SUMO - 2018 Haru Basho (March 11th - 25th)

great again from ichinojo.

thought takayasu looked really good too.

i don't mind henkas when guys like ishiura do them, but when guys like goeido do them it's much different.
Or even when Hakuho pulls them out, when he's not top of the leader board!
 
So, Tochinoshin looking juicy. Yay or Nay?

And/or he started lifting weights for real. From what I know, sumo doesn't have a very efficient training culture, someone's bound to use that to gain an edge at some point.
 
Why is use of henka frowned upon in Sumo? I dont get it. Ishiuras looked very slick
 
Why is use of henka frowned upon in Sumo? I dont get it. Ishiuras looked very slick

sumo is a sport with a lot of cultural and sort of symbolic significance, as a demonstration of bravery and masculinity. the henka is seen by some people as being a means of getting an easy victory, or fear of the opponent, both of which go against the idea that the sport is a show of courage and strength.

the sport's religious underpinnings and symbolism also make it essentially a sacred act. the tachiai being the foundation of this test of strength can be seen as a kind of covenant between the two wrestlers and when one of the wrestlers avoids the initial contact they can be seen as breaking that covenant or agreement.

i think for smaller guys like ishiura or mainoumi (one of the most popular wrestlers from the 90's) most people don't have a problem with them using henka within reason, but would still prefer to see them win with some kind of flashy technique. i think the henka is an important tool for guys their size.

kintamayama asked konishiki about his thoughts on henka, and konishiki said he really dislikes them and would make them illegal, but he actually blames the "victim" of the henka more than the guy using the technique:
 
Why is use of henka frowned upon in Sumo? I dont get it. Ishiuras looked very slick

sumo is a sport with a lot of cultural and sort of symbolic significance, as a demonstration of bravery and masculinity. the henka is seen by some people as being a means of getting an easy victory, or fear of the opponent, both of which go against the idea that the sport is a show of courage and strength.

the sport's religious underpinnings and symbolism also make it essentially a sacred act. the tachiai being the foundation of this test of strength can be seen as a kind of covenant between the two wrestlers and when one of the wrestlers avoids the initial contact they can be seen as breaking that covenant or agreement.

i think for smaller guys like ishiura or mainoumi (one of the most popular wrestlers from the 90's) most people don't have a problem with them using henka within reason, but would still prefer to see them win with some kind of flashy technique. i think the henka is an important tool for guys their size.

kintamayama asked konishiki about his thoughts on henka, and konishiki said he really dislikes them and would make them illegal, but he actually blames the "victim" of the henka more than the guy using the technique:

I tried to think of a good comparison in another sport. I couldn't think of any I was happy with. But, I guess we could liken it to forcing penalties on your opponent in judo, holding and stalling on the ground in BJJ, holding someone on the cage in MMA...

To me, it makes them crappy sports to watch. Imagine if everyone started to use henka! It would turn into fat guys looking at each other, wondering who will make the first move.
 
Oh my I have to be careful with starting watching Sumo. After the basho I just wanted to look at other Yokozunas found Chiyonofuji and watched his fights for 2h. What a beast ! Would love to see how someone like him him would fare in Greco--roman.

Sumo can be extremely addictive it seems ;)

Thanks for the explanations. I guess doing a Uwatenage right at the beginning with avoiding the clash is also seen as a problem. Imo similar to henka in a way.
 
day 12:


fantastic from tochinoshin in a fun power vs. power match against kakuryu.

chiyomaru is having a great tournament as well, and his tachiai against takayasu was huge. he's never really made a big impression on me until this tournament, but he's been impressive.
 
Oh my I have to be careful with starting watching Sumo. After the basho I just wanted to look at other Yokozunas found Chiyonofuji and watched his fights for 2h. What a beast ! Would love to see how someone like him him would fare in Greco--roman.

Sumo can be extremely addictive it seems ;)

Thanks for the explanations. I guess doing a Uwatenage right at the beginning with avoiding the clash is also seen as a problem. Imo similar to henka in a way.
hahaha yeah, sumo is addictive and with its long history there's so much stuff to watch and learn about. chiyonofuji was a monster of a man.
 
Hattorizakura ends his basho with his 81st loss in a row
 
Been enjoying Juryo more than Makuuchi this basho
 
Awesome bout between Takayasu and Mitakeumi, it's a shame Mitakeumi had to get makekoshi with that performance

Was hoping for a Kakuryu vs Takayasu showdown for the cup tomorrow but it's good to see a Yokozuna get it done.

Fairly rare kainahineri from Terutsuyoshi, he's quickly becoming one of my favorite guys in the lower divisions


Unfortunately Terunofuji was handed his makekoshi today, he needs to take some time off to try and get his condition under control. In better news, Aminishiki has his chance at kachikoshi tomorrow.
 
finally caught up, fantastic match between takayasu and mitakeumi.

i hope tochinoshin can get his 10th win tomorrow as well. if he does so his ozeki promotion run will continue, but without it a 9-6 record will put a halt to his promotion chances for now.

and it's good to see kakuryu doing well. i'm sure he's been under a lot of pressure, and the final few days of the last tournament must have been playing through his head a lot in the last few days. he held it together well though, and although his wins haven't been the most impressive it's still been a good tournament for him.
 
Final Day- Great Basho. Interested to find out what will happen with Kisenosato. Takayasu and Kakuryu match was great. Happy that the Tochinoshin ozeki train stay on the rails.

 
Some great back and forth bouts to close out the basho. Hopefully Tochinoshin can come back a little healthier in May and secure that ozeki promotion.

Aminishiki got his kachikoshi so he might be back up in Makuuchi next basho. Also cool to see Taiho's grandson win the Jonokuchi yusho, going to have to look for video of him
 
Watching some of Naya's (Taiho's grandson) bouts now

About 7:20 in
 
finally caught back up again.

great stuff by takayasu in both matches against kakuryu on the final day. really aggressive full power stuff from him, forgoing the suriashi shuffling style of moving forward and just rushing at kakuryu. not a great way to end the tournament for kakuryu, but a 13-2 yusho is a good record for him.

nice fun power vs. power match between tochinoshin and ichinojo too, and although i like ichinojo as well it was great to see tochinoshin take it and finish with double-digits.

abi with excellent awareness, being able to stay in the dohyo and finishing with a nice 10 win tournament. that's two 10-5's in a row in the top division, and lots of exciting sumo from him.

and it was a great tournament for kaisei as well, but i'd be surprised if he was able to do the same next time.
 

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