Wakanoho and the new wall

[yamaneko]

Wakanoho with his makekoshi behind him now has a new wall to face...but a wall that he actually would love to reach and climb over...the wall betweeen juryo and makuuchi. Who knows, maybe we could even see him get his first makuuchi bout this basho, depending on injuries, etc.

regardless, at juryo 4, hes pretty much assured at promotion if he can duplicate his effort of last basho, IMO. However, its his effort that im worried about. Too many times last basho he looked hakurozan/kyokushuzanish. After tachiai, two slaps then a try at a pull down. As he goes up the ranks, he will find (as hakurozan will gladly tell him), that this method is not always successful. Hakurozan does not have the physical presence of wakanoho...wakanoho i think should not use this kind of method. He has the size and strength to perhaps be more Roho-ish in his technique, minus the henkas of course.

Lets see if wakanoho has changed his style any this basho. One thing that i cant see happening agian is him loosing by utchari again. Isnt it like 3 basho in a row he has fallen victim to an embarrasing utchari? Someone tell me hes learned his lesson by now!

[yamaneko]

What timing..the instant i turn on the stream is jikkan ippai for wakanoho. And he wins, but looks like a bad injury for shirononami. Im glad it was the stream i was watching and it wasnt clear, because those kind of injuries make me queezy.

[Asojima]

Wasn't particularly clear on the stream just what happened to Shiro. Can anyone with real TV and replays fill us in?

[Ossetian Yokozuna]

( I am here. )

First win for Happy Birthday.

( I hope Shirononami will be OK. )

Edited July 8, 2007 by Ossetian Yokozuna

[yamaneko]

Ridiculous. Why doesnt magaki teach wakanoho NOT to do hakurozan sumo? How many basho of the same crap have we seen lately from wakanoho. It will work sometime, but you only need to resort to that if your old and weak like shuzan was, or cant generate much power perhaps from your legs like hakurozan. Wakanoho is young, huge body, and seems to be quite strong. Why he resorts to pulling 2 seconds into every match is beyond me

[Tikozan]

B-) His bout against Iwakiyama today...what in hell was this? A big jump and Iwakiyama runs through. o.K. it was a henka but it looks very funny :-D

[yamaneko]

i missed it...doesn anyone have a direct link to a video where someone might have recorded it? Dont tell me hes now trying to copy roho!

[Asojima]

B-) His bout against Iwakiyama today...what in hell was this? A big jump and Iwakiyama runs through. o.K. it was a henka but it looks very funny :-D

It was a terribly executed henka. He is lucky he didn't end up in about the third row of seats.

Edited July 12, 2007 by Asojima

[seb]

i missed it...doesn anyone have a direct link to a video where someone might have recorded it? Dont tell me hes now trying to copy roho!

edit: youtube-video deleted. please go to info-sumo.net -> video forum -> day 5 in juryo (last fight)

Edited July 26, 2007 by seb

[Tikozan]

i missed it...doesn anyone have a direct link to a video where someone might have recorded it? Dont tell me hes now trying to copy roho!

I've only see it on the live-stream.

[yamaneko]

the non forward moving sumo continues...hatakikomi victory today...

[Tikozan]

(In a state of confusion...) Hmmm, what do you think: Will he have a chance to make it to makuuchi...

[Oimeru]

(In a state of confusion...) Hmmm, what do you think: Will he have a chance to make it to makuuchi...

This tournament: I don't know. There seem to be a lot of strong promotion candidates. If not this time, then certainly within the next few basho, no? But hatakikomi can only take you so far -- I sure hope he drops this habit. There's so much potential there...

[madorosumaru]

A summary of Wakanoho's Day 5 bout from Jiji News (jiji.com):

At tachiai, Wakanoho leaped as if over a vaulting horse. It was to an extent that his opponent, Iwakiyama, commented, "I couldn't even see his feet." Thus surprising his aite, he easily slapped down the onrushing veteran. "Jump? I like that," said Wakanoho. He had a silly grin on his face even as he claimed, "I really didn't want to do that."

