Brothers in Sumo –
part two
Brian Lewin
Brothers still active on the dohyo get their turn

Yokozuna Comparisons
Joe Kuroda
SFM’s most eminent historian, JK, has a crack at the impossible and tries to see who was the greatest of the tsuna wearers

Rikishi of Old
John Gunning
Takanobori – former sekiwake, former NHK man and all ’round gent

Heya Peek
Barbara Ann Klein
Kitanoumi-beya, Kitazakura, mirrors & photo bonanza

SFM Interview
John Gunning
Kazuyoshi Yoshikawa (son of the late sekiwake Takanobori) on life in sumo way back when

Sumo 101
Barbara Ann Klein
Behind every good man there stands a good woman – read and ye shall see. A departure from our regular 101 feature

Photo Bonanza
See the Hatsu Basho
plus much more through the lens of our photographers

Hatsu Basho Review
Lon Howard
Lon gives us his Hatsu Basho summary, along with the henka sightings results

Lower Division Rikishi
Mikko Mattila
Mikko Mattila covers lower division goings on in detail

Haru Basho Forecast
Pierre Wohlleben & Mark Buckton
Pierre predicts the Haru Basho banzuke while Mark highlights the ones to look out for in Osaka

Kimarite Focus
Mikko Mattila
Mikko takes us on a tour of his chosen kimarite

Minusha
John McTague
John’s unique bimonthly view of sumo news from outside the dohyo and in the restaurants!

Online Gaming
Alexander Nitschke
SFM’s own Alexander Nitschke covers the long running Hoshitori Game

Kokugi Connections
Todd Lambert
Todd’s bimonthly focus on 3 of the most interesting sumo sites today

Fan Debate
Feb's debate sees
a pair of Kiwis exchanging opinions on the honbasho going on the road

SFM Cartoons
Benny Loh & Stephen Thompson
In the third of our cartoon bonanzas, sit back and enjoy BL’s offerings and put a caption to ST’s pic to win yourselves a banzuke

Let’s Hear From You
What was it that
made you a sumo fan? A unique perspective from a sightless reader.

Readers’ Letters
See what some SFM
readers had to say since our last issue

Sumo Quiz
The Quizmaster
Answer the Qs and win yourself next basho’s banzuke.

  shone brightest when he upset the yokozuna on day 13 and, amid all the zabuton and shock, actually secured his own kachi-koshi in doing so. Immensely popular for his ‘head-on’ sumo, Ama is likely to be bouncing up and down the upper maegashira and sanyaku ranks for the next ten years if he stays fit. Given another 15-20 kg and we could be looking at a very effective sekiwake or even ozeki. Probably set for the very top of the maegashira ranks come February 27th and the banzuke release day, Ama will have the Osaka crowd behind him as he marches to a hard won 8-7.


Ama
 
 Hakuho – Is he Futabayama reborn? Did he lose his mojo a while ago? Is he – and not Kotooshu – the next shoe-in for
yokozuna? Whatever the answers we may think we have, one thing seems crystal clear when looking at the records, abilities and swagger of this young man – he will do what he
 
Hakuho
 
 wants and what he wants will come when he decides the time is right. Stuffed chockablock with raw talent, Hakuho will still be featuring on these pages when the second ‘0’ in 2006 has switched to a ‘1.’ On the back of a fantastic basho in which he missed out on a yusho play-off, in all likelihood because of the injury he himself inflicted on yokozuna Asashoryu, Hakuho, still at sekiwake in March, is a name only fools or complete beginners would dismiss from the get-go. Look for a title run if in form and a ‘disappointing’ 10-5 if not.

Tochiazuma – Big basho time again for the only Japanese ozeki with any real chance of
going further. At 29, the Tokyo native isn’t past it yet when you consider that another Tokyo native – Tochinishiki – was once counting the same number of candles when he won promotion to yokozuna. That said, ’Azuma has had more than his fair share of kadoban basho and was, of course, dropped back to sekiwake not long back. Come Osaka (not a venue from which he has returned with an Emperor’s Cup), a highly motivated man will be gunning to be there or thereabouts come the last few days, but will this time have to go against a full house of ozeki, a hopefully fully fit Asashoryu and a prowling Hakuho. Fingers crossed he’ll pull the rabbit out of the hat but this will be his toughest basho victory to date if he does. Prediction – a good 12-3 but pipped to the yusho by the yokozuna. Oh, and loads of talk about 12-3 being ‘good enough’ but the NSK deciding otherwise.


Tochiazuma

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