We are at T-minus one week from the start of the Hatsu basho. It's time to start preparing for drafts, which means trying in some way to predict what will happen in the Kokugikan. Of course, predicting anything in sumo makes someone look silly. Still, we at least can see who's looking good going into Hatsu with this basho's Power Rankings.
A quick reminder on how the Power Rankings work. First, only the last three basho are considered. Second, the score comes from multiplying a rikishi's most recent basho's Fantasy Basho score by three, adding the second most recent basho score multiplied by three, adding the third most recent basho score, and a bonus for any Sanyaku wrestlers. (50 for a Yokozuna, 30 for an Ozeki, 20 for a Sekiwake, and 10 for a Komusubi.) Since Juryo wrestlers are not tracked in Fantasy Basho, rikishi receive their win total as a score for any basho in Juryo.
With all of that out of the way, here is how the Power Rankings look going into Hatsu 2020. Notes and thoughts below the chart.
Notes:
After Hakuho's dominance in Kyushu, it's no surprise that he tops the list. Of course, he posted a 0 at Aki, which maybe makes his ranking even more impressive. He's still the king of the mountain. Of course, a Yokozuna bonus also helps.
If Hakuho's tendency to miss every other tournament puts you off, the next two are Asanoyama and Takakeisho. You probably did not need the Power Rankings to know that those are two of the best picks for Fantasy Basho. Still, it's good to have common knowledge reinforced.
Takakeisho, Abi, and Daiesho are third, fourth, and fifth, largely thanks to their Sanyaku bonuses.
Speaking of bonuses, if you want to remove those, the top would be Asanoyama (127), Mitakeumi (110), Hakuho (108), Abi (106), Kotoyuki (106), Enho (105), Daieisho (104), Takakeisho (102), and Kagayaki (100). That's a pretty serious jumble, reflecting that Asanoyama is the only rikishi who has had an excellent basho in the last three and been present for all three of them.
Something should be said for Mitakeumi, who was not great in Kyushu and has been looked down on a bit since then as he fell out of Sanyaku for the first time in years. But he's still talented and won two basho ago, so he's up towards the top for a reason.
Tochinoshin is the bottom, sadly enough. It's a warning about how much injuries can wreck a rikishi.
It should also be noted that Takayasu would be below Tochinoshin if it were not for his Sekiwake bonus.
Kiribayama and Ikioi have spent the last three basho in the second division. Their scores are entirely based on Juryo win totals.
Since 32 rikishi are picked in an 8-team league, it's always key to spot who is in 32nd place on the power rankings. This time out it's a 3-way tie between Aoiyama, Ryuden, and Shimanoumi at 72 points.
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