Public League Leaderboard
Scores from Fantasizr.
Yusho Arasoi
10 Wins
01 Yokozuna East Terunofuji
8 Wins
02 Ozeki #1 East Kotozakura
7 Wins
03 Ozeki #1 West Hoshoryu
20 Maegashira #6 East Takanosho
28 Maegashira #10 East Shodai
33 Maegashira #12 West Churanoumi
36 Maegashira #14 East Wakatakakage
Notable Maneuvers
Uwatenage. Onosato is an extremely talented young rikishi with textbook size. And Kotozakura met his tachiai, grabbed the mawashi, and unleashed a perfect overarm throw.
Match of the Day
Sometimes it's all about the little moments. Takakeisho got teh tachiai he wanted, low and hard with a shove that got Abi standing high. That negated Abi's two-arm thrusts and sent him backwards. Yet, at the edge, Abi kept his foot just on the tawara as Takakeisho gave one final shove and Abi slapped his back. The gyoji pointed to the Ozeki, but a mono-ii reversed it when replay showed Abi never touched out.
Recap
Terunofuji got is 10th straight win, which means he is in double digits for the Nagoya basho. He also keeps his two win cushion in the yusho race, with only Kotozakura at 8-2. The Ozeki showed Onosato he still needs one or two refinements to consistently win at the very highest levels. Kotozakura feels like a worthy roadblock for Terunofuji when it comes to the end of the basho. Still, he needs someone else to come in as a second roadblock.
Hoshoryu had another excellent moment on Day Ten, beating Shonannoumi with a nice leg trip throw in their first ever meeting. Hoshoryu's problem has once again been consistency. While he has looked like a strong Ozeki at many points this basho, he has also already dropped three bouts. He will get a chance to possibly give himself a yusho shot, since he is guaranteed a match with both Terunofuji and Kotozakura. That's a nice benefit of being Ozeki, you get to see the main yusho contenders.
Speaking of Ozeki, it's getting close to guaranteed Kotozakura and Hoshoryu will be the only ones in September. Kirishima's loss to Terunofuji, his 12th straight against the Kaiju, means he now needs to win out in Nagoya for his 10 wins that return him to sumo's second rank. He has already seen Hoshoryu, Takakeisho, Hiradoumi, and Onosato, as well as the Yokozuna. But Day Eleven has him face Kotozakura, and he would also still have a difficult slate to win out from for someone who has been even so far.
Takakeisho has one more loss to pick up before he gets demoted to Sekiwake. He has an even tougher road than Kirishima, though. His fellow Ozeki and the Yokozuna are still theoretically on his dance card. His under .500 record may mean he doesn't see the other top-rankers. Yet that usually happens when an upstart Maegashira is threatening the yusho. That isn't really happening this basho. Takakeisho looks like he needs to go 4-1 against the very toughest opponents. He also still needs to face Onosato, who will not get his Ozeki promotion this basho, but would love a winning record in his Sekiwake debut.
And above all that is Terunofuji. There is almost more drama in seeing if he can go 15-0 than seeing if anyone will challenge him. That is especially true if this may be his last basho. The way the Yokozuna is fighting this tournament makes it seem like he's still the best when he's healthy enough. He's definitely healthy enough this tournament.
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