Asashoryu commits a serious mistake on Day 5

[cstaylor]

Anyone watch the Nagoya tournament on T.V. today? Asashoryu was caught grabbing the chiomage of his opponent Kyokushuzan... not something becoming a Yokozuna... look for it in all of the sports pages tomorrow morning.

[Taro Toporific]

[Taro Toporific]

[ramchop]

It's not looking good for the FG Sumo wrestlers.

- one fights like a girl and pulls the hair of his opponent
- one looks and moves like a beached whale (which in Japan has to be an endangered species)

...and the rest look like also rans.


Don't tell me a Japanese guy might actually win this one.

[Taro Toporific]

... not something becoming a Yokozuna... look for it in all of the sports pages tomorrow morning.

Oh great wise one
See the far right column, mid-way down for the sumo hair pull.

[cstaylor]

It doesn't take a genius to predict what will show up in the sports pages in Japan.

[Taro Toporific]

Anyone watch the Nagoya tournament on T.V. today? Asashoryu was caught grabbing the chiomage of his opponent Kyokushuzan... not something becoming a Yokozuna...

Sumo association gets bomb warning, Asashoryu also threatened
NAGOYA July 14 Kyodo -
The Japan Sumo Association on Monday received a bomb threat and calls threatening an assault on Mongolian yokozuna Asashoryu, association sources said.
Several calls were made to the association to the effect that somebody would assault the 22-year-old grand champion during the ongoing Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament, they said.


Asashoryu defeated by Tamanoshima at Nagoya sumo
(Kyodo) NAGOYA, Japan - Yokozuna Asashoryu ... suffering his fourth loss on July 14, the ninth day of the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament. Asashoryu will sit out the tourney from July 15 due to an elbow injury.




Mongolian arch-rivals in bathtub bust-up
Reuters / July 15 2003
Fire-brand sumo champion Asashoryu landed himself in trouble for the third time in a week after a bathtub bust-up with his Mongolian arch-rival on Sunday.
The 22-year-old was involved in a slanging match with Kyokushuzan during a post-bout soak, three days after being disqualified for breaking sumo taboo by pulling the hair of his compatriot in their tussle at the Nagoya tournament.

[cstaylor]

I got it from an inside source that the "fight" was more like pushing and shouting, no punches were thrown (but we know how the tabloids like to blow things out of proportion).

[ramchop]

Seems to me the lower ranks have a much easier time of it. Two of the current leaders are ranked M-12 and M-13, and from what I've seen they haven't fought anyone of note yet. Whereas all the big boys fight the higher ranked wrestlers.

I've only witnessed 3 tournaments in my time in Japan, all won by an Ozeki or Yokozuna. Do the lower ranked fighters ever win tournaments?

[cstaylor]

Anyone in the Makuuchi level can win the tournament. I'm pretty sure they'll at least fight one of the top wrestlers before the end of the tournament.

[Steve Bildermann]

Seems to me the lower ranks have a much easier time of it. Two of the current leaders are ranked M-12 and M-13, and from what I've seen they haven't fought anyone of note yet. Whereas all the big boys fight the higher ranked wrestlers.

I've only witnessed 3 tournaments in my time in Japan, all won by an Ozeki or Yokozuna. Do the lower ranked fighters ever win tournaments?

If the Sumo Kyokai want them to