Public League Leaderboard
Scores from Fantasizr.
Yusho Arasoi
7 Wins
01 Yokozuna East Terunofuji
5 Wins
02 Ozeki #1 East Kotozakura
08 Komusubi East Daieisho
19 Maegashira #5 West Shonannoumi
22 Maegashira #7 East Kotoshoho
28 Maegashira #10 East Shodai
33 Maegashira #12 West Churanoumi
36 Maegashira #14 East Wakatakakage
Notable Maneuvers
Shitatedashinage. Ryuden attempted his usual pretzeling, but Kotoshoho held up well and turned the tables. With a careful, slow throw, Kotoshosho won with a nice pulling under arm throw.
Match of the Day
01 Yokozuna East Terunofuji versus 17 Maegashira #4 West Ura
The main event was an absolute barnburner on Day Seven. Ura never really got the Yokozuna in that vulnerable a position. Yet he also made Terunofuji work and work and work. Ura tried an up-and-under; Terunofuji stood up. Ura broke apart; Terunofuji reengaged. Ura went for the back of the mawashi; Terunofuji reached over the top. This all kept happening as they circled the dohyo. Even once Terunofuji got a solid mawashi grip, Ura did not immediately go backwards. Ura lost, but he did make the Yokozuna work harder than anyone else so far.
Recap
Terunofuji's two win margin in the yusho arasoi was maintained on Day Seven. He did have a tough match, but he won in the end. The lone Yokozuna is also the lone undefeated rikishi after one week of sumo in Nagoya. He is bandaged and walking stiff, but he also is looking good enough to win against anyone. Assume he will stumble, because that's always a safe assumption for any rikishi across eight days against the best.
Identifying who can actually threaten Terunofuji in the yusho race is more difficult than guessing he might pick up a loss or two. Just as betting Terunofuji would go 8-0 from here on out is iffy, no other rikishi is likely to win out. The two loss pack was whittled down to seven. Kotozakura and Daieisho both kept up by winning, although Kotozakura just barely stayed in ahead of Tobizaru. Daieisho did unleash a nice version of his tsuppari against Meisei. They both need to run the majority of the Sanyaku gauntlet, although they faced each other on Day One. Daieisho got the victory.
The other members of the two-loss group are a mixed bag of Maegashira. There are two former Yusho winners (Shodai and Wakatakakage), a former Ozeki (Shodai again), and three rikishi establishing their ceilings in the top division (Shonannoumi, Kotoshoho, and Churanoumi). Those would all be interesting stories for a yusho or jun-yusho run, but none of them were exactly pre-basho favorites. They also have all had moments where they didn't quite pass the eye test, because that's the kind of basho we have on our hands.
That ability for anyone to beat anyone keeps showing out. Among the rikishi who gained a third loss was Hoshoryu. The Ozeki went down way too quickly to rival and former Ozeki Kirishima. He is looking like he's fighting for 8 wins at this point, just to keep away from going Kadoban in September. By contrast, Onosato advanced to 4-3 by disrupting Atamifuji's preferred grip and steadily working him out. Neither Hoshoryu nor Onosato has looked like they are aiming for a second yusho. But they also are completely capable of reeling off a win streak. Maybe they will threaten Terunofuji if they straighten out their sumo.
But even if someone aside from Terunofuji goes 8-0, the Yokozuna still needs to drop two matches in his second week to make the yusho race at all interesting. And while Terunofuji has vulnerabilities, right now he is in full Kaiju mode. Something dramatic will need to happen for him to not win this championship. We can hope for that, while also appreciating Terunofuji's greatness when he is competing.
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