Asameshimae 220 Posted November 28, 2014 Another thread where nekodamashi came up got me thinking about Mainoumi, the Technique Department Store. When I was first starting to find myself watching sumo regularly, I started to notice him and his size and style; but he retired soon after and I never got to enjoy him in his prime as much as I could've. This has probably been posted here before - but the guy was really something. 10 minutes of it! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcknTDbDT6w 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gurowake 4,053 Posted November 29, 2014 The couple of tachiai where neither rikishi actually charged at all made me laugh. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Asameshimae 220 Posted November 29, 2014 The couple of tachiai where neither rikishi actually charged at all made me laugh. Yeah, I think everyone learned to be pretty wary of him. His skill as a commentator is laudable too. He has a lot more to say than most commentators (with exceptions of course). I can feel his frustration sometimes when he can barely get a few words out of whichever oyakata he has been stuck with that day. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ALAKTORN 346 Posted November 29, 2014 Thanks for the link, I had never seen it. I really like those cautious tachiai, actually. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Swami 245 Posted November 29, 2014 His leap against Kitakachidoki in January 1992 was brilliant. Swami Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
krindel 671 Posted November 29, 2014 Mainoumi is the perfect example of the difference between stats and actually seeing people fight... Statistics say he was a moderately successful low Maegashira rikishi (not even counts as "elevator", he only made the jo'i two or three times). His normal win/loss ratio was small KK in the double digit Maegashira, and small MK in M6-M9 range. And yet, he was so extremely exciting to watch that everyone remembers him fondly... His technique and ferociousness was such that he gave us so many impressive moves and weird bouts that people are willing to forget the countless times he was simply thrown unceremoniously out of the dohyo after a single push. And of course, just the sight of him hanging on for dear life to some giant is unforgettable in itself. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tony 16 Posted November 29, 2014 I remember a fantastic bout (lost) against Takanonami. Maybe, the most incredible Mainoumi's bout I ever watched. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Orion 431 Posted November 29, 2014 Since he became a commentator, he has also done some wonderful in-depth interviews. They all know what a superb technician he was as a pro, so his interviews can really get down to brass tacks. Challenge: does anybody remember the highly unusual mitokorozeme he once pulled? It was on my watch, and it's the only time I've seen the producer frantically leafing through a dictionary to find out what the heck it was. At the Dewanoumi senshuraku party a few days later I asked him about it. "Did you know at the time that you were going for the mitokorozeme?" He shrugged and said "No, I was trying to work him into position for a leg-trip and it just happened." Orion 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
orandashoho 720 Posted November 29, 2014 Thank you for the link! Part of his popularity must have surely been the David beating Goliath, and everyone wanting to see the underdog win. I surely do like to see that weight isn't everything, and that skill can win over brute force. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Adil 232 Posted November 29, 2014 Fabulous vid. One of the things I find really funny is how sometimes Mainoumi looks around with a confused look after winning a match. I guess usually it's just the usual glance at the gyoji just to confirm he has won the match; nevertheless, I think it's just priceless! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Asameshimae 220 Posted November 29, 2014 (edited) I had found that video before, but I didn't actually watch it all the way through before I posted it this time. I love the way he makes even the likes of Terao look big and plodding. The wiley scrapper Terao has to take a back seat to the even wilier scrapper Mainoumi to try to avoid being defeated in a heartbeat. Great stuff. Near the end, a Kyokushuzan bout is shown. There is some Japanese commentary written on the bottom. There is a backstory there, which I hope I remember correctly. As I alluded to above, Mainoumi, because of his innovative moves earned the nickname "The technique/skill department store" (which sounds cooler in Japanese "waza no depato"). Kyokushuzan was also known for his wild improvising on the dohyo and once in an interview said that if Mainoumi was the "waza no depato" then he himself was the Mongolian branch of the waza no depato. That commentary from the Mainoumi video below the Kyokushuzan bout is making an oblique reference to this I think. It reads: "(Mainoumi's) hard earned nickname of waza no depato, at the conclusion of this bout, could now have "head office" added to the end of it" :-D Edited November 29, 2014 by Asameshimae Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kotoshoumi 31 Posted December 1, 2014 (edited) One off my all time favourite rikishi... Thanks for posting! Me not having a Japanese keyboard and all: it would've been hard to find it on my own. :) Edited December 1, 2014 by Kotoshoumi Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
