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SOS - Shinjinrui on Sumo |
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Chris Gould
Wrapping up his look at increasing the popularity of sumo, Chris Gould caps a series the NSK would do well to refer to.
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Sumo Souvenirs |
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Mark Buckton
Souvenirs are a part of every sport and sumo is no different - or is
it? A look at collectibles and the downright trashy, the bona fide
versus the unproven.
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Rikishi of Old |
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Joe Kuroda
Joe Kuroda's latest look at times past focuses on former makunouchi man Dewagatake.
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Eric Evaluates |
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Eric Blair
Eric takes a no-nonsense look at the claims of fixed bouts in the Japanese media.
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Rikishi Diary |
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Mark Kent
Mark Kent - English pro-wrestler and amateur heavyweight sumotori -
takes us through the first month or so of his training and preparation
for the various European events lined up in in 2007.
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Heya Peek |
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Chris Gould
SFM's Chris Gould was in Japan for the Hatsu Basho and popped along to
the new Shikoroyama Beya to give SFM an online exclusive peek into
sumo's newest heya.
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SFM Interview |
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Mark Buckton
Mark interviews Mark - Buckton on Kent that is as Mark Kent, the UK's
only active heavyweight amateur answers a few questions on his own
recent entry into the sport.
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Photo Bonanzas |
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Sumo Forum stepped in to take the weight off the shoulders of SFM as
far as Hatsu went so we could sit back, relax, enjoy the sumo and take
a few more select pics you won't see anywhere else.
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Hatsu Basho Summary |
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Lon Howard
Lon wraps the Hatsu Basho and chucks in a few bits on the rush of henka
that threatens to sully the good name of at least one foreign ozeki.
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Sumo Menko |
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Ryan Laughton
Sumo cards of old brought to life by expert collector Ryan Laughton. None of your BBM here.
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Haru Ones To Watch |
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Carolyn Todd
Carolyn ponders and puts fingers to keys on the ones to watch come March and the Haru Basho.
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Kimarite Focus |
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Mikko Mattila
Mikko's latest look at sumo's kimarite offers unequalled analysis and in depth explanations.
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Amateur Angles |
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Howard Gilbert
Howard looks at the 'sumo factory' of lore - Nichidai.
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Kokugi Konnections |
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Todd Lambert
Click on Todd's bimonthly focus on three of the best the WWW has to offer.
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Fan Debate |
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Facilitator - Carolyn Todd
Moti Dichne comes back for more and takes on Bradley Sutton on the subject of 'Modernize the heya - yea or nay?'
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SFM Cartoons |
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Benny Loh & Stephen Thompson
In this issue's cartoon bonanza, sit back and sample Benny's artistic offerings.
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Sumo Odds & Ends |
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SFM's interactive elements - as always includes Henka Sightings, Elevator Rikishi and Eternal Banzuke!
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Let's Hear From You |
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What was it that made you a sumo fan? Ryan Laughton - sumo fan and menko expert reveals all.
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Readers' Letters |
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See what our readers had to say since we last hit your screens.
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Sumo Quiz |
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The Quizmaster
Answer the Qs and win yourself a genuine banzuke.
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There
are three candidates for the two vacated komusubi spots and M2
Tokitenku will probably take one of them. This was his third
straight basho against the full sanyaku contingent and he usually
manages to escape them with three or four wins, so don’t be shocked if
he holds onto that rank, especially with Tochiazuma and Kaio
struggling. The other spot will have either M3 Kyokutenho (8-7)
or M4 Ama (10-5), neither of whom has shown they can hang in at that
level once they get there.
Ama, you will recall, was in mourning throughout the basho, as his
father was killed in an auto crash in Mongolia during the week
preceding the basho. He also added a bit more weight since
Kyushu, which should help, whether he’s at komusubi or M1 in March.
Rounding out the 10-5 crowd were M6 Asasekiryu and M14
Tamanoshima. Asasekiryu seems to have found his level of
incompetence at around M4 or M5, and is just about as predictable a
maegashira rikishi as they come these days. Tamanoshima should
have won more than ten at that level for him, but still looked
sluggish, and so the thigh injury that led to his withdrawal during
Kyushu probably continues to hinder him.
M11 Tamakasuga continues to blow hot and cold, but this time all at
once, as he bolted to 7-0 and then lurched to 7-6 before finishing off
the basho with two wins. His 9-6 will probably boost him up just
high
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enough
to be out of juryo range, should he falter in Haru. Some
considered M15 Ushiomaru more than fortunate just to remain in makuuchi
after laying down a 5-10 mark at M12 in Kyushu, so imagine the surprise
at seeing him respond with a spiffy 9-6 record this time. When
not forced to move around, his abundant bulk makes him a hard man to
move backward, so he may yet survive in the top division. Also
unforeseen was the 9-6 put up by another perennial makuuchi-juryo
border-crosser, M13 Kasuganishiki, who will make consecutive
appearances in the top division for the first time in a year, come
March.
Others eking out an 8-7 kachi-kochi were the M7 duo of Kasugao and
Futeno, M8 Takekaze, M9 Kakizoe, M12 Tokitsuumi, M13 Yoshikaze, M14
Hakurozan and M16 Tosanoumi. Futeno has come full circle since
his bolt from obscurity in May 2005, and now seems entrenched in
mid-maegashira. He had to win on the final five days against the
division bottom-feeders just to save kachi-kochi, and can no longer be
considered a Japanese hope, or any kind of hope. Takekaze is
about where he belongs while top-division returnee Tokitsuumi makes a
successful return to makuuchi. Hakurozan started Hatsu looking
about as bad as he did at Kyushu, trying at least three or four
slap-down maneuvers in each match, whether he won or lost, seemingly
able to win only by tachiai henka or by accident. The knee he had
surgery on four months ago was clearly painful, but he was still
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strong
and sly enough to slip by. That knee had better improve soon
though, or his days behind the curtain are numbered. Tosanoumi
may not reside there for much longer either.
The dark side of the Hatsu ledger was headed by another ominous
re-injury of M3 Baruto’s left knee on Day 3 against Kotoshogiku.
He left in a wheelchair and not much is being said about it at this
time. He was off to a 2-0 start at the time, but now his sanyaku
debut, and perhaps his career is on hold. The injury is
reportedly to his ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) and this type of
injury can often require months of rest and rehabilitation. In
the world of sumo, that amount of time is rarely available for a
maegashira rikishi, but considering his youth and off-the-chart
potential, letting the knee fully heal and starting all over from near
bottom should – if that’s what it takes – be a real consideration; if
he can take a temporary income hit and find someone to store all his
stuff for a few months while he works his way back up.
Probably the most impressive make-koshi was the 7-8 by M4 Homasho, who
showed enough at his first showing in upper makuuchi to join the
grouping of new Japanese hopefuls. He took one ozeki scalp, a
disputed win over Kotooshu on Day 3, but also beat three others ranked
above him. He’s become more aggressive and now doesn’t
Next
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