18 posts tagged “kotooshu”

The sumo tournament started today in Nagoya.

The big stories for this tournament:
- Koto'oshu goes for a Yokozuna promotion.  After winning in May, Koto'oshu could earn a promotion with a 2nd straight championship.
- Will Asashoryu or Hakuho take the championship back for the Yokozunas?
- There are 4 new wrestlers in the top division:  Kimurayama, Koryu, Masatsukasa (great name), and Chiyohakuho.

The big news on day 1 was the upset losses by Asashoryu and Koto'oshu.  Asashoryu's been fighting a back injury, so maybe he won't be making it through this whole tournament.  Koto'oshu is not looking likely to get that Yokozuna promotion after losing today.

Hakuho and the other 3 Ozekis (Kaio, Kotomitsuki, Chiyotaikai) all won today.
Chiyohakuho, Koryu, and Kimurayama all own their first matches, but Masatsukasa lost.

The summer Sumo tournament ended yesterday with some excitement, when the two Yokozunas nearly got in a fight after their match.  The real excitement was a new tournament winner, Bulgarian Koto'oshu.  Apparently that was good for attendance.  There were 8 sold-out days this tournament, the first time that's happened since the days of Takanohana and Akebono.

The Winner:
Koto'oshu finished with a win over Chiyotaikai.  No big surprise there.  Koto'oshu finished a very strong 14-1, losing only to Aminishiki.  13 or 14 wins in July may be enough to get Koto'oshu promoted to Yokozuna (though I doubt he can do it, and I expect he would need to win a 2nd tournament for the promotion).

The Yokozunas:
Well, they were both out of it, so it wasn't quite as exciting as the last couple tournaments, but an Asashoryu-Hakuho match is always good and this one didn't disappoint.  Mostly because, after the match ended, Asashoryu threw in an extra push, Hakuho shoved with his shoulder, and they had a little stare-down.  Went to see a Sumo match and a hockey game almost broke out.  Check it out:  (match starts at about 5:30 and keep watching to see Asashoryu's priceless reaction when picking up his award money)

With the win, Asashoryu went to 12-6 lifetime against Hakuho and also tied him up at 11-4 overall for the tournament, 2nd place, a full 3 matches behind the winner.

The Ozekis:
Once again (besides Koto'oshu), a mediocre tournament for the Ozeki team.  Kotomitsuki did beat Kaio on the last day to finallyl get a winning record, but just barely.  He certainly hasn't showed much since being promoted to Ozeki.  Kaio also finished 8-7, barely enough to keep his Ozeki rank.  Chiyotaikai, meanwhile, struggled through the whole tournament with an arm injury and finished 5-10 after his last-day loss to Koto'oshu.  It would be nice to see Kaio and Chiyotaikai step aside for a new set of Ozekis...

The Next Ozekis?:
Two strong performances from up-and-coming contenders, Ama and Kisenosato.  Ama lost his last 2 matches, but he still finished 9-6 and won his 3rd Technique Prize.  His wins included Hakuho and 2 Ozekis.  He's been winning at the rank just below Ozeki, but he'll need to start getting double-digit wins to get a promotion.
Kisenosato, the 21-year old great Japanese hope, finished 10-5, including wins against Asashoryu and 2 Ozekis, and won a Fighting Spirit Prize.  He should move up to Sekiwake (rank below Ozeki) next tournament and start fighting for Ozeki promotion.

Other Award Winners:
Aminishiki, by being the only wrestler to beat Koto'oshu in his 10-5 campaign, won the Outstanding Performance Prize.  He may move up as high as Komusubi next tournament.  Toyonoshima beat Ama on the last day to finish tied for 2nd at 11-4 and win a Fighting Spirit Prize.

Young Up-and-comers:
It was not the best tournament for Sumo's young guns.  19-year old Russian Wakanoho won his last 4 matches to eke out a winning 8-7 record, so he'll get another chance at the big boys next tournament.  But 21-year old Tochiozan had a tough tournament.  He didn't win until day 9, and ended up 5-10.  So he'll go way down for next tournament, but should have a good tournament against the low-rankers.

