Dwale

Kinboshi for Ichinojo, and from Hakuho no less. Very nice, and makes the yusho race more interesting. I expect Kakuryu to lose at least two over the next six days. (This wasn't just about his size, or Hakuho's being injured. He took away all of Hakuho's options. You can see Hakuho trying to maneuver, but Ichinojo doesn't allow it. Yes, it might have gone differently with a healthier Hakuho, but credit where it's due: that was solid, powerful sumo from Ichinojo. A well-deserved gold star for him.) Takayasu's arm looks screwed. I'm surprised he was able to drive forward so strongly, even if he couldn't cinch the win. Nice throw from Shodai. Tamawashi is surprisingly aerodynamic.

Chiyomaru did what now? lol...I had to watch the replay just to be sure my eyes weren't deceiving me. Shodai is 4-4, which isn't bad for a joi-jin. The guy has skills, I just wonder if he's ever going to get anywhere with them. Mitakeumi has gotten rather thick in the middle. Doesn't seem to be slowing him down, though, but I do have to wonder how it's going to affect his knees long term. That really did not look good for Takayasu. I hope he's ok, I was counting on him to make things interesting in the yusho race (in addition to his being one of my favorites).

I, too, have been watching Tomokaze with interest. And I like what I see.

Ouch. That must hurt as bad as the loss!

I remember the other day Kinta mentioned that Daieisho is one of the most underrated rikishi. After watching the ring-entering ceremony yesterday, I have to agree. The crowd cheers like crazy for some of these folks, and cheers middling for others. When they announced "Daiiiiieiiiiishooooo!" the crowd was like, "Dai-who now?" Poor guy. If we learned anything from his bout against Hakuho, it's that he has amazing balance at the very least. Well, he's still young and has plenty of time to make a name for himself.

I saw Hakuho was censured for his pre-bout shenanigans and I reckon that's fair enough. That said, it was a good staredown. Aoiyama meant business and was in no mood for Hakuho's crap. Still came up short, but it was a respectable effort. "Today is the day I will beat him," he must have thought. Nope! But keep trying, you'll get him one of these days...maybe.

I'll take what I can get. But until it's over, WHEEEEEEEEEEE!

Woo, busy morning coming over to babysit Gramma and do some shooting, so I wasn't able to post. Well. I guess all I really have to say is that having Enho and Terutsuyoshi in makuuchi has made lower maegashira a hot-spot for entertainment. I really hope these guys can hang around because they're bringing something I hadn't even realized I was missing until they arrived.

This has been an unusually heated basho. Quite a few of the rikishi in the top division seem fired up, which is great news for fans. Just a couple thoughts... I never fail to be surprised by Aoiyama's agility. He has a high center of gravity that should result in abysmal balance, but he's done quite a bit of dancing on the bales in his career, to good effect. I'll never understand. Ichinojo in "scary mode" is always nice to see. Let's hope he can keep it up. Tamawashi is not himself. Age and injuries catching up with him, or just in the wrong frame of mind? Asanoyama gave Takayasu a run for his money. He's been fighting well, despite losses. Lots to admire about this kid. If he can stay healthy then I expect big things from him in the future. Heh, as soon as Ryuden got turned, it was over. You can't generate power from that position and Hakuho is too savvy to get caught by any last-ditch bale shenanigans. And speaking of Hakuho, who is going to give him a loss? I guess a couple of guys have a puncher's chance, but he seems to be focused. Tochinoshin needs to go home and address whatever's plaguing him. I hate it for him, but I don't see any point in his staying.

I'll pour one out for Aminishiki. That bit of sadness addressed, I was floored that Enho was able to do what he did to Kaisei. He is really something special. Ryuden not intimidated in the least by Takayasu and indeed took the fight to him. Impressive. Pat on the back for Asanoyama. Or maybe a "You tried!" sticker. Hakuho was never really in danger, but Asanoyama did pretty well, I thought. Is Tochinoshin hurt again?

Gotta admire Enho even though he lost. What fire! I feel certain he would have gotten his kachi-koshi were it not for that unfortunate injury. That was a wild basho, lots of ups and downs. Already can't wait for the next one. Well, it was fun, guys. Peace.

He has certainly commanded my notice and respect.

