Public League Leaderboard
Scores from Fantasizr.
Yusho Arasoi
12 Wins
05 Sekiwake #1 West Onosato
10 Wins
06 Sekiwake #2 East Kirishima
22 Maegashira #7 East Wakatakakage
35 Maegashira #13 West Nishikigi
38 Maegashira #15 East Takayasu
Notable Maneuvers
Kirikaeshi. Even when Hoshoryu is having a mediocre basho by his standards, with the occasional dropped match, he can still do amazing things. Like hit Kirishima with a devastating twisting-backwards-knee-drop.
Match of the Day
02 Ozeki East Kotozakura versus 05 Sekiwake #1 West Onosato
This was the main event and the biggest match on paper at the start of the day. At the tachiai, Kotozakura had the slight advantage with a perhaps better mawashi grip with his left hand while Onosato pinned down Kotozakura's right with his left. That made Onosato work to change the grip, and then he got momentum. They danced around in a hard grapple for a bit, until Onosato drove Kotozakura back to the bales. Kotozakura showed his savvy by sidestepping and holding on to spin the not-quite-yet Ozeki out. They gyoji pointed to Kotozakura, but in reality they stepped out at essentially the same time. Appropriately, the shimpan gathered and ordered a torinaoshi.
In the rematch, Onosato very easily overpowered Kotozakura for a rather simple yorikiri win that was a perfect display of his power.
Recap
Onosato's win over Kotozakura does a few key things. First, it gets him back on track after his Day Twelve loss to Wakatakakage. That also gets him his 12th win, which would seem to make an Ozeki promotion a formality. Even if he loses both matches over the weekend and a playoff matchup, he has 33 wins, a Yusho, and a Jun-Yusho over three basho. Over 4 basho, it would be 44 wins and an extra Jun-Yusho. If he wins on either Saturday or Sunday, you can add to the win total and make it two Yusho in three.
The easier path to the Yusho is less about Onosato's win than Kirishima's and Takayasu's losses. Kirishima fell to a signature Hoshoryu power-throw, while Takayasu got a full force Daieisho shove fest. Those are respectable losses, and they are former Ozeki with nice double-digit win bashos before the final weekend. They joined Wakatakakage and Nishikigi at 10-2 as the only rikishi with the mathematical shot at a playoff with Onosato. That's much more of a credit to Onosato's performance than a blemish on any of the two-loss quartet.
Hoshoryu will be the man tasked with keeping the playoff hopes alive for those rikishi and sumo fans alike. He will close out Day Fourteen by facing Onosato. The Ozeki has won their three competitive matches up to now, and they were all by shitatenage. If Onosato can avoid the throw from the best throwing rikishi in sumo this time, he seals an Emperor's Cup and marches into Ozeki status. Hoshoryu is fighting to get 8 wins, avoid kadoban, and prove that sumo is not already passing him by. Hoss might be more dangerous and willing to go wilder than Onosato.
The shape of Sanyaku for November is getting clearer. Takakeisho is going to announce his retirement, along with the purchase of an elder stock, over the weekend after injury issues. That is one space available in Sanyaku and Makuuchi. Onosato will break into the Ozeki ranks, Kirishima is certain to be the top Sekiwake, and Daieisho has 8 wins to stay in Sanyaku. Hiraodumi is at 6-7, so can keep his rank with two wins over the weekend. The top performing Maegashira is Oho, who is on an 8-5 record from Maegashira #2 West. That's a fair Sanyaku record, but nothing is guaranteed. At the bottom of the Banzuke, Shirokuma (who is now out injured) and Kitanowaka already have losing records. Nishikifuji needs to win both weekend matches to stay up.
But the story of the weekend will inevitably Onosato. He has dominated the first thirteen days, and he could lock up the Yusho with a day to go. Hoshoryu can spoil it on Day Fourteen. Whether it is Takyasu or Nishikigi that gets Onosato on Day Fifteen, Onosato can still win in regulation with an impressive record. Onosato was a young star heading into this tournament, and he's going to come out as a signature rikishi for sumo heading into 2025.
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