The Rookies:
There were 3 wrestlers in their first tournaments in the big leagues and, sad to day, they were all pretty bad.  The Georgian wrestler Tochinoshin did the best but his loss on the last day put him at 7-8 for the tournament, probably not good enough to stay in the majors.  Veteran minor leaguer Kotokasuga and young Mongolian Hakuba both went 4-11 and are definitely heading back to the minors.

Other stories:
Baruto was the big disappointment, though he did win his last 2 to salvage a 5-10 record.
Takamisakari won 4 of his last 5, but it wasn't enough to win 8, finishing 7-8.
Futeno keeps moving up, though he lost his last 2 matches to finish 9-6.
In the Juryo minor leagues, Chiyohakuho won the tournament at 12-3.  With a name that's half Chiyonofuji (who is also his coach) and half Hakuho, he's destined for greatness.

Next tournament starts July 13 in Nagoya.

 

On day 14, Koto'oshu took care of business, beating Ama to secure the championship with one day to spare.  He had a strong face-off, got a good grip with both arms inside of Ama's, and overpowered Ama, finishing by turning him backwards and shoving him down, landing on top of him for good measure.

With Koto'oshu's Dad in attendance, standing up and cheering with a little Bulgarian flag, Koto'oshu won his first tournament.  It was the first time a European Sumo wrestler won a tournament (7th non-Japanese after Americans Takamiyama, Konishiki, Akebono, and Musashimaru and Mongolians Asashoryu and Hakuho).  He was also the first wrestler other than Asashoryu and Hakuho to win the tournament since Tochiazuma won in January 2006 (13 straight wins for Sho-Haku).  Winning in his 34th tournament in Sumo, Koto'oshu was the 7th-fastest ever to win one.  (Asashoryu and Takanohana share the record, winning in their 24th tournaments.)  However, it was his 15th tournament since being promoted to Ozeki, which made him the 3rd slowest after an Ozeki promotion (Chiyotaikai was the slowest).

Now, talk turns to next tournament and whether Koto'oshu can do it again and get promoted to Yokozuna.

Meanwhile, with the pressure off, both Yokozuna's looked Yokozuna-ish again.  Asashoryu had an awesome throw of the bigger Kotomitsuki and Hakuho overpowered Kaio.  Kotomitsuki dropped to 7-7 (for the 3rd straight tournament) and needs a win on the last day for a winning record. 

Wakanoho and Tochinoshin both won their 3rd straight today to even their records at 7-7 and give them a chance at a winning record for the tournament, but Takamisakari lost after 3 straight wins and got his 8th and deciding loss.

13-1:  Koto'oshu

11-3:  Hakuho

10-4:  Asashoryu, Toyonoshima

9-5:   Ama, Kisenosato, Futeno

8-6:   Kaio

7-7:   Kotomitsuki, Wakanoho, Tochinoshin

6-8:   Takamisakari

5-9:   Chiyotaikai

4-10:  Baruto

Match of the day tomorrow:  Asashoryu vs. Hakuho (for bragging rights)

 

I said the tournament is Koto'oshu's to lose and he tried to do it today.  He lost to his archenemy Aminishiki.  After taking his time getting ready for the face-off, Aminishiki finally went for it and wasted no time knocking Koto'oshu back and out, while Koto'oshu grasped desperately for Aminishiki's belt.  That dropped Koto'oshu down to 12-1 and gave Hakuho a chance to get within one with a win.

But then Hakuho, who apparently has a foot injury from an earlier match this tournament, lost a one-sided match to Ozeki Kotomitsuki.  That dropped Hakuho to 10-3 and dropped Koto'oshu's magic number to 1.  If Koto'oshu can win one of his last 2 matches, or Hakuho loses either of his, Koto'oshu wins his first (and the first championship ever for a European wrestler).

Next, Asashoryu had a chance to give himself a longshot come-from-behind win and would have stayed in the race with a win over Kaio, but Kaio crushed the seemingly-injured (back) Yokozuna and knocked him out of any hope of winning consecutive tournaments.

In other matches, Ama killed Kotoshogiku to go to 9-4 and he faces Koto'oshu tomorrow.  A win would definitely help his case for future promotion to Ozeki.  He has had 5 straight winning records now.  The other 3-loss wrestlers, Toyonoshima and Hokutoriki, both lost to drop out of official contention for the tournament.  Takamisakari staved off his 8th loss for the 3rd straight day and needs to do it just 2 more days to get a winning record.  And my man Futeno won his 6th in 7 days to go to 9-4.

