Trivia bits

[Washuyama 638]

By his win over Kotoshogiku Hakuho secured to become best Rikishi of the year for the 9th time in a row, starting in 2007.

This, after missing almost a whole basho.

Since he was 0-2 when he went kyujo, he did "miss" an entire basho.

Edited November 20, 2015 by Washuyama

[Orion 431]

I assume so. I haven't inquired. There are broken homes everywhere, but far too many more in mixed marriages here. There are a lot of mixed kids here who, sad to say, only have their mothers.

Sorry to come in this late, but Japanese wives who split from their foreign husbands have a very bad rep for removing the children (and virtually none the other way round). There are some heartbreaking stories of foreign ex-husbands desperately trying to get back some connection with their kids.

Orion

[Asashosakari 18,998]

Aki 1961 featured two-rikishi same-stable playoffs in three divisions. No other basho in history even had them in two.

[Doitsuyama 1,178]

Aki 1961 featured two-rikishi same-stable playoffs in three divisions. No other basho in history even had them in two.

Harping on the theme of two-rikishi same-beya playoffs, senshuraku will see the 59th instance of these, and it's no big surprise that two Kise-beya riksihi (Shiba and Ura) are involved. Now the last four such playoffs are from Kise-beya (Shiba-Takagi in Nagoya 2014, Hamaguchi-Iwasaki in Aki and Nagoya 2012 were the last three), as well as six of the last ten. Kise-beya is tied at six now with Kasugano-beya and closing in on the all-time leader Nishonoseki (seven same-beya-playoffs).

Actually, the Kitanoumi-beya playoff in Nagoya 2011 between Sakumayama and Sasanoyama really should count for Kise-beya too as it fell in the period when Kise-beya was absorbed by Kitanoumi and then branched out again (with the same oyakata ex-Higonoumi before and after), and the two involved rikishi inofficially belonged to Kise-beya.

[Asashosakari 18,998]

I was going to point out that Kitasatsuma now has the dubious distinction of three consecutive 0-1-6 records in low jonokuchi, but they've actually scheduled him for another match today. Let's hope he avoids the additional ignominy of an 0-2-5.

[Asashosakari 18,998]

Kotoyuki becomes the fourth rikishi in history to have his very first ozeki bout on a Day 15.

[shumitto 418]

It is the first time in a long period that three fusen happen in Makuuchi on the same day, maybe the first but I run my manual query only as far back as 09.1983 so I can't say for sure.

With a win tomorrow Shohozan can have the second best return result-wise from Juryo. Toyonoshima is the leader but in his case his demotion was suspension-induced, so in this particular category of regular demotions Shohozan can be the best.

http://sumodb.sumogames.de/Query.aspx?show_form=0&form1_basho_nr=2&form1_rank=M7-M16&form1_wins=%3E12&form1_m=on

On a side note, Kaonishiki will return to sandanme - should he continue - for the first time in more than 9 years (07.2006).

Edited November 21, 2015 by shumitto

[Doitsuyama 1,178]

It is the first time in a long period that three fusen happen in Makuuchi on the same day, maybe the first but I run my manual query only as far back as 09.1983 so I can't say for sure.

I can help you here. Three fusen in Makuuchi happened on the following days:

1943 May, day 11

1948 October, day 7

1949 January, day 6

1954 September, day 8

1971 May, day 6

[Gurowake 4,020]

The following includes fusen wins and losses.

Retired Non-Ozeki who managed 50% or better win percentage in Makuuchi for their career, minimum 150 wins, retired during 6-basho era:

Kotonishiki - 0.5343 (506-441)
Roho - 0.5322 (182-160)
Tamanoumi - 0.5197 (303-280)
Wakanosato - 0.5191 (613-568)
Tokitsuyama - 0.5165 (359-336)
Hasegawa - 0.5102 (523-502)
Wakamisugi - 0.5085 (387-374)
Homasho - 0.5041 (309-304)
Akinoshima - 0.5027 (647-640)
Takatoriki - 0.5025 (505-500)
Annenyama - 0.5006 (428-427)
Hagurohana - 0.5 (195-195)

Roho as #2 is surprising as he was never Sekiwake. He had the "fortunate" occurrence to have "retired" while still high ranked after a fairly short career and a decent number of missed matches (18, ~10% of wins).

Homasho also makes the list despite not making Sekiwake due to coming back from injuries on multiple occasions, having missed 77 matches (~25% of wins).