That was not all according to Jiji. Even during the shikiri that day, Wakanoho was seen smirking. That attitude would be considered an insult to an opponent. Critical voices of "What's with that guy" were heard from the spectators.

However, when confronted by reporters afterwards about his grinning on the dohyo, Wakanoho got angry. "No way," he insisted. How strange when everyone at the venue saw it.

[yamaneko]

TODAY is what i envision wakanoho to be. Which is why i liked him in the first place. Strong tachiai, immediately went for and achieved a strong, kotooshu like left hand outside grip that didnt alow his opponent to do anything. He kept his strong grip, and gradually walked him out of the dohyo. This is the kind of sumo wakanoho could do all the time. He so does not need to resort to henka or slap down all the time. As he moves up the ranks, he will find out like hakurozan that he will never get to sanyaku with that kind of sumo.

Good job waka today.

[yamaneko]

So after i see his best sumo in a while what does he revert to? Hatakikomi again. Oh brother.

[Kotonosato]

A summary of Wakanoho's Day 5 bout from Jiji News (jiji.com):

"Jump? I like that," said Wakanoho.

"I like that" is kind of a strange thing to say about a clearly nonsumo-like maneuver. I assume the reporters had said 'とんだ', and he thought they said he 'flew'.

[Kotonosato]

He so does not need to resort to henka or slap down all the time. As he moves up the ranks, he will find out like hakurozan that he will never get to sanyaku with that kind of sumo.

It doesn't matter how bad your sumo is, you can still make it to sanyaku with more wins than losses. The only thing that Hakurozan has discovered so far is that despite henka, he cannot make it to sanyaku.

[Ossetian Yokozuna]

Nishinoshima -

Please say to Wakanoho that I ( we ) beleive in his future wins and yusho.

It can rise his confidence.

[yamaneko]

With some banzuke good will he just might crash through this new wall and make it to makuuchi at low maegashira! Will be interesting to see him go against hakurozan. Perhaps both start with a thrust to the throat, then both pull each other down at the same time resulting in torinaoshi.

[yamaneko]

Which is why im even MORE critical of wakanoho when he displays this sumo on half of his bouts. Unlike hakurozan, i dont think he needs to resort to the pull down. Most guys he could and should be able to overpower. Hakurozan on the other hand cannot generate the power waka can, thus i can see why he feels he needs to try to pull down every now and then.

[Bealzbob]

Nishinoshima, in a perverse kind of way do you think being in makuuchi will actually SUIT Wakanoho's sumo in that the better more experienced rikishi wont resort to going in low but will rather concentrate on their own tried & trusted winning methods which may play to Wakanoho's strengths? Whereas in the lower divisions an opponent might be more inclined to concentrate on someone elses weakness rather than their own strengths ? Or am I talking cobblers ? (Has been known to happen (Holiday feeling...) )

[Asojima]

Nishinoshima, in a perverse kind of way do you think being in makuuchi will actually SUIT Wakanoho's sumo in that the better more experienced rikishi wont resort to going in low but will rather concentrate on their own tried & trusted winning methods which may play to Wakanoho's strengths? Whereas in the lower divisions an opponent might be more inclined to concentrate on someone elses weakness rather than their own strengths ? Or am I talking cobblers ? (Has been known to happen (Holiday feeling...) )

Just the opposite. In the lower divisions, the rikishi are still developing their offensive capabilities, and tend to ignore the defensive side of the equation. In makuuchi, they have honed the offensive and start paying more attention to defense. Wakanoho is too inexperienced right now, and he still has many weaknesses that can be exploited by the more well-rounded Maku rikishi.

[Bealzbob]

So it was cobblers after all (Holiday feeling...) Fair do's.

[kaiguma]

I dunno if he has the ability to be KK in makuuchi just yet but I wouldn't bet against it.

Well, from M16W*** he won't have any room to spare. With his learning curve, a whole lotta degeiko could go a long way.

***Predicition of which I am 95% certain.