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'The Greatest Yokozuna to Ever Live Defended the East Yet Again!'
Battle Recap:
The current reigning champion of the Autumn Sumo Series is Hakuho of the East; he is known as the greatest Japanese wrestler to have ever lived. He is a masterful Yokozuna whom has always been the biggest man in the Dohyō. His size and power has truly been unmatched, and only a few have ever staked claim to even compete with him. His last bout in late July against long time foe of the West (Harafamuji) showed that he can dispatch even the most quality of opponents within only a couple moments. This battle was intense and at a standstill for a good minute, this was until the grip and power of Hahuho took over...
It seemed as though Harafamuji had a tightly locked grip around the Fundoshi of Hakuho, and he had the back of his opponent facing the audience. He started well, and he seemed to try an Uwate-Nage (which is a belt throw from the hip). This cost him dearly though as Hakuho thrives in the clinch; the Eastern fighter's size and power overwhelmed the West's hero and created a chaos within the gameplan. Hakuho was able to convert his position back to the center start, and pulled a Yori-Kiri on the smaller man. Yori-Kiri is how most Sumo battles are won, as it is a front facing force out resembling a man pushing a car up a hill. This is a tough move to utilize as it is a head to head power maneuver, but Hakuho is the strongest Yokozuna to ever do it!
Understanding Sumo Ranks:
For the un-inclined, a Yokozuna is the name for the Sumo Champion of an era. This is decided by pure wins at the championship level, and Hakuho is considered the greatest of all times as he possess 39 titles over the course of the last decade. Asashōryū Akinori was the most famous Yokozuna of the era past. He was most prevalent in the Western World as no other Sumo wrestler had shown the philanthropic qualities, nor the sheer strength or skill he possessed.
It is important to note that there are many brilliant active wrestlers whom don't reach Yokozuna because of their size disadvantage. In Sumo tournaments, all ranks are considered champion level, there is simply a structure to reach the elite of the elite. I have had incredible fun watching the smaller Sumos throw each other around, sometimes the ōzeki fighters right below Yokozuna rank have the greatest wars of all!
Nobody starts as a Yokozuna: promotion is subjective and judged on tangibles such as winning a single tournament, defeating a Yokozuna, and showing consistency, prowess and quality in the Sumo arena. Any Rikishi has the opportunity to be the greatest, for now, we live in the Golden Age of Hakuho!