[sumo] Fwd: [Sumo news] - Kirishima's Yokozuna bid- the end?

[Jeff A]

Moti


Best regards,
Gaijingai

For of all sad words of tongue or pen,
The saddest are these:
It might have been.
- John Greenleaf Whittier

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Moti Dichne <niramiai at gmail.com>
Date: Sun, Sep 20, 2026 at 12:11 PM
Subject: [Sumo news] - Kirishima's Yokozuna bid- the end?
To: Sumo Newsletter2 <sumo-newsletter2 at googlegroups.com>


Kirishima  watch:

His bid for promotion to Yokozuna has become extremely difficult. He was
oshitaoshi'd by  Churanoumi (33), reaching the basho's halfway mark with a
5-3 record. With a high-level yusho required for promotion, all his losses
have come against hiramaku rikishi. He has struggled to sustain his
attacks, and his performance quality is under strict scrutiny regarding the
promotion decision. With bouts against the top-ranked rikishi still ahead,
the path to the rope has become steep.

A collective sigh was heard in the arena. During a pushing exchange with
Churanoumi, Kirishima was sidestepped , lost his balance, and was
ultimately pushed down, landing on his buttocks. He did not speak to the
press after the bout and was seen hanging his head in the shitakubeya. Like
his losses to Takayasu and Yoshinofuji, this defeat was also against a
hiramaku rikishi. Having three losses by the midpoint, with matches against
the top ranks still to come, makes the Yokozuna bid an uphill battle.

Asakayama, the Director of Judging (former Ozeki KaioU), emphasized that
the requirement for a high-level yusho "remains unchanged from what was
stated before the tournament." While he did not explicitly rule out the
possibility of promotion, he noted, "We have to look at the opponents he
lost to. It is inevitable that he will be judged strictly."

Even if he racks up wins from here on out, the nature of the losses he has
already suffered cannot simply be erased. He is unable to replicate the
strength shown in keiko during the actual tournament. In pre-tournament
keiko, he was charging hard and moving forward well. Yet, in this
tournament, he has frequently found himself on the defensive right from the
tachiai and barely hanging on at the edge of the dohyo. Even in his win
against Gounoyama the previous day, he managed to scrape a victory with a
tottari only after being put on the defensive first.

Hakkaku Rijicho pointed out the nature of the day's action, noting, "When
things stalled midway through, he needed to step in and drive forward." He
also expressed concern that Kirishima might lose sight of his goal. "It
would be a serious issue if he loses sight of his goals and his drive fades
from here on out. The question is whether he can reset his mindset."

The concern was not so much about expectations for a yusho or promotion to
Yokozuna, but rather whether he can refocus on the remaining bouts. It
cannot be definitively said that the path to a Yokozuna promotion is
closed. However, in a tournament where the quality of sumo matters just as
much as the win-loss record, he repeatedly failed to seriously go on the
attack. Promotion following this tournament is a long shot. Unless he first
regains a style of sumo that involves driving forward, any hope for
promotion will slip away. [Ryotaro Yamada]


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