Sekwake Onosato notched a ninth straight win on Monday, September 16 to maintain a perfect record and a one-win lead over Kirishima on Day 9 at the Autumn Basho.
Onosato was fast and powerful at the face-off, putting Wakamotoharu (5-4) on his heels immediately after the tachiai before using a frontal crush-out to dispatch the third-ranked maegashira.
The 24-year-old is taking advantage of superior face-offs to completely overwhelm his opponents at the outset.
At a perfect 9-0, Onosato needs just three more wins in the 15-day meet to secure the required number of 33 over three consecutive tournaments to earn promotion to the second-highest rank of ozeki.
Sekiwake Kirishima (8-1) quickly got a double-handed grip on the belt of struggling Shonannoumi and calmly waltzed the fifth-ranked maegashira out. Shonannoumi put up little resistance and fell to an unflattering 1-8.
Onosato and Kirishima will face each other on Tuesday (Day 10) in a bout that will have championship implications. Onosato is 2-0 in previous matches against the Mongolian.
Ura Stuns Kotozakura
There was a big upset in the day's final bout at Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo when No 5 maegashira Ura pushed out ozeki Kotozakura to improve to 5-4.
Kotozakura, who came into the tournament bidding for his first Emperor's Cup, looked listless and dropped to 6-3.
"I gave it my all and just had the attitude of refusing to lose, the support of the fans means a lot to me," Ura said.
He added, "I will just try to give it my all in the remainder of the tournament."
After a subpar first week of the tournament, Mongolian ozeki Hoshoryu deployed a textbook beltless arm throw to topple komusubi Hiradoumi. As a result, both grapplers are now 5-4.
In the Title Hunt at the Autumn Basho
No 7 maegashira Wakatakakage is one of four wrestlers at 7-2 after he outlasted pesky Midorifuji in one of the day's longer bouts.
Wakatakakage pushed the smaller Midorifuji to the edge but the eighth-ranked maegashira stood his ground before the former sekiwake eventually pushed his opponent out. Midorifuji stands at 4-5.
Eighth-ranked maegashira Endo dodged to his left at the face-off and then swatted down Gonoyama to remain in the chase pack at 7-2. Sixth-ranked maegashira Gonoyama fell to 3-6.
Further down the ranks, rank-and-filers Nishikigi and Takayasu both won their bouts to improve to 7-2.
Takerufui Stays Unbeaten in the Juryo Division
In the second-tier juryo division, 11th-ranked Takerufuji (9-0) shoved out No 14 Oshoumi to remain the sole leader.
Takerufuji won the Emperor's Cup in the March tournament. He became the first wrestler in 110 years to win the title in his elite division debut.
But the 25-year-old then missed most of the last two meets with an ankle injury and dropped in the rankings.
If he continues his winning ways in the juryo division, he should make a return to the makuuchi division in the not-too-distant future.
RELATED:
- Onosato Stays in Control at the Autumn Basho with a Convincing Win Over Mitakeumi
- Onosato Manhandles Hiradoumi to Stay Perfect at Autumn Basho
Author: Jim Armstrong
The author is a longtime journalist who has covered sports in Japan for over 25 years. You can find his articles on SportsLook.
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