Nagoya 2022

[Tigerboy1966 1,376]

1 hour ago, Reonito said:

16 hours ago, Tigerboy1966 said:

Time for Kinbozan to order his new mawashi. Given his shikona I think gold would be a good choice.

He should get one more win to make sure (I'll take 3 more, too).

1 more win would take him fro 95% certain to 99% certain... Just looking back through the database I noticed the wrestler now known as Okinoumi got 5-2 at Ms1w in November 2008 and was rewarded with a promotion to Ms1e. Those were hard times... http://sumodb.sumogames.de/Query.aspx?show_form=0&form1_rank=ms1w&form1_wins=5&form1_losses=2&form2_rank=ms

[Rocks 1,807]

6 hours ago, Bakayokozuna said:

In his latest video, Chris Sumo says Mitakeumi keeping his rank is an official thing. Has someone found matching informations or is he getting too fast here ?

Too fast. He clarifies in a Youtube post that nothing will be decided officially to after the basho. 

[Kaninoyama 1,694]

6 hours ago, Amamaniac said:

Robots have more personality than Endo!  And I am not talking about state-of-the-art robots, but those from ... let's say 40 years ago. 

Who knows though. Kisenosato was equally as bland in interviews throughout his career, and then we all know what happened as soon as he slipped out of his mawashi and into a suit in front of a microphone. 

Edited July 16, 2022 by Kaninoyama

[Jakusotsu 5,815]

Something in the chikara-mizu perhaps?

[Benevolance 2,478]

Or maybe the mawashi was too tight? 

[Koorifuu 886]

29 minutes ago, Tigerboy1966 said:

1 more win would take him fro 95% certain to 99% certain... Just looking back through the database I noticed the wrestler now known as Okinoumi got 5-2 at Ms1w in November 2008 and was rewarded with a promotion to Ms1e. Those were hard times... http://sumodb.sumogames.de/Query.aspx?show_form=0&form1_rank=ms1w&form1_wins=5&form1_losses=2&form2_rank=ms

Juryo is pretty competitive this time around. All four new boys have proven competent sekitori so far, and while they are absolutely not safe yet, all J13 and J14 currently got winning records. (Jinx incoming...)

That being said, Ishiura is kyujo and Kaisei is a spent force, so Kinbozan should still be safe. I can see a world where Kanno and/or Roga go 5-2 at ms2 and still fail to make the grade, though.

Edited July 16, 2022 by Koorifuu

[Reonito 1,335]

30 minutes ago, Tigerboy1966 said:

1 more win would take him fro 95% certain to 99% certain... Just looking back through the database I noticed the wrestler now known as Okinoumi got 5-2 at Ms1w in November 2008 and was rewarded with a promotion to Ms1e. Those were hard times... http://sumodb.sumogames.de/Query.aspx?show_form=0&form1_rank=ms1w&form1_wins=5&form1_losses=2&form2_rank=ms

Wow, that's harsh. Getting stuck there with a 4-3 is somewhat more common. Theoretically, he still could end up as low as 5th in the promotion queue (behind Takakento, Roga, Kanno, and 7-0 Oshoryu or Shonannoumi), not that I see that happening.

Edited July 16, 2022 by Reonito

[Reonito 1,335]

32 minutes ago, Rocks said:

Too fast. He clarifies in a Youtube post that nothing will be decided officially to after the basho. 

Here.

[Yamanashi 3,725]

I finally got to see day 7 Juryo.  Akua beat Tokushoryu by sukuinage in about 2 seconds flat!  There wasn't even time for a henka.

[WAKATAKE 2,631]

1 hour ago, Rocks said:

Too fast. He clarifies in a Youtube post that nothing will be decided officially to after the basho. 

That’s where he lets his “insider” status get to his head

[Eikokurai 3,433]

7 hours ago, Asashosakari said:

Athletes are still getting taken out of competitions due to Covid everywhere in the world, it's not like the Kyokai is doing anything special here.