12-1: Koto'oshu
10-3: Hakuho
9-4:  Asashoryu, Ama, Futeno, Aminishiki
8-5:  Kaio, Kisenosato, Goeido
7-6:  Kotomitsuki
6-7:  Takamisakari
5-8:  Chiyotaikai
3-10: Baruto

Matches of the day tomorrow:  Koto'oshu vs. Ama; Hakuho vs. Kaio

The tournament is Koto'oshu's to lose now, after another dominating win over a contender.  This time it was Hakuho, who he beat by nearly instantly getting a grip on his belt, then overpowering.  Same way he's won most of his matches this tournament.  Now up by 2 with only 3 days left, he could put it away as soon as tomorrow for his first championship.
Watch until he heads down the hallway after the win to see the giant smile on Koto'oshu's face:

Asashoryu, meanwhile, fell out of the race by losing to the lowly Chiyotaikai.  Chiyotaikai stepped aside at the face-off, and Asashoryu lost his balance and it was over fast.

Toyonoshima also lost today, dropping to 9-3 and leaving only Hakuho as a contender for the tournament.

Ama looked strong again today, beating Ozeki Kotomitsuki to get to 8-4.  A couple more wins in his next 3 (maybe even one against Koto'oshu) could put him in a strong position to push for an Ozeki promotion in July.

Rookie Tochinoshin from Georgia hasn't had the easiest time in his first tournament in the bigs (5-7) and may be looking at a quick trip back to the Juryo division, but today he was the guy who came up with the Utchari, which is always worth a look:

12-0:  Koto'oshu
10-2:  Hakuho
9-3:   Asashoryu
8-4:   Ama, Futeno
7-5:   Kaio, Kotoshogiku, Kisenosato
6-6:   Kotomitsuki
5-7:   Takamisakari
4-8:   Chiyotaikai
3-9:   Baruto

Tomorrow's match of the day:  Koto'oshu (12-0) vs. Aminishiki (8-4) -- Aminishiki is 7-5 against Koto'oshu, including 3 out of 4 in the last year.

Not sure what's gotten into Koto'oshu, but he stayed undefefated today with a strong win over Yokozuna Asashoryu:

Asashoryu's going to need a lot of help if he wants to win this tournament now.  Starting with a win tomorrow for Hakuho over Koto'oshu.  Hakuho is still only 1 behind, after beating Chiyotaikai today.  If he beats Koto'oshu, there would be a 2-way tie for first (and Asashoryu could be only 1 back with a match against Hakuho still to come).

Koto'oshu would have to lose another, with upcoming matches against Kaio and Kotomitsuki being the best chances for that.

Toyonoshima is hanging in there, too, at 9-2.  If Asashoryu could pull off a tie for the championship, Toyonoshima could sneak in there, too.

11-0:  Koto'oshu
10-1:  Hakuho
9-2:   Asashoryu, Toyonoshima
7-4:   Ama, Kisenosato, Futeno, Goeido
6-5:   Kotomitsuki, Kaio
4-7:   Takamisakari
3-8:   Chiyotaikai, Baruto

I guess Asashoryu enjoyed watching the last match of the day between Hakuho in brown and Ama in black (match starts about 1 minute in):

First, the Utchari, then beating the Yokozuna.  Nice twofer for Ama.  Ama has now beaten Hakuho in 4 of their last 5 matches.

Just before that match, Asashoryu had beaten Kotoshogiku easily to run his winning streak to 9.  And before that, Koto'oshu had beaten Kakuryu to stay undefeated.  That leaves Koto'oshu as the sole leader, 1 up on the two Yokozunas.

Things will get even more interesting tomorrow, when Koto'oshu goes up against Asashoryu.  We could be looking at a 3-way tie for first after tomorrow.

10-0:  Koto'oshu

9-1:  Asashoryu, Hakuho

8-2:  Toyonoshima

7-3:  Futeno, Goeido

6-4:  Kotomitsuki, Ama, Kotoshogiku, Kisenosato

5-5:  Kaio

3-7:  Chiyotaikai, Takamisakari

2-8:  Baruto, Tochiozan

 

If you guessed "No Surprises", you are correct.

Hakuho went to 8-0 with an easy throw of Kisenosato. 

Koto'oshu joined him at 8-0 with a strong win over Kaio.  The Bulgarian needed 8 wins this tournament to maintain his Ozeki rank, and he managed to do it in 8 days.  Not bad.  He's actually looking like the wrestler he once was, who was the fastest ever promoted to the top division and the fastest ever promoted to Ozeki.

Asashoryu stayed in reach with an easy win over Tokitenku.

Toyonoshima also stayed one back, but Toyohibiki lost to drop 2 off the lead.

Chiyotaikai, with an arm injury that's rendering his lame slap attack useless, lost again to drop to a weak 3-5.

Ama won the most exciting match of the tournament so far.  He was pushed back to the edge by the much bigger Wakanoho, but just as he was going out, he pulled off the ultimate move -- the "Utchari".  He kicked Wakanoho up with one leg, and when Wakanoho got off his feet (meanwhile, both are falling out of the ring), Ama twists to the right and flips Wakanoho, and as they land outside the ring, Ama actually ends up on top of Wakanoho and wins the match.  It was awesome.  After all that description, I just found it on YouTube, so here it is:

 

In other news, Kotoshogiku (now 5-3 after beating Baruto today) was featured in an interview segment with a famous female magician yesterday.  In the interview, he revealed his hobby of aromatherapy and rode a bike to a local park.  When they went back to the main announcer, he said to the commentator - some old-school ex-Yokozuna - "Well... aromatherapy, huh?"  And the old ex-wrestler says "Hmm...  Sumo wrestlers sure have changed..."  Pretty funny.

8-0:  Hakuho, Koto'oshu

7-1:  Asashoryu, Toyonoshima

5-3:  Kotomitsuki, Ama, Kotoshogiku, Kisenosato, Futeno, Goeido, Homasho

4-4:  Kaio, Tochinoshin

3-5:  Chiyotaikai, Takamisakari

1-7:  Baruto

0-8:  Tochiozan

Tomorrow's match of the day:  Asashoryu vs. Ama

Today, it looked like Hakuho was barely even trying.  He kind of just stood there waiting for his chance, slapped Miyabiyama on the back of the head and watched him fall.  Too easy.  (But, like I already said, anyone can look good against Miyabiyama.)

Meanwhile, Koto'oshu hung in there with another win of his own in the premier match of the day.  Which didn't turn out to be much of a match.  Koto'oshu jumped to the side at the face-off, instantly got his hand on the back of Kisenosato's belt and ushered him out of the ring for an easy win.

Asashoryu also kept his win streak going, with a long but not too difficult win over Kakuryu.  Asashoryu got a decent grip on Kakuryu's belt quickly, then waited for just the right timing to take Kakuryu out.  Not exactly dominant, but no danger of losing.

The Ozeki's had another up and down day.  Koto'oshu and Kaio won.  Kaio, with an incredibly strong performance bulldozing Ama.  But Kotomitsuki and Chiyotaikai lost.

Baruto finally faced someone ranked lower than Ozeki, and finally got a win today.

7-0:  Hakuho, Koto'oshu

6-1:  Asashoryu, Toyonoshima, Toyohibiki

5-2:  Kisenosato, Goeido

4-3:  Kotomitsuki, Kaio, Ama, Kotoshogiku, Asasekiryu, Futeno, Homasho, Tochinoshin

3-4:  Chiyotaikai, Takamisakari

1-6:  Baruto

0-7:  Tochiozan

Hakuho and Koto'oshu won to stay undefeated.  Toyonoshima lost to Takamisakari, leaving them the only leaders.

Asashoryu and Kisenosato won to stay one back, and Kisenosato faces Koto'oshu tomorrow.

Kotomitsuki and Kaio won, but Chiyotaikai lost.

 

6-0:  Hakuho, Koto'oshu

5-1:  Asashoryu, Kisenosato

4-2:  Kotomitsuki, Ama, Goeido, Roho

3-3:  Kaio, Chiyotaikai, Kotoshogiku, Asasekiryu, Futeno, Takamisakari, Homasho

0-6:  Baruto, Tochiozan

Match of the day tomorrow:  Koto'oshu vs. Kisenosato