Active non-Ozeki with 50% or better win percentage in Makuuchi, minimum 150 wins:

Tochiozan - 0.5353 (409-355)
Myogiryu - 0.5301 (185-164)
Aoiyama - 0.5122 (189-180)

Aoiyama was quite a shock to see, only having a couple tournaments at Sekiwake and having only missed 6 matches (~3%), suggesting he's had some bad (or at least below-average) banzuke luck in general. Tochiozan has missed 16 (~4%) and Myogiryu 26 (~15%).

Data gathered from http://sumodb.sumogames.de/Rikishi_stat.aspx?list=2

Sorry for no links to rikishi, I don't like importing links into Excel and am too lazy to add them afterward. You can find them on the list linked to above.

Edited December 1, 2015 by Gurowake

[WAKATAKE 2,644]

Kyushu 1971 marked the first time the same type of sansho was awarded to more than one rikishi.

http://sumodb.sumogames.de/Banzuke.aspx?b=197111#M

The recipients of the kanto-sho were M1e Wajima and M6w Fujizakura.

[hamcornheinz 839]

Aoiyama does have bad banzuke luck, I think its because he tends to be thrown rather spectacularly when he loses, which looks way worse than a yorikiri loss

[Tenshinhan 1,605]

Aoiyama does have bad banzuke luck, I think its because he tends to be thrown rather spectacularly when he loses, which looks way worse than a yorikiri loss

In what way does he have bad banzuke luck?

[hamcornheinz 839]

Aoiyama does have bad banzuke luck, I think its because he tends to be thrown rather spectacularly when he loses, which looks way worse than a yorikiri loss

In what way does he have bad banzuke luck?

I can't quantify this, but

Aoiyama was quite a shock to see, only having a couple tournaments at Sekiwake and having only missed 6 matches (~3%), suggesting he's had some bad (or at least below-average) banzuke luck in general. Tochiozan has missed 16 (~4%) and Myogiryu 26 (~15%).

so I was sorta agreeing with him.

[Asashosakari 18,998]

I don't think there's anything in Aoiyama's record that indicates he's had especially bad banzuke luck overall. There have been two instances were he was hard done by out of necessity (M6w 11-4 -> M2e and M5e 10-5 -> M3e), but he has also had very good luck on occasion (M10w 8-7 -> M6w, and earning his sekiwake debut with M3e 10-5). Everything else in his ranking record is pretty ordinary for an upper-makuuchi rikishi.

And it's not really that surprising that he has a - barely - positive overall makuuchi record at this stage of his career, IMHO. Kokkai, who was somewhat worse than Aoiyama, managed to stay in positive territory for the first three years of his career and was still very close after five years (222-228). His next 13 tournaments dropped him to minus 41 though, and then he got demoted. Aoiyama is 29 now and probably in the prime of his career; if he's still sporting a positive record in three years, that would be noteworthy.

Right now he only sticks out because he's arguably the only rikishi at that particular quality level at the moment. (Tochinoshin Mark II might be developing into another one, as well as Ichinojo if he fails to fulfill the generally greater expectations placed on him.)

[hamcornheinz 839]

I don't think there's anything in Aoiyama's record that indicates he's had especially bad banzuke luck overall. There have been two instances were he was hard done by out of necessity (M6w 11-4 -> M2e and M5e 10-5 -> M3e), but he has also had very good luck on occasion (M10w 8-7 -> M6w, and earning his sekiwake debut with M3e 10-5). Everything else in his ranking record is pretty ordinary for an upper-makuuchi rikishi.

And it's not really that surprising that he has a - barely - positive overall makuuchi record at this stage of his career, IMHO. Kokkai, who was somewhat worse than Aoiyama, managed to stay in positive territory for the first three years of his career and was still very close after five years (222-228). His next 13 tournaments dropped him to minus 41 though, and then he got demoted. Aoiyama is 29 now and probably in the prime of his career; if he's still sporting a positive record in three years, that would be noteworthy.

Right now he only sticks out because he's arguably the only rikishi at that particular quality level at the moment. (Tochinoshin Mark II might be developing into another one, as well as Ichinojo if he fails to fulfill the generally greater expectations placed on him.)

Ok thats fair. Isn't Toyonoshima in somewhat of the same position? Although I guess he goes up and down a bit more.

[Asashosakari 18,998]

Ok thats fair. Isn't Toyonoshima in somewhat of the same position? Although I guess he goes up and down a bit more.

Certainly used to be, not sure I'd count him nowadays. I was actually looking at his career records while trying to find a few more comparables (in the "kept a positive W-L total for a while" department), and I was surprised to find I'd completely forgotten that Toyonoshima's makuuchi career started off like this:

6-9 (demoted)

8-7

7-8

6-9

6-9 (demoted)

7-8

7-8

6-9

Even more impressive that he actually did reach positive numbers for a little while much later (after his 14-1 playoff jun-yusho), despite that start. By comparison, Aoiyama had the good fortune to arrive in makuuchi being ready for that level of competition.

Edited December 27, 2015 by Asashosakari

[Gurowake 4,020]

Aoiyama is listed as preferring migi-yotsu/yori on the the NSK site. Wikipedia says that he was before he gained a significant amount of weight, but the cite for that is only the NSK site. I mean, I guess the NSK wouldn't just be making that up, and probably lists their favorite techniques when they first become sekitori, so that would be a reasonable conclusion, but it just seems very odd to me that Aoiyama used to be a belt guy.

[Gurowake 4,020]

I don't think there's anything in Aoiyama's record that indicates he's had especially bad banzuke luck overall. There have been two instances were he was hard done by out of necessity (M6w 11-4 -> M2e and M5e 10-5 -> M3e), but he has also had very good luck on occasion (M10w 8-7 -> M6w, and earning his sekiwake debut with M3e 10-5). Everything else in his ranking record is pretty ordinary for an upper-makuuchi rikishi.

The point is that he's clearly below average, and those two major out-of-necessity underpromotions are rather atypical. If you can manage going 150 or more wins and maintain a positive record, even taking into account absences as losses, have only had one 8-7 at Sekiwake, and have no other records that would see you not promoted as much as your W/L would indicate simply because you've hit the top of the non-Ozeki ranks, you certainly have to have below-average luck given that in general you fall much less with MKs than you gain in equivalent KKs in Makuuchi, the joi particularly. Myogiryu has had better success as a "capped" sanyaku (10-5 S, 11-4 M1, 2x 8-7 S vs. 1x 8-7 S), yet still if you include his absences as losses he wouldn't have a positive record whereas Aoiyama does. I'm not saying that Aoiyama has any bias against him, just that the way things have shaken out for him is that he's on average had less luck than one would typically expect.

I also don't see how a 10-5 from M3e moving to Sekiwake is particularly lucky. Sure, some (most?) of the time you're going to end up as Komusubi because there aren't any Sekiwake slots available for maegashira, but that's not exactly the huge stretch like Okinoumi's Sekiwake promotion. And while because of that lack of slots it might require a bit of luck to have happen, if you look at it from the perspective that I am, that most non-Ozeki tend to have losing records in the long run due to how banzuke luck works, it's not "good luck" at all, but rather pretty even luck.

[Atenzan 1,074]

http://sumodb.sumogames.de/Query.aspx?show_form=0&form1_wins=15&form1_j=on

All retired rikishi who achieved a 15-0 juryo yusho went on to become Ozeki. Tochinoshin is the only active rikishi with a 15-0 juryo yusho to his name.

[Naganoyama 5,881]

Go Tochinoshin!

[Tenshinhan 1,605]

Milestones during Hatsu Basho 2016

Rikishi	Makuuchi win	on
Harumafuji	600	Day 3
Kisenosato	600	Day 7
Takekaze	500	Day 9
Takayasu	200	Day 11
Kyokushuho	100	Day 5
Tokushoryu	100	Day 6
Sokokurai	100	Day 15

Sokokurai now has the funny makuuchi record of 100 wins and 100 losses.

Edited January 25, 2016 by Tenshinhan

[Asashosakari 18,998]

Sokokurai now has the funny makuuchi record of 100 wins and 100 losses.

Even better, his full record is 100-100-10.

[Kasutera 258]

Sokokurai now has the funny makuuchi record of 100 wins and 100 losses.

Even better, his full record is 100-100-10.

Thousands of obsessive-compulsives immediately become humongous Sokokurai fans as he eases their anxiety.

[Asashosakari 18,998]

Thousands of obsessive-compulsives immediately become humongous Sokokurai fans as he eases their anxiety.

Not to mention all digital entities.

[lackmaker 434]

Sokokurai now has the funny makuuchi record of 100 wins and 100 losses.

Even better, his full record is 100-100-10.

Converts from binary as 4-4-2 a classic football formation. Soccerkurai?