Onosato Takes Sole Lead at Autumn Basho with a Convincing Win Over Takanosho

Promotion-chasing Onosato manhandled Takanosho on Thursday, September 12 to move into sole possession of the lead at the Autumn Basho.

Sekiwake Onosato fought off an arm thrust to the neck at the face-off. He then used a frontal push-out to send top maegashira Takanosho over the edge and improve to a perfect 5-0.

The native of Ishikawa Prefecture only needs to win seven more bouts to qualify for promotion to sumo's second-highest rank of ozeki.

After defeating Hoshoryu on the opening day, Takanosho has lost four straight and dropped to 1-4.

Big Upset at the Autumn Basho

In the day's final bout at Ryogoku Kokugikan, there was a major upset when No 2 maegashira Oho got a right-hand grip on the belt of Kotozakura and hoisted his opponent out to knock the ozeki out of the lead.

Oho was pushed back to the edge but turned the tables on Kotozakura and improved to 2-3 with his first-ever win over the ozeki, who dropped to 4-1.

"I finally beat him," Oho said, adding, "I was determined to go on the attack from the outset."

Oho continued: "I haven't had great results in this tournament so far, so it was a big win for me today."

Kotozakura was one of three wrestlers who fell out of the lead on Day 5 of the 15-day Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament.

Hoshoryu Snaps Two-Match Skid

In other major bouts, ozeki Hoshoryu put a halt to a two-bout losing streak when he was pushed back at the face-off. But he recovered nicely to use a frontal force-out to defeat Mitakeumi.

Hoshoryu improved to 2-3 while No 3 maegashira Mitakeumi fell to 1-4.

Komusubi Hiradoumi used a frontal push-out to knock Mongolian sekiwake Kirishima out of the lead and give both grapplers a 4-1 record.

Komusubi Daieisho knocked Shodai out of the lead when he displayed superb footwork at the edge and used an arm-bar throw to send the fourth-ranked maegashira over the edge.

Daieisho, who has a 21-9 advantage against Shodai, improved to 2-3. Former ozeki Shodai dropped to 4-1.

No 2 maegashira Atamifuji used a frontal crush-out of sekiwake Abi, giving both grapplers a record of 2-3.

Wakatakakage, a seventh-ranked maegashira, swatted down winless fifth-ranked maegashira Shonannoumi to pick up his fourth win against a lone loss.

Rank-and-filers Takarafuji and Bushozan both won their Day 5 bouts to improve to 4-1 and stay one win off the pace. 

They are among seven wrestlers who are one win back of Onosato. So it's still a wide open race for the Emperor's Cup.

RELATED:

• Kotozakura Overpowers Atamifuji to Stay Undefeated and Tied for Lead at Autumn Basho
• Tamawashi Becomes the All-Time Leader in Consecutive Sumo Bouts
• Promotion-Chasing Onosato Topples Tobizaru 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.