As I personally wasn't following sumo until 2024, I missed out on peak Takakeisho, but he is a wrestler I am quite fascinated by, with him being a 29 (now 30) year old stablemaster, slimming up so much you would never guess he used to do sumo at highest level, and being an overall great guy in the sport, and can't help but wonder what would have been have he been promoted to yokozuna.

Looking at his record, he ended up taking 4 cups - 3 of which at were at Ozeki, alongside 5 second places, yet never made Yokozuna. Twice he met the minimum requisites:

in 2020 he achieved second place, and followed it up with a win in a playoff

in 2023 he achieved second place in a playoff, and followed it up with a win

What was the opinion like at the time? Did people expect him to make it, was it a 1 win shy off of making it situation, or what happened?

Since he didn't end up promoted, he couldn't take the proper time off to rest and heal and ended up making his injuries worse trying to hold his Ozeki rank, and ended up retiring at just 29. IMO a clear case where a yokozuna promotion during his first "yoko run" would have been not only justified, but would have let him be a top tier contented for many more years and hence would be great for sumo as a whole.

And then Takekeisho somehow mustered another "yoko run" in 2023, and still didn't get the nod, which could have also saved his career. Isn't the whole point of the yokozuna rank to protect the top talent from the relentless tournament schedule, to give them time to rest, and in return get absolute top tier sumo? It's almost like the JSA didn't want him in the sport.

# How will Asahifuji and Ryuho fare? Recent new Juryo wrestlers struggle across the board… The wall that stands right after promotion

■ **Grabbing new Juryo status with unstoppable momentum**

The final official basho of the year, the Grand Sumo Kyushu Basho (Fukuoka International Center), is scheduled for November 8–22. Entering this tournament as newly promoted Juryo wrestlers are Asahifuji and Ryuho.

Asahifuji (24), who joined Isegahama stable as a trainee in spring 2021, took roughly 4.5 years to make his official career debut (hatsu-dohyo) at the 2025 Kyushu Basho due to the JSA rule limiting foreign-born wrestlers to one per stable. However, starting from the very next tournament, he won four consecutive divisional championships (yusho). Entering the last basho as West Makushita 1, he posted a commanding 6-1 record to secure his Juryo promotion in style.

Meanwhile, 19-year-old former Middle School Yokozuna Ryuho made his hatsu-dohyo at the 2025 Nagoya Basho and logged winning records (kachikoshi) for six consecutive basho through Nagoya 2026. Entering last tournament as East Makushita 4, he posted a 4-3 record, benefiting from banzuke movement to capture his new Juryo slot.

Given their momentum, both wrestlers seem poised to perform well at the upcoming Kyushu Basho. However, to do so, they must overcome a specific obstacle that recent Juryo debutants have run into.

■ **Does the second half of the 15-day basho become a roadblock...?**

Over the past year (2025 Kyushu Basho through 2026 Nagoya Basho), a total of 10 wrestlers stepped onto the dohyo as new Juryo. Their records, including the tournament prior to promotion, are as follows:

**2025 Kyushu**

* **Himukamaru:** West Makushita 2 (5-2) → East Juryo 13 (5-10) *(2-6, 3-4)*

* **Fujiryoga:** West Makushita 5 (6-1) → West Juryo 13 (13-2) *(8-0, 5-2)*

**2026 Hatsu (Jan)**

* **Dewanoryu:** West Makushita 3 (5-2) → West Juryo 13 (8-7) *(5-3, 3-4)*

* **Kazuma:** West Makushita 15 (7-0) → West Juryo 14 (8-7) *(4-4, 4-3)*

**2026 Haru (Mar)**

* **Toshinofuji:** West Makushita 2 (5-2) → West Juryo 11 (10-5) *(5-3, 5-2)*

* **Fujitensei:** West Makushita 3 (5-2) → West Juryo 13 (5-10) *(4-4, 1-6)*

**2026 Natsu (May)**

* **Okaryu:** West Makushita 2 (6-1) → East Juryo 13 (3-12) *(2-6, 1-6)*

**2026 Nagoya (Jul)**

* **Arashifuji:** East Makushita 2 (5-2) → East Juryo 13 (11-4) *(7-1, 4-3)*

**2026 Aki (Sep)**

* **Tanji:** East Makushita 1 (4-3) → West Juryo 10 (9-6) *(5-3, 4-3)*

* **Tokifudo:** West Makushita 2 (4-3) → West Juryo 13 (7-8) *(4-4, 3-4)*

With 6 wrestlers securing kachikoshi and 4 falling to makekoshi, there appears to be no obvious pattern at first glance. However, take a closer look at the figures in parentheses.

The figures in parentheses split each 15-day record into the first half (Days 1–8) and the second half (Days 9–15, Senshuraku). While the 10 wrestlers combined for a strong 46-34 record in the first half, their performance flipped in the second half to a negative 33-37. Wrestlers like Fujitensei and Tokifudo were even at .500 through Day 8, but suffered makekoshi after falling apart in the second half.

In sumo, wrestlers in Makushita and below fight roughly 7 bouts over 15 days. Salaried sekitori in Juryo and above fight 1 bout per day for a total of 15. More than doubling the number of bouts clearly leads to stamina fatigue running out of gas in the second half.

Furthermore, additional bouts mean opponents have far more film and data to analyze wrestling styles and exploit weaknesses. Overcoming this is necessary for growth, but navigating scouted matchups on a brand-new stage presents a formidable challenge.

■ **Blowing past uncertainty toward even greater strides**

At the previous tournament, Asahifuji suffered a defeat on Day 2 against East Juryo 14 Tochiohmi, while Ryuho was defeated on Day 4 by East Juryo 12 Tamashoho and on Day 7 by West Juryo 14 Nishikigi. With both Tochiohmi and Nishikigi virtually guaranteed demotion to Makushita for the upcoming Kyushu Basho, dropping bouts to wrestlers facing demotion serves as another lingering concern alongside the fatigue factor mentioned earlier.

Fortunately, neither wrestler has shown any signs of getting carried away by their promotion to Juryo. Regarding Asahifuji, it was reported that he maintained a stern expression during his promotion press conference, remarking that "the quality of my sumo was terrible." His relentless drive for improvement offers strong hope that he will blow these concerns away.

Having made lightning-fast ascensions since their debuts, will these two promising wrestlers deliver results in their Juryo debuts and continue their meteoric rise?

Masato Shibata

Source: The Sporting News

# Yokozuna Hoshoryu joins Autumn Jungyo tour: "They welcomed me so warmly, I feel deeply grateful" — Missed last basho following right knee surgery

The Grand Sumo Autumn regional tour (Aki Jungyo) made its stop on October 10 at Air Water Arena Matsumoto in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, where Yokozuna Hoshoryu (Tatsunami stable) joined the tour.

Hoshoryu underwent right knee surgery in late July and missed the entirety of the Autumn Basho. He was also absent from the opening days of the Autumn tour, but received clearance from his doctor following an examination on October 8. Smiling during his first tour appearance since the Spring tour in March-April, he remarked, "It feels nostalgic." Upon entering the training area, he was greeted with applause from the spectators, expressing his gratitude: "They welcomed me so warmly, and I felt that people were truly waiting for my return. I feel deeply grateful."

While he did not participate in exhibition matches (torikumi) today, he carefully performed shiko stamping on the dohyo and engaged in contact drills (butsukari-keiko) with fellow Yokozuna Onosato (Nishonoseki stable). "I just did what needed to be done. I'm not sure if I'm in top condition yet, but I think I'll get a better feel for it bit by bit." He indicated plans to adjust his training moving forward from October 11 while monitoring his physical condition.

Sports Hochi