I’m yet to hear of an entire football squad being quarantined for two weeks because one person at the club has Covid, especially now in 2022. That, I would say, is the difference. One Premier League player gets Covid and only he has to isolate, not his teammates or coaches who have been around him all day in training, travelled with him on the team bus or stayed in the hotel with him at away matches. Some matches were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 when a team had so many infected they couldn’t fulfill the fixture, but there have been plenty of games that have gone ahead when just one or two players at the club contracted the virus.

Edited July 17, 2022 by Eikokurai

[Reonito 1,335]

13 minutes ago, Eikokurai said:

I’m yet to hear of an entire football squad being quarantined for two weeks because one person at the club has Covid, especially now in 2022. That, I would say, is the difference. One Premier League player gets Covid and only he has to isolate, not his teammates or coaches who have been around him all day in training, travelled with him on the team bus or stayed in the hotel with him at away matches. Some matches were cancelled in 2020 and 2021 when a team had so many infected they couldn’t fulfill the fixture, but there have been plenty of games that have gone ahead when just one or two players at the club contracted the virus.

Entire cycling teams have had to withdraw from World Tour stage races any number of times...

[Eikokurai 3,433]

17 minutes ago, Reonito said:

Entire cycling teams have had to withdraw from World Tour stage races any number of times...

Yeah? Interesting. I don’t follow cycling so I’m only aware of what’s happening in sports I do watch.

That said, the point wasn’t really about whether sumo is special or not, but how long the policy is going to remain in place and whether there’s an exit strategy. Covid is here to stay, so does that mean heya isolations are too? Most major sports leagues have basically put Covid behind them and only ask individuals to isolate. Fixtures are fulfilled. Crowds have no restrictions. Are honbasho ever likely to return to that level of normality?

Edited July 17, 2022 by Eikokurai

[Katooshu 3,135]

Chris also implies that there was orchestrating of the COVID situation in Dewanoumi.....lol

Man he loves him some conspiracy and conjecture doesn't he - stuff we joke about, he calls serious journalism.

Edited July 17, 2022 by Katooshu

[Reonito 1,335]

3 minutes ago, Eikokurai said:

Yeah? Interesting. I don’t follow cycling so I’m only aware of what’s happening in sports I do watch.

That said, the point wasn’t really about whether sumo is special or not, but how long the policy is going to remain in place and whether there’s an exit strategy. Covid is here to stay, so does that mean heya isolations are too? Most major sports leagues have basically put Covid behind them and only ask individuals to isolate. Fixtures are fulfilled. Crowds have no restrictions. Are honbasho ever likely to return to that level of normality?

True. In this year's Tour de France, individual riders have withdrawn after positives, but not their entire teams, and in at least one case a rider was even allowed to continue despite a positive with a very low Ct. In 2020 and 2021, things were much stricter. Japan has been much more conservative than most other places, and given their death rates, it's hard to blame them, but they've been slowly relaxing (see spectator numbers) and this policy will presumably follow suit.

[Eikokurai 3,433]

29 minutes ago, Reonito said:

True. In this year's Tour de France, individual riders have withdrawn after positives, but not their entire teams, and in at least one case a rider was even allowed to continue despite a positive with a very low Ct. In 2020 and 2021, things were much stricter. Japan has been much more conservative than most other places, and given their death rates, it's hard to blame them, but they've been slowly relaxing (see spectator numbers) and this policy will presumably follow suit.

Right, yeah, so they’re moving with the times. Sumo feels like China in the sense that the Covid policy is the same as it was in early 2020, with little adaptation for the new variants of less severity. I’m dealing with all this zero covid stuff in Shanghai these days, hence why it’s on my mind and I see some parallels.

[Gurowake 3,922]

21 hours ago, Seiyashi said:

Are you also legally trained, by any chance? 

My formal professional training is as an accountant.  Some of that training is a basic understanding of legal issues that could give rise to liabilities that would need to be disclosed on financial statements.

[Leo C 52]

Shodai of course shows up only to ruin the most exciting part of the basho. 

[Yarimotsu 522]

2 hours ago, Katooshu said:

Chris also implies that there was orchestrating of the COVID situation in Dewanoumi.....lol

Man he loves him some conspiracy and conjecture doesn't he - stuff we joke about, he calls serious journalism.