Congratulations to Asanoyama who, dubious win aside, has looked solid this basho and done some excellent sumo. It was apparent from the start of his makuuchi tenure that he had a good sumo mindset, but it looks as though he has the ability to go with it. His future could be very bright indeed. You know, I expect the henka in desperate situations (like Enho tomorrow, for example) but I never expected it from Tochinoshin. Although that was so funny I can't even complain. Congratulations to him as well. Takayasu tends to fade in the final third, so if he gets off to a bad start, he's not going to have a good basho. But he has his eight, so, hey. How about Ryuden? Some nice sumo from him this time around. Can't get too excited because of his age (29), but he's been delivering the goods and I'd like to see him continue to do so. Weird tournament, but entertaining.

Mr. Gould has a video on this, with some historical context. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrKrNEveL1I I've watched the footage multiple times, from multiple angles and at varying qualities. I don't see Tochinoshin's heel touch in any of them.

Tochinoshin did not appear to be out. I hope that shimpan gets an ear full from his superiors as well as the press. If Tochinoshin ends up permanently demoted because of this, I swear... Going to be watching English language sumo news closely for word on Enho.

Well, uhh...that sure was a day of sumo. Things had actually become so strange, I expected Kakuryu to lose, and he did. So now Asanoyama is in the lead. I'm just stunned. But, things like this are what make sumo so interesting: you just never know, and sometimes the impossible occurs.

Ah, I'd managed to miss that bit of news.

Good stuff from the little guys today, and Ishiura's coolest win of the basho. Terutsuyoshi and Enho both had awesome wins, too. Kakuryu still looking strong, good on him. Tochinoshin blew through Takakeisho like he wasn't even there! I suspect Takayasu is nursing an injury- something about the way he squatted before the tachi-ai looked off. I don't know, could be my imagination. Glad he managed a win, anyway. There has been a strange vibe to this basho, and something tells me the strangeness isn't over yet.

I agree. But he doesn't.

I had praised Takakeisho for having the good sense to heal up rather than aggravate his injury like these guys usually do. But, here we go again... I did enjoy the shimpan looking like he wanted a handful of Chiyotairyu's gigantic butt like...I don't know if he was trying to hold it away by using The Force or if he was thinking, "Back it up right here, big guy" but it was amusing either way. Kakuryu looked really strong in that bout. You can actually watch it dawn on Kotoshogiku's face that there's no way he's going to win the match. Happy to see Mitakeumi doing well at the difficult rank of komusubi. Of course it might be a different story if the sanyaku were at full strength, but even so, I still have high hopes for him. Last but not least, sympathy pains for Enho. He's gonna be feeling that impact for a hot minute.

Enho, man! I really hope this guy can hang around in makuuchi, he's a lot of fun to watch. And such an underdog, too. Abi looked quite fierce today. I must admit, I am starting to take a liking to him. Same with Asanoyama. Did Chiyomaru just henka? *rewatches* Wow...I don't... Highlight of the day for me would have to be Okinoumi v. Ryuden, just for being so lively. Honorable mention to Hokutofuji's calves, which must be rather strong to hold out against that kaiju Tochinoshin for so long.

According to Chris Gould on youtube, Takakeisho is claiming only minor knee pain. However, it was noticed that his limp seemed to have worsened afterwards.

That looked bad for Takakeisho. Hoping a massage and some hot packs will be enough to help, but...well, we'll see. A fun day of sumo in the top division, better than yesterday at least. Really enjoying having a bunch of smaller guys in makuuchi this time. In particular, I don't know how long Enho can keep this up, but I've been enjoying the hell out of it. I did get some amusement from Yoshikaze's match, but what was that tachi-ai? Aoiyama thought he was Kotoyuki today, but couldn't get the same distance. I guess his chest makes him less aerodynamic.

Not sure whether I enjoyed Tochinoshin's or Kakuryu's win better, but both were a bit of fun. Great reversal from Tochinoshin: I think Okinoumi came in with a solid game plan today and just about pulled it off. But what can you do with an opponent who's so strong they can say, "Actually, let's trade places" like that?

Mitakeumi v. Tamawashi was a treat, especially for it only being day two. Tochinoshin looking strong again. He keeps it up and he'll get those ten wins. Takayasu won, but he'll have to do better than that. A higher caliber of opponent would have punished him.