Thorbjarn

I would say Mitakeumi is, he is one win ahead and is the only one who can decide his own fate. Plus Terunofuji is definitely injured. Abi did what he did in November, only this time he was able to keep it up, probably aided a little by Terunofuji's knees. Hoshoryu seemed LIVID, but maybe he has just inherited his uncle's scowl.

I'm kind of embarrassed and shocked, but I really didn't realize that Kotonowaka is still kind of in the race aswell. Let's see what Abi will do... Mitakeumi looked good, Takarafuji looked to be giving up in the end, but he withstood that initial charge of Mitakeumi that nobody had any answers for in week 1. With Mitakeumi having secured 32 wins, staying in contention until the final day AND being a proven commodity among sanyaku, he might actually have a shot at getting promoted. At the very least this is his most serious go at Ozeki yet despite the two Yusho he scored at Sekiwake before. Edit: With the end of the Hoshoryu vs Shodai bout I have to ask the stupid question... Is the gyoji actually allowed to call a torinaoshi himself?

Oho's tournament trajectory is very much like Enho's was when he debuted. Lots of Matchpoints, yet no kachi koshi so far. He appears to have grown unsure of himself and his sumo all of the sudden.

Damn, some of the landings today were ugly. And two times Rikishi hopped off the dojo to make sure their opponents were ok.

This Basho is amazing. So many lively bouts, so much action. Mitakeumi had to bad losses, but came back with good wins each time. Terunofuji looks banged up, but managed a good win nonetheless. Abi is still threatening. We'll see how this goes. Gods bless the font day, btw.

Mitakeumi's loss didn't look good and I was feeling a little down, then Abi and Meisei lifted up my spirits. Which then dropped a bit when the Yokozuna looked injured. Aside from Mitakeumi's loss today, this is still the furthest he has come on an actual Ozeki run in my estimation. I now hope he piles on two more wins.

It took him 10 days, but Mitakeumi finally made it to Weak 2. I hope he bounces back, but that was a bad loss, tbh. It was fun while it lasted, but we will see how he deals with a first setback. Lots of exciting bouts once more! Tournament is fun to watch.

Yeah, Okinoumi is always the guy to go straight forward into Terunofuji, he might have a bit of momentum for a second, then gets yorikiried out of the ring. No sideways moments at all. It's kind of admirable that he tries winning like he does, but it's also lunacy, since it has been proven time and again to not work.

Shodai has a tendency to be really upright in his bouts. It's valid criticism. Terunofuji v Okinoumi went like every match between the two of them over the last tournaments. You won't beat the Yokozuna like this.

Lightning quick Ashitori by Ura. Good start into Week 2, week 1 wasn't catastrophic... Maybe he has a shot at a KK.

Daeisho as tough a customer as expected, but Mitakeumi goes to 8-0. Tomorrow he will face Okinoumi, whom he has a quite even head to head record with. Also, week 2, so... Yeah... I have no idea how this will go

Matches like this make me wonder if Wakatakakage is pound for pound the strongest Rikishi. The way he brushed Ichinojo aside looked so easy. And yeah, that landing by Tamawashi and the reaction afterwards looked really painful.

Unexpected kimarite (okuritaoshi) for Onosho vs Chiyonokuni. Chiyonokuni is definetly far from 100%, his legs buckled nearly all match basically.

Hoshoryu came with a great game plan and a ridiculously explosive start, Abi didn't stand a chance.

Since Terunofuji returned to Makuuchi, Mitakeumi was able to beat him exactly once by keeping him off the Mawashi, otherwise he went straight into Yotsu and lost every damned time. I expect no different this time. Terunofuji to me hasn't looked much different than in most of his tournaments since his return. He seems to be the strongest fighter, but he is prone to quick footwork. He knows he has the power and resolve to win most of the time when he gets the belt, so he allows Oshi attacks and withstands them to try and get a good grip. Mitakeumi is good in every department, but I tend to think he is not great in any. His Oshi attacks generally aren't enough to keep the Yokozuna off the belt, his wrestling is not technical enough to overcome Terunofuji's power. And out-muscling Terunofuji is not going to be the way to go for anyone in Makuuchi right now.

This Mitakeumi is amazing. When will the OTHER Mitakeumi show up?

My guess would always be Covid at the moment. Tochinoshin looked convincing for a change. I really like to see Chiyoshoma loose btw. No idea why, but he seems so unlikeable.

This is very true. When Oho started, he seemed to rely solely on Oshi with some quick progress, then it stalled, but he seemed more focused on becoming more rounded. This is not a fat joke, btw. I hope his progress will be steady. Mitakeumi is at his best, setting up everyone including himself for disappointment. I will not even start discussing the O-stuff until Master M hits double digits. Another day of fun Sumo for me. Kaisei's Banzai Drop was good stuff aswell.

Good matches today. Mitakeumi is setting himself and everyone else up for failure. Ura and Terunofuji with another great and entertaining match. Terunofuji's matches have been fun so far.

Reminds me of a football tournament a few years back where the whole street me and my then-gf lived in started fireworks and motorcades because of a last minute winner while we still had a minute of the match left.

Hoshoryu swept down Chiyoshoma with authority. Exciting match.

Not arguing it at all. It wasn't a Y-Y though and it was after Futahaguro and before Kisenosato.

Actually, Kakuryu was. I agree with you that Takakeisho's Ozeki track record doesn't compare to Kisenosato's for a "soft" promotion nonetheless.

Count me in on the "No 'tsuna run" crowd regarding Takakeisho. He had a good tournament, but I think even with a win today there wouldn't have been a run, simply because the Yusho was decided early, in part due to Takakeisho' s losses.

With other Rikishi I would think so, with Mitakeumi, not so much.