Come on, what he said was the Dewanoumi man who tested positive was asymptomatic, and correctly assessed that asymptomatic people should not be testing mid-basho. 

[Katooshu 3,135]

10 hours ago, Yarimotsu said:

Come on, what he said was the Dewanoumi man who tested positive was asymptomatic, and correctly assessed that asymptomatic people should not be testing mid-basho. 

That's not even correct - what if they'd been near someone with COVID for example? 

'Unhelpful though is the admission of coach Dewanoumi....that his infected lower division wrestler is asymptomatic, which begs the question, why did the stable even test? For sumo never tests men without symptoms in tournament. (Long pause) Never mind. Shall we lighten the mood?"

Eh, don't buy that at all. If he's simply pointing out that testing usually isn't done in cases like this, he sure has a bizarre, 'I'm just asking questions' way of putting it  Why say something like 'never mind' with a long pause and in such a tone if he's just pointing out basic facts and not hinting at something? Why should we 'never mind' if he's simply noting that tests aren't usually done in such cases? It's almost like he's a well-established conspiracy theorist who is once again implying that something is shady....

Edited July 17, 2022 by Katooshu

[Seiyashi 4,071]

2 hours ago, Leo C said:

Shodai of course shows up only to ruin the most exciting part of the basho. 

Au contraire, you could equally say he just made the basho much more exciting. Although Mitakeumi and the Dewanoumi outbreak might change that in a hurry. 

[Seiyashi 4,071]

8 hours ago, Reonito said:

He's got only one trick—morozashi—but somehow his opponents have not worked out how to shut down his attempts to get it. I don't think it'll play higher up the banzuke...

I believe hint, thy name is Terunofuji.

[Katooshu 3,135]

Teru's style is the opposite of morozashi 

Getting morozashi consistently is a skill and not something easily shut down when the opponent is proficient with it. Shimazoumi has one of the best tachiai in juryo in my opinion, coming in low and powerful, getting both arms in, and he strikes me a bit as a lower level Kotoshogiku in his ability to generate momentum off that. However I'm not convinced that his stuff is good enough overall for makuuchi, or at least any sustained presence there. 

Edited July 17, 2022 by Katooshu

[Eikokurai 3,433]

14 minutes ago, Seiyashi said:

Au contraire, you could equally say he just made the basho much more exciting. Although Mitakeumi and the Dewanoumi outbreak might change that in a hurry. 

Depends. We could end up with a repeat of last basho easily enough, with an underwhelming Terunofuji still having enough to take the yusho because nobody else is good enough. Ichinojo surging ahead would be something a bit different.

Edit: Though I concede we do now have the possibility of Shodai escaping kadoban for a bit of narrative to follow.

Edited July 17, 2022 by Eikokurai

[Seiyashi 4,071]

22 minutes ago, Katooshu said:

Teru's style is the opposite of morozashi 

Getting morozashi consistently is a skill and not something easily shut down when the opponent is proficient with it. Shimazoumi has one of the best tachiai in juryo in my opinion, coming in low and powerful, getting both arms in, and he strikes me a bit as a lower level Kotoshogiku in his ability to generate momentum off that. However I'm not convinced that his stuff is good enough overall for makuuchi, or at least any sustained presence there. 

Yeah, I meant hint to his opponents. That makes a lot of sense in an environment where opponents aren't used to tactical counters. 

16 minutes ago, Eikokurai said:

Depends. We could end up with a repeat of last basho easily enough, with an underwhelming Terunofuji still having enough to take the yusho because nobody else is good enough. Ichinojo surging ahead would be something a bit different.

Edit: Though I concede we do now have the possibility of Shodai escaping kadoban for a bit of narrative to follow.

In an alternate universe, Shōdai would almost certainly go kadoban and Ichinojō would have a 2 win lead having defeated all possible gatekeepers. Week 2 would be a walk to the bank in terms of alleged strength of opposition. Shōdai beating Ichinojō not only thins the lead, it makes him look vulnerable, and momentum is a thing in sports.