Day 15 Recap

The record books will read that Onosato won the Natsu yusho with room to spare, earning his Yokozuna promotion. No one will ever denigrate a 14-1. That’s a great score, and he earned the yusho two days early. Still, on Day Fifteen, Hoshoryu asserted himself. Perhaps Hoshoryu has shown how to beat Onosato by getting sideways and throwing him. Of course, very few rikishi are as good at getting sideways and throwing much larger men than the Yokozuna.

Hoshoryu’s final win does more than earn bragging rights over his soon-to-be fellow Yokozuna. He also earned a tie for the Jun-Yusho with Wakatakakage by getting 12 wins. 12 wins has won a yusho, or at least earned a playoff, in four of the last six basho. Hoshoryu had some stumbles in this tournament, but he gave Yokozuna worthy sumo apart from Days 3 and 4. Hoshoryu is just a little more than a year older than Onosato, and this rivalry is likely to define sumo for the next little bit.

There were also four rikishi awarded special prizes on the final day. However, the Outstanding Performance prize was not given. Kirishima and Wakatakakage share the Technique Prize, while Aonishiki and Sadanoumi both earned a fighting spirit prize. Kirishima lost, but his 11 wins give some hope for a second Ozeki run getting kicked off. Wakatakakage’s 12 would make his Ozeki chances slightly better. Meanwhile, Aonishiki proved he is ahead of most Maegashira. Sadanoumi simply demonstrated he can still compete at 38, although he did lose to Aonishiki on Day Fifteen.

One of the subplots of this Natsu basho was that Sanyaku performed quite well while upper Maegashira got blasted aside. This will create some odd situations for promotions in July. Only Takayasu among the titled ranks had a losing record. The highest-ranked Maegashira with a winning record was Maegashira #5 East Oshoma thanks to his final day win over Abi. Presumably, he’ll make his Sanyaku debut next time out. Where the vast section of losing records land everyone who was in Maegashira will be interesting to watch.

In the future, this will still go down as Onosato’s basho. His performance over all fifteen days showed that he has not only earned a Yokozuna promotion but possibly reached a new level of sumo. His fighting was confident, powerful, and nearly impossible for most to beat. He should be the favorite going into July, although Hoshoryu also proved he will be a contender. For the first time in four years, we’ll have more than Yokozuna. They’ll also both be in their prime and healthy, which is another welcome change.

Notable Maneuvers

Shitatenage. Aonishiki versus Sadanoumi is youth versus experience to the extreme. And yet it was the youngster Aonishiki who executed the excellent underarm throw for an eleventh win.

Match of the Day

01 Yokozuna East Hoshoryu versus 02 Ozeki East Onosato

Practically speaking, this match did not really matter. Yet the tension was high going into the Natsu basho’s finale, a preview of what will be a Yokozuna versus Yokozuna battle from July onwards. As Onosato has done most of this basho, he absorbed a blow from Hoshoryu at the tachiai. Then he got a solid hold and began moving Hoshoryu backwards. Hoss proved why he is one of the best by moving sideways while holding on to Onosato, then unleashing a nifty uwatehineri, or twisting under-arm throw. Onosato might have the yusho and the rope, but Hoshoryu still has his number.