

(Applauding...)

That's from 300,000,000.00 JPY = 2,535,873.74 USD to a tenth of that: 253,587 USD.  A lot of money.

But I thought these numbers were highly guarded: how did you find them?  :-P

Two SML posts (one older, one from a few months ago) on the subject that might be of interest in this context:

Asahi article - 16 July/97

Tatsunami lost to former Tatsunami at court

Sorry to add to the off-topic-ness. :-)

[Zentoryu 154]

But I thought these numbers were highly guarded: how did you find them?

The occasional article posted to the SML like the Asahi 97 one Asashosakari provided a link to.

The fact that it's a privately held and traded stock makes it difficult to find these things out.