grunching, I’m just now watching day 1 (my son was out of town for spring break) … I would be super pissed if I got a kinboshi and there were no fans to throw cusions
Don’t want to spoil things too much, but your boi Aoiyama is having the run of a lifetime so far.
Chiyomaru’s fever higher today. This basho now hinges on the result of his coronavirus test.
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It’s clear that Dear Leader Trump has blessed Asanoyama with the spirit of winning. Looked strong in most every match, damn near took down Kakuryu. I predict he def at least makes ozeki.
I guess this thing Hakuho does where he intentionally false-starts just to get in your head is going to be a regular part of the Hakuho experience.
Looks like people have started to figure out Enho? idk, maybe he’s just having a bad tourney but maybe people are becoming wise to his shtick and adapting. I think next basho will tell us whether he’ll be a flash in the pan or the real deal.
Asanoyama’s Ozeki promotion is a formality.
That’s long been part of the Hakuho experience.
6-9 by Enho at his highest rank going up against the best of the best is not terrible at all. Just bigger, better, stronger competition. He may be approaching the limit of how far he can climb, but there’s no question he’s the real deal.
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I guess for me it’s disappointing if Hakuho’s understudy doesn’t have a winning record, but of course 6-9 is respectable against the best in the world. It just seems like he was 9-6 for a while and then 8-5 and now he’s dropping to 6-9 and perhaps people are adapting to his style? Seems like they’re waiting a beat and letting him make the first move.
Is Hak still planning on retiring? I know he wanted to carry the Olympic torch and bow out with maximum hinkaku, but god knows if the Olympics are ever going to happen and he’s still winning tournaments. Why not keep on playing? If anyone should be retiring, it’s Kakuryu.
I kinda enjoyed the empty arena, you can really hear the meat slapping together. Kinda jarring when they show replays from previous tournaments and suddenly you have the crowd yelling.
Kakuryu won a yusho last year and two the year before, and he’s still pulling down 12 wins, I don’t think he’s retiring.
guys who should retire: Takayasu, Kotoshogyku and (maybe) Tochinoshin
And Kaisei.
I heard a rumor that the Sumo Deliberation Council told Kakuryu he needed to start thinking about retirement unless he put up some yokozuna numbers in the haru basho. I guess he bought himself some breathing room with his performance.
Competition is adapting to him for sure. But as wrestlers rise in rank, even within Makuuchi, the competition they face day in and day out grows stiffer.
It is almost standard that a first-time Sanyaku wrestler finishes with a losing record, and same with first-time Joi (upper half of upper division) wrestlers. It takes a few basho for them to find their footing.
Hakuho’s still clearly the best, so unless he’s simply had enough, no reason he doesn’t keep on going. He also said he wants to win 50 total. Expect him to hang around a while longer.
As for Kakuryu, he finished runner up and wrestled against Hakuho on the last day for the title. His status is secure for the time being.
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Hope hak stays genki as long as possible and makes it to 50 tournaments. Even though he’s a total heel, you have to respect the GOAT in a sport that’s many centuries old. I like Kak too. He’s kind of the no-drama yokozuna who doesn’t pull heel moves or get into bar fights. He’s so stoic and boring. You just look at him and you fall asleep.
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Couldn’t sum up those two better.
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Holding a 15-day sumo tourney is the last thing Tokyo should be doing right now.
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Well as a sumo fan there’s a part of me that’s disappointed, but of course public safety is so much more important.
It seemed like Japan has had everything under control for a while. I wonder if the info we’re getting from Japan is understating the extent of the outbreak.
They had it under control here, then they blew it. Now it’s on the verge or raging out of control.
Whelp, the May basho has been officially canceled 
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The English-language sumo fandom community have officially lost their marbles. I will of course tune into Tachiai Blog to get updates on the completely simulated tournament run by some lads in Iowa.
https://twitter.com/GSumoBreakdown/status/1259279038381768704?s=20