Sumo January Hatsu Basho Day 15 - Final Day

Sumo January Hatsu Basho Day 15 - Final Day

Osunaarashi vs Aozora

Big power by Osuna here as he knocked his opponent down with chest strikes! Osunaarashi is a bad dude.
Takanoyama vs Asasekiryu

Awesome match here. Maybe the best match of the whole basho. Takanoyama just constantly went to the side and used his palm strikes and his mawashi even came out! Don't see that happen often. Both guys were wrecked here at the end when Takano finally got Asa's back and pushed him out. A heck of a match that is a must see. This is sumo at its finest!
Jokoryu vs Kyokushuho

Decent match here with Kyoku getting under Joko for the win.
Takanoiwa vs Daikiho

Rough power battle here with Takanoiwa holding on to take it.
Sadanofuji vs Takarafuji

Fun defensive match here with Sadano taking it for the win.
Tochinowaka vs Takekaze

Fun match here with Takekaze getting the win. Tochino tried to use his height but Take got under and he was so far down that Tochino took a fall to lose.
Daido vs Aran

Daido rushed too fast and didn't have any connection as he ended up on his face.
Masunoyama vs Kaisei

Kaisei got a quick one here to win.

Aminishiki vs Aoiyama

Fun match with Aoi pushing his opponent everywhere along the edge before missing a push and getting put down.


Tochiozan vs Takayasu

They had two false starts by Tochio before he put Taka away quick. An odd match.


Ikioi vs Baruto

Smart sumo by Baruto to get the win. His opponent went too far over in trying to take him down and Baruto just simply had to push to the other side to win. This was their second go at it as the first time they touched around the same time, but Baruto got saved as his hand did touch first on the first try(Thanks to JoshI for alerting me that there was a first try, as I just saw the 2nd, not knowing there were 2 parts).
Goeido vs Tochinoshin

Goeido took the win here by getting his opponent to the edge and using his leverage to get him out.



Kotoshogiku vs Kakuryu

Kaku just got overpowered the whole time and had no real answer for Kotoshogiku. He held on as long as he could though.
Kisenosato vs Kotooshu

Upset loss as Kisenosato goes down! Koto was in trouble early and got some leverage off the end of the dohyo and rallied forth to win! Definitely didn't see this coming.
Hakuho vs Harumafuji

Hakuho just ran out of space here and got rushed to take the loss. Pretty big loss to end a disappointing tournament for Hakuho and to cement Harumafuji as the man at 15-0.


FINAL RANKINGS:
Makuuchi Champion - Harumafuji
Juryo Champion - Takanoiwa
Makushita Champion - Oniarashi
Sandanme Champion - Hamaguchi
Jonidan Champion - Amuru
Jonokuchi Champion - Tamao
Kanto Sho Fighting Spirit Award - Takayasu

15-0: Harumafuji

14-1: None

13-2: None

12-3: Hakuho, Takayasu and Juryo Champion Takanoiwa

11-4: Jokoryu and Kyokushuho - Both Juryo

10-5: Kisenosato, Kotooshu, Chiyotairyu and Tokitenku. Chiyootori and Homarefuji of Juryo.

9-6: Aminishiki, Tochinoshin and Takarafuji

8-7: Kakuryu, Kotoshogiku, Goeido, Baruto, Tochiozan, Ikioi, Kitataiki, Okinoumi, Fujiazuma, Tamawashi, Shotenro and Tochinowaka.

ALL NON-OZEKI GET DEMOTIONS BELOW THIS LINE
7-8: Myogiryu, Aran, Aoiyama, Yoshikaze and Sadanofuji.

6-9: Toyonoshima, Kaisei, Gagamaru, Takaekaze, Daido and Kotoyuki.

5-10: Toyohibiki

4-11: Shohozan, Kyokutenho, Masunoyama, Wakasnosato, Asahisho and Tamaasuka.

3-12: Miyabiyama

2-13 and below: None from Makuuchi.

Overall thoughts: What more can you say at this point? Harumafuji dominated, didn't lose and took down the Yokozuna for extra bragging rights. Pretty much a picture perfect win for Harumafuji and it was well deserved. Hakuho underperformed and should have had another win, but the early loss killed him. Kotooshu had a pretty good tournament with a win on a Yokozuna and an Ozeki. Kisenosato looked good but then had a rough end to the tournament. As for others, Jokoryu looked pretty good and Tochinowaka is still working out the kinks, but should be a threat. Takanoyama had a rough tournament with the same problems he always has, but his technique may be superior to anyone else. Shohozan was really disappointing and I was surprised to see Aoiyama not make kachi-koshi. Baruto didn't have a bad showing but he needs time off and he needs it now. He goes down to Komusubi and he's got a long road back. Osunaarashi impressed me and may be a force to reckon with in the future.

Thanks for following my coverage of the January Hatsu Basho. This is my first time doing it and there's still alot I need to learn. I hope you enjoyed the coverage and the tournament.