Public League Leaderboard
Scores from Fantasizr.
Yusho Arasoi
11 Wins
38 Maegashira #15 East Atamifuji
10 Wins
03 Ozeki #1 West Takakeisho
05 Sekiwake #1 East Daieisho
22 Maegashira #7 East Takayasu
31 Maegashira #11 West Hokuseiho
Notable Maneuvers
Uwatenage. Hoshoryu won the musubi no ichiban by twisting and throwing a charging Takakeisho in what is a model over arm throw.
Match of the Day
After a matta, Abi began this match with his light hit into a henka tachiai. This maneuver works better than it should because Abi is long and fast, so he ends up behind an opponent running out of the dohyo. Here, Atamifuji put on the brakes at the tawara, turned around, and battled Abi head on. From there, he got Abi in a textbook right-hand-inside, left-hand-outside grip that led to a yorikiri. This was advanced veteran sumo from the recently turned 21 year old.
Recap
Atamifuji has weathered the storm in a wild Aki basho, and now he has a simple path to the yusho. He needs to beat former Ozeki Asanoyama, and the Emperor's Cup is his. The main reason for this has been Atamifuji's incredible performance across the last two weeks, but his win over Abi demonstrated why he has been so formidable. This is a huge, powerful young rikishi who fights with the assuredness of a ten year veteran.
The other reason Atamifuji has the easiest path to the yusho was that a long-serving veteran did not win. Losing to a last-ditch throw from Hoshoryu isn't too damning, but Takakeisho did lose. Now he stands at 10 wins, one loss back from Atamifuji and hoping for a wild playoff scenario with 11 win yusho candidates. Even if this all works out for Takakeisho, he hasn't dominated the basho with the Yokozuna out. He still has obvious weaknesses, like moving sideways and staying in a longer match, even at his best.
Daieisho, Takayasu, and Hokuseiho are also on 10 wins and looking for a crazy playoff scenario of 11 win yusho contenders. The maximum number of playoff participants can only be four, though, since Takakeisho and Daieisho will square off. Takayasu gets Ozeki Kirishima, while Hokuseiho faces the third Ozeki Hoshoryu. These matchups are a bit odd, since Hokuseiho has not faced Takakeisho, Daieisho, Takayasu, or Atamifuji this basho. He won't unless he beats Hoshoryu and there's a playoff.
Sumo tournaments are not built to result in these kinds of final days. They should involve the highest ranked rikishi beating each other to narrow down the yusho race in the final days. They also often feature a winner with 13 or 14 wins. The Ozeki all could get 8 wins this basho if Hoshoryu wins on Day Fifteen, but no one is dominating. The upstart Maegashira are also not getting beat back down. It's still a little topsy turvy.
The other action on the final day involves two 7-7 matchups, with Shodai versus Takarafuji and Sadanoumi versus Shonannoumi will determine kachi-koshi for all four. The Juryo demotions seem obvious, as lower Maegashira Chiyoshoma, Kagayaki, and Daishoho are well under water. The Special Prizes are really only possibilities for the non-Ozeki still in contention. The matchups are fairly straightforward on the regular Torikumi, but we're either getting a remarkable yusho, a playoff, or both.
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