相撲関

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Kotoshoho surprisingly stoic in the wake of his first tournament championship. A man who for many years seemed frustrated by his performances and career. Hoping this can reenergize him and carry him to sustained new heights.

Kusanoooooo!! What a combination! Thanks for keeping things interesting!

Let’s celebrate Kotoshoho’s hiramaku yusho by remembering Kotonishiki, the only rikishi in history to win two Makuuchi championships from the Maegashira ranks, who also hailed from Sadogatake stable.

Musashimaru's nephew, Hikarumusashi, went 6-1 in Jonidan, and should be moving up a division for September.

Eleven wins in September should do it for Wakatakakage to reach Ozeki. I hope to see it, as someone who thought he'd make it several years ago, before the injury. Kirishima, who performed horribly in the second half, would need a miraculous 14 wins next time to hit 33-in-3.

An underwhelming tournament from our new Yokozuna, which is of course not uncommon. Still, the fact that Onosato can do some of the horrendous sumo that he did here in July and still end with 11 wins is proof of a Yokozuna. Even his bad performances will be better than most.

Strong debut from Kusano. Shame he got mauled by that bear today, though.

Today, Aonishiki seemed like a passive recipient of his opponent's sumo, without much of a game plan of his own. Perhaps that was fatigue, or pressure, but I'm sure this won't be the last time we talk about Aonishiki with regards to the yusho.

If you do want to slap Aonishiki down, it has to follow a significant attempt to force him upward. This is what we saw today, and it's what Daieisho has done in the past.

Asashoryu's other nephew, Tenrosei, who joined sumo in January, has gone 6-1 in Sandanme.

Looking back, Kusano's approach to Aonishiki today was almost identical to Hoshoryu's, he was just quicker in his attack, giving his opponent less time to ready himself, and moving him close enough to the edge of the ring for that final throw to do the trick.

I feel like a lot of pretty rough starts are going to turn out to be 7-8s. And then there’s Chiyoshoma…

We’ll see Asanoyama with a colored belt again in September.

I was as shocked by Kotoshoho’s win as I was to learn that he’s only faced Kirishima once (now twice) in their careers?

So, Kotoshoho has to lose twice tomorrow to fumble the yusho. He’ll either fight Aonishiki, and then Aonishiki again, or, if Kusano beats Takayasu, he’ll have to fight Aonishiki and then the “two-in-a-row” style three-man playoff should he lose.

Man, I really wanted Atamifuji to stay in this. But what did I say about Takayasu’s throwing techniques? 😮